(PatriotWise.com) — According to a study released last Thursday, the massive expansion of food stamp benefits under the Biden administration likely led to a 15 percent rise in grocery prices, Fox News reported.
In 2021, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), which runs the Supplemental Assistance Nutrition Program (SNAP), revised the nutritional standards for federal food stamp benefits, expanding the program by 27 percent from pre-pandemic levels.
According to a study from the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA), overall federal spending on SNAP more than doubled from 2019 to 2022, increasing from $4.5 billion to $11 billion.
In its study, FGA argues that increased spending on SNAP contributed to the price increases in groceries.
According to FGA’s Vice President of Policy and Research Jonathan Ingram, the 27 percent increase in food stamps under the Biden administration is “the largest permanent increase” in the history of the program, and the Department of Agriculture “bypassed Congress to do it.”
Ingram contends that rather than “stopping hunger,” the massive expansion of SNAP is “feeding inflation.”
According to the study, the World Bank found that a 1 percent increase in food stamp benefits per capita would lead to a 0.08 percent increase in grocery prices.
FGA estimates that Congress could cut over $193 billion in federal spending by repealing the Biden administration’s expansion of SNAP.
According to the Agriculture Department, food prices in 2023 are expected to increase by 5.8 percent on average. While the increase is at a slower pace than in 2022, it is still higher than historical averages, the USDA said.
SNAP spending will likely be the focus when Congress seeks to reauthorize the Farm Bill, which includes a wide range of spending from food stamp benefits to rural broadband. According to Fox News, Republican lawmakers are looking to rein in SNAP spending.
Copyright 2023, PatriotWise.com
