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Abstract

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) typically administers 15 domestic food and nutrition assistance programs that together affect the lives of millions of people and account for roughly two-thirds of USDA’s annual budget. In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, USDA launched two new programs, Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) and the Farmers to Families Food Box Program (Food Box Program). Additionally, USDA implemented numerous policy changes that expanded the scope and coverage of existing programs. Together, these initiatives contributed to an increase in expenditures on food and nutrition assistance programs, which amounted to a historical inflation-adjusted high of $122.1 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2020 (October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020). This report uses preliminary data from USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to examine program trends in the largest U.S. food and nutrition assistance programs through FY 2020 and documents the many policy changes implemented since March 2020. It also summarizes a recent USDA, Economic Research Service report examining the prevalence of household food insecurity in the United States in 2019 and a working paper examining Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and P-EBT benefit redemptions during the pandemic.

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