With the government shutdown leading to a reduction in funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), fresh data is surfacing about how immigrants are still accessing these taxpayer-funded benefits.
In a recent interview, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins revealed that the USDA has discovered “thousands” of instances in which individuals have misused SNAP and WIC.
The findings arose after the Department of Agriculture mandated states to provide food stamp data to ensure illegal aliens aren’t utilizing these resources. Rollins noted that only 29 states have complied with this request.
“This issue has spotlighted a flawed and corrupt system. We identified one individual in approximately six states still receiving benefits, and shockingly, nearly 5,000 deceased individuals were still on the rolls,” Rollins stated. “We need to fundamentally reform this program to make sure the truly needy get assistance, eliminate any lingering corruption, and properly serve American taxpayers.”
According to last year’s Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), analyzed by the Center for Immigration Studies, a significant portion of immigrant-headed households—many of which have U.S.-born children—are obtaining SNAP and WIC benefits.
Specifically, 47 percent of immigrant households with children under 6 are benefiting from SNAP, WIC, or both, whereas only 31 percent of American-born households with young kids receive similar help.
“Numerous immigrants have low educational backgrounds and income levels, so halting WIC and SNAP would heavily impact this demographic,” researchers Steven Camarota and Karen Zeigler noted. “This raises critical policy questions, such as: Should our immigration system allow so many individuals who depend on taxpayer support for their children? [Emphasis added]
The analysis reveals that Latin American immigrant households are significant beneficiaries of SNAP and WIC, with 65% relying on at least one of the programs and 28% using both.
Additionally, 43 percent of immigrant households with young children in the U.S., including naturalized citizens, are receiving SNAP or WIC benefits.
“These findings indicate that immigrant communities will bear the brunt if these programs close,” the researchers stated. “It also highlights the difficulty of preventing low-income immigrants from accessing welfare systems once they settle in a new country.”
