Newark, NJ, mayor goes on food stamps

Though Newark, New Jersey Mayor Corey Booker's pledge to live on Food Stamps for a week has generated plenty of headlines, the bigger story with the entitlement program is that many people who are eligible to receive the benefits don't bother applying.

Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers what known officially as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), shows that roughly 1 in 4 people eligible to receive the benefits don't get them. The reasons why vary. According to the Food Action and Research Center, many people may not know that their eligible while others don't bother to participate because applying for benefits is a gigantic hassle.

"According to one USDA study, four times as many people drop out of the application
process as complete the process but are denied benefits," according to a report issued by the non-profit. "The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that some households, including those with eligible children, have had difficulty obtaining food stamp benefits because state and local governments limited benefits beyond the scope of what the law permits."

Another reason for the poor participation rate may be pride. I have never met anyone on public assistance who is pleased to be on the government dole. These people would much rather be working and supporting themselves and their families. But as anyone who has lived through the worst economic slowdown since the Great Depression knows, things don't always work out as people would like.

Earlier this year, the Obama administration unveiled a public relations blitz to get more people to enroll, which did not sit well with some political conservatives because the number of Americans receiving Food Stamps rose by more than 200% between 2000 and 2011 while spending surged by nearly 400%, according to the Heritage Foundation. Welfare spending is a focal point in the debate over the so-called Fiscal Cliff that's going on in Congress.  Some cuts will need to be made but let's hope they are done smartly and don't damage programs that really do help the poor such as Food Stamps.

As Booker, who many expect to challenge New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie next year, will soon discover being dependent on the government for food isn't easy. The average benefit works out to about $4 a day, which doesn't leave much room for applicants to buy "extravagances" such as fresh fruit and vegetables. The food they can easily afford is the unhealthy stuff, which partially explains our country's soaring obesity rates.

--Follow Jonathan Berr on Twitter@jdberr.