The Chronicles Of Grant County
SNAP Benefits
Part One
SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits can be used to purchase fruits like apples. (The photograph was produced by Lance Cheung and provided courtesy of the USDA, November 9, 2014.)
Benefits provided through the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) can be used to purchase a wide variety of food. Previously, the SNAP was called the “Food Stamps Program.” The name change took place in October of 2008.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), among the items that can be purchased through the SNAP are: “fruits and vegetables; meat, poultry, and fish; dairy products; breads and cereals; other foods such as snack foods and non-alcoholic beverages; and seeds and plants, which produce food for the household to eat.”
In some areas of southwest New Mexico, large numbers of people were reported to have received benefits through the SNAP. In other sections of the region, though, few or no people were reported to have utilized the SNAP. All statistics listed in this news column are from the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the USDA.
According to statistics in a report of activities in July of 2023 – the most recent report on usage of the SNAP – from the FNS of the USDA, no people received benefits through the SNAP in Catron County.
The same report, issued on March 12, 2024, indicated that 19 people in nine households received benefits through the SNAP in Hidalgo County. Of those individuals, four people in one household were receiving public assistance and 15 people in eight households were not receiving public assistance. A total of $3,965.00 was spent by the government for these benefits provided through the SNAP.
In Grant County, 7,796 people in 4,310 households received benefits through the SNAP in July of 2023. Four hundred and fifty-six people in 172 households were receiving public assistance and 7,340 people in 4,138 households were not receiving public assistance. These government benefits provided through the SNAP cost $1,443,184.00.
In July of 2023, the largest number of people in the region using the SNAP lived in Luna County: 10,808 people in 5,206 households. Of those individuals, 595 people in 198 households were receiving public assistance and 10,213 people in 5,008 households were not receiving public assistance. The total amount spent by the government for the SNAP benefits in this county was $1,970,246.
To place this information in context, the United States Census Bureau reported the following statistics: There were 3,579 people living in Catron County in 2020, with 1,609 households estimated to be in this county in 2022. In Grant County, there were 28,185 people living in this county in 2020, and a total of 11,292 households estimated to be here in 2022. A total of 4,178 people were living in Hidalgo County in 2020; there were an estimated 1,557 households in this county in 2022. There were 25,427 people living in Luna County in 2020, with 8,951 households estimated to be in this county in 2022.
To provide even more context, the next edition of The Chronicles Of Grant County will include historical comparisons from 1989 to 2022 to the statistics for usage of the SNAP in Catron County and Hidalgo County in 2023. Part Three of this series of news columns will include historical comparisons to the 2023 statistics for usage of the SNAP in Grant County and Luna County from 1989 to 2022. Part Four will include further details on how people can use the SNAP, the requirements for people to receive the SNAP benefits, how to apply for the SNAP, and where to apply for the SNAP.
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© 2024 Richard McDonough
