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It's a Cruel Summer: Household Responses to Reductions in Government Nutrition Assistance

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  • Lorenzo Almada
  • Ian McCarthy

Abstract

The appropriate size and scope of government nutrition assistance programs is a regular source of debate among policy-makers, and with calls to reduce government benefits, a clear understanding of household responses to any proposed benefit reduction is critical. Exploiting the design of U.S. nutrition assistance programs, we examine how low-income households reallocate their budgets following an exogenous reduction in nutrition assistance benefits. The magnitude of our results suggests that the budget for an average low-income household with children is severely inflexible and likely unable to absorb more than a $2 to $3 reduction in nutrition benefits per child per week.

Suggested Citation

  • Lorenzo Almada & Ian McCarthy, 2017. "It's a Cruel Summer: Household Responses to Reductions in Government Nutrition Assistance," NBER Working Papers 23633, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:23633
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    Cited by:

    1. Craig Gundersen, 2019. "The Right to Food in the United States: The Role of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 101(5), pages 1328-1336, October.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • C25 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions; Probabilities
    • D1 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

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