You Won't Believe How Much the Gov't Spends on 'Food Assistance' Each Year

It’s Friday. You know what that means, right? It means it’s time for your weekly dose of "sobering chart." So, without any further introduction, here’s a chart from Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee:

As the above clearly illustrates, the U.S. government spends roughly $110 billion per year on 80 "food assistance" programs, meaning the amount spent has increased by approximately $70 billion in just ten years.

From the minority side of the Senate:

The federal government administers more than a dozen nutrition support programs in addition to food stamps. A family of four could receive $9,000 or more in benefits per year through these various programs (in addition to other means-tested support like housing, TANF, and cash welfare). USDA, the agency that administers most of them, has actively tried to expand enrollment in food stamps and other nutrition programs even further -- including among those who explicitly say they do not need financial assistance.

For example, the agency has produced training materials to help recruitment workers 'overcome the word "No," and even goes so far as to suggest that people who choose not to sign up for food stamps are hurting their communities: 'Each $5 dollars in new SNAP benefits generates almost twice that amount in economic activity for the community… Everyone wins when eligible people take advantage of benefits to which they are entitled.'"

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