Evaluation of Food Stamp Research Grants to Improve Access Through New Technology and Partnerships: Executive Report

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Background

In 2002, the Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded grants to 19 local outreach projects to investigate how to increase participation in the Food Stamp Program, or FSP. The projects, which were implemented in different locations across 15 states, included a technological component and/or partnerships with other organizations to expand the scope of outreach. This report summarizes the findings of these projects.

These grants represent one of several recent initiatives the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has undertaken to increase FSP participation. The Agency launched a national public education campaign in 1999 to increase awareness of the program. FNS also funded two previous sets of grants for community organizations to experiment with FSP outreach (USDA 2004; LTG Associates 1999). In 2004, FNS completed an Internet-based prescreening tool that individuals or local groups can use to estimate eligibility.

Low participation rates among people eligible for food stamp benefits have prompted these outreach efforts. Many low-income individuals fail to receive a monthly benefit that could substantially increase their total family resources. (The maximum monthly food stamp benefit, $393 for a family of three in 2005, increases household resources by about 30 percent of the poverty threshold.) Official estimates indicate that about 56 percent of eligible individuals participated in the program in 2003 (Cunnyngham 2005). According to recent research, a lack of knowledge, expectations of small benefits, stigma associated with using government assistance, a desire for independence, and complicated application procedures all reduce participation (Ponza et al. 1999; McConnell and Ponza 1999; Bartlett, Burstein, and Hamilton 2004).

The 2002 outreach projects addressed factors that limit participation. All grantees attempted to educate their target populations about food stamp benefits through various media outlets, flyers, and presentations. Grantees also experimented with various mechanisms to induce more food stamp applications by providing

• prescreening assistance to show clients whether they were eligible for benefits and, if so, how large a benefit; and
• application assistance that ranged from giving clients the food stamp application form to more intensive hands-on services to helping clients complete the application process.

This report synthesizes quantitative and qualitative data collected from the outreach projects. Data quantifying the grantees' activities and client outcomes were collected through a web-based reporting system. Data describing the grantees' progress and processes were collected through three rounds of phone interviews and six site visits to projects that represented a range of partnerships and strategies. A synthesis of project evaluation reports supplements the quantitative and qualitative findings.

The findings provide important lessons about outreach strategies and FSP participation. None of the projects used an experimental approach that can conclusively identify outreach activity impacts. Also, concurrent changes in some FSP policies and a softening economy make it especially difficult to assess whether the interventions were the primary factor affecting food stamp participation at the project sites. But the projects offer insight into establishing effective partnerships with other community groups and local food offices, using technology to reach low-income people, and the effectiveness of different types of outreach strategies.

Note: This report is available in its entirety in the Portable Document Format (PDF).

The nonpartisan Urban Institute publishes studies, reports, and books on timely topics worthy of public consideration. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders.

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