By Angela Rachidi | Thomas O’Rourke AEIdeas July 12, 2023
Skeptics of work requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) often argue that most families receiving SNAP benefits are already working. A recent NBCNews article, for example, claimed that four out of five SNAP households have at least one working person in the household, and that 10 percent had three or more workers in 2021, citing the US Census Bureau as its source. Other organizations, such as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, have produced similar statistics, also sourced to the Census Bureau.
However, a closer look at the data suggests these statistics are misleading. When understood properly, they support the importance of encouraging employment in SNAP.
The main problem with these claims is that they rely on household survey data collected by the Census Bureau, which, according to an expert review, “suffer[s] from an alarming and growing extent of survey error and few studies attempt to correct for this error.” Many recipients simply fail to report receiving government benefits when asked on surveys, with research suggesting that between 25–50 percent of SNAP recipients (depending on the survey) do not report participating, while some non-recipients report receiving it. This misreporting should give researchers caution when presenting the results of any analysis that relies on Census data alone............. To Read More
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