Identifying Communities Under-Enrolled in SNAP

Introduction

Increasing enrollment in federal food benefit programs is an important strategy included in New York City’s 10-year food policy plan [1].  One of the most important benefit programs is the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides financial benefits to enable individuals and households to purchase food. In New York City, approximately 1.5 million people participated in SNAP in 2019, and due to the economic disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, SNAP enrollment has grown [2].  Yet despite the large number of people who depend on SNAP, many individuals who are eligible for the program are not enrolled. 

Currently, NYC provides monthly SNAP participation data at the City, Borough, and Community District scales, along with a citywide Program Access Index (PAI), an estimate of the percentage of eligible New Yorkers currently participating in SNAP.  The Program Access Index (PAI), developed by the USDA, is calculated as the number of SNAP participants over the course of a calendar year divided by the number of people with income below 125% of the federal poverty level (estimates obtained from the US Census American Community Survey).  In New York City, the PAI is estimated to be 91%, but considering state eligibility criteria (with some eligible individuals making up to 200% of the federal poverty limit), the NYC Department of Social Services estimates that approximately 75% of those eligible for SNAP are enrolled in the program. With approximately 1.6 million people participating in the program in New York City in 2019, those eligible but not enrolled would thus represent half a million New Yorkers, a sizeable population. The economic value of the benefits not redeemed would equal over $800 million per year (based on an average individual receiving $136/month), and with its multiplier effect equals approximately $1.2 billion in foregone economic activity per year [3,4].

A key policy question is the extent to which New Yorkers who are eligible for SNAP are not receiving these benefits, and whether these “eligible but unenrolled” individuals are concentrated in neighborhoods with specific demographic characteristics. To examine the patterns of SNAP eligible but unenrolled people, in developing the prototype FEED-NYC dashboard, we mapped SNAP participation and likely eligibility rates for the city. The community SNAP dashboard estimates the number of people in each community who are eligible for - but unenrolled in - SNAP.  For each of the 55 Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) (which are approximately coterminous with NYC’s 59 community districts) the indicator divides the number of SNAP participants by the number of people in the community who have incomes 125% or lower than the federal poverty level, a conservative estimate of eligibility. The map in the upper right area of the dashboard shows overall SNAP participation as a percentage of the population in each PUMA (ranging from 2% to 46%, and the map on the upper left shows SNAP PAI (ranging from 37% to 121%).   The slider filter can be used to show a specific range of interest, and the two maps are linked, so the filter will be applied to both maps. In the lower map, the dashboard also shows key demographic characteristics of each community likely to be associated with SNAP under-enrollment: (1) percent of population foreign born; (2) percent older adults; (3) number of individuals in homeless facilities; (4) percent households with children; and (5) percent speaking a language other than English at home. Foreign born individuals have been found to be reluctant to enroll in public benefits programs; SNAP participation is lower for older adults; and those not in permanent housing are likely to find enrollment and recertification in SNAP difficult.   Clicking on a community in the map will show additional demographic characteristics of the community in the table to the right. 

The scatterplot below presents similar information in a different visualization format. Using the drop down menus on the right, you can select various demographic characteristics of interest to display on the x-axis and SNAP information on the y-axis.  You can also limit the data to be displayed by borough. Communities in the lower half are potential areas in need of targeted outreach because they have lower rates of SNAP participation in comparison to likely eligibility.  Hover over each data point for full information. 

Potential Use Case

The community SNAP indicator can be used by city officials and advocates to identify neighborhoods vulnerable to food insecurity that would particularly benefit from boosting participation in SNAP.  This information could inform unique outreach strategies. For example, those responsible for developing outreach messaging and neighborhood outreach strategies could better target locations for outreach (senior centers, community centers), ensuring materials are in specific languages, and coordinating enrollment with other relevant programs (homeless services, Medicare, etc). 

Neighborhood enclaves of people with similar characteristics are quite common, and communities populated by groups that have a low propensity to participate in SNAP are likely to have low PAIs.  By filtering the map in the upper right to areas with low PAIs, one can see that, for example, Queens Community District 7 (Flushing, Murray Hill, and Whitestone) has a PAI of only 48% (meaning that it is estimated that less than half of those eligible for SNAP are enrolled).  By looking at the map and table in the lower half of the dashboard, one can see that this community also has a high percentage of foreign born (56.9%) and over half identify as Asian/Pacific Islander.  This information collectively can be used to tailor outreach and enrollment strategies.

1Food Metrics Report - Food Policy. https://www.nyc.gov/site/foodpolicy/reports-and-data/food-forward.page

2Thrasher D, Kealey E, Kinsey D. A Snapshot of Enrollment and Participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in New York City.  https://www.nyc.gov/assets/hra/downloads/pdf/facts/snap/SNAPParticipationNYC.pdf

3Fact Sheet: SNAP Enrollment Trends in New York City - June 2019.  https://www.nyc.gov/assets/immigrants/downloads/pdf/Fact-Sheet-June-2019.pdf

4Canning P, Stacy B. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Economy: New Estimates of the SNAP Multiplier. https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/93529/err265_summary.pdf