Food Insufficiency After SNAP Emergency Allotment Expiration: Evidence from Households with Children

• In Event: Understanding SNAP’s Reach and Impact: Evidence from Households, School Programs, and Markets

Abstract

Background and Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated food insecurity among households with children, prompting the USDA to implement Emergency Allotments (EA) under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which temporarily increased benefits for all recipients. Between April 2021 and March 2023, 18 states independently terminated SNAP-EA prior to the federal cutoff, creating natural variation in benefit access. This study examines how the expiration of SNAP-EA affected household food insufficiency among SNAP-recipient families with children, and whether the impact varied by race, child age, household income, and housing tenure. It aims to inform ongoing policy discussions by assessing the extent to which emergency food assistance protected families with children from food insecurity during periods of economic disruption. 
Methods: We linked state-level data on SNAP-EA termination dates to individual responses from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey (April 23, 2020–February 13, 2023), restricting the analytic sample to households with children aged 0 to 18 and focusing on food insufficiency as the primary outcome. Households receiving SNAP in states that discontinued EA before February 28, 2023 were categorized as treated, while those in states with active EA served as controls. We applied a staggered difference-in-differences approach using a two-way fixed effects model, adjusting for child age group, household structure, income, and other relevant socioeconomic characteristics. Subgroup analyses and interaction models were used to assess heterogeneity in EA expiration effects across race, child age group, income level, and housing tenure. We also conducted an event study analysis to examine the temporal dynamics of food insufficiency surrounding the timing of SNAP-EA termination. 
Results: Termination of EA was associated with a 10.2 percentage point increase in household food insufficiency among SNAP-recipient families with children (p < .001). Event study estimates supported the parallel trends assumption and showed a sharp post-termination increase in food insufficiency. Subgroup analyses revealed that the adverse impact of EA expiration varied by children’s age groups, with the largest effects observed among households with school-aged children and adolescents, including a 13.0 percentage point increase among those with children ages 0-4 (p < .001), 21.1 points for ages 5-11 (p = .006), and 24.1 points for ages 12-17 (p = .042). The increase was also significant among the lowest-income households (<$25,000), where food insufficiency rose by 8.5 points (p < .001). Notably, even among SNAP households that fully owned their home, EA expiration was associated with a 13.4 percentage point increase in food insufficiency (p < .001). 
Conclusion: The substantial increase in food insufficiency following the expiration of SNAP Emergency Allotments, especially among low-income households, families with younger children, and even homeowners, underscores the vulnerability of diverse household types. Policymakers should consider institutionalizing flexible benefit expansions that can be rapidly deployed during economic downturns. Sustaining enhanced SNAP benefits or implementing responsive triggers for benefit increases could help stabilize household food access, reduce disparities, and support family well-being across varying socioeconomic contexts.

Author

• Ruijie Ma, University of Pittsburgh
  Presenting Author