Biden Makes Moves On Stimulus Payments And Food Stamps

While many people are still concerned about their health with the coronavirus floating around, here’s what has others worried: Their finances.

Coronavirus shutdowns have triggered record job and income loss, making it hard for many families to meet their monthly expenses. President Biden has made two specific moves to help alleviate these worries, which we’ll discuss now.

Stimulus Payments

Congress recently passed a bill giving direct $600 payments to those meeting certain income limits. Some still have not received those payments, which could come in handy with paying the bills, buying groceries, etc. To fix this issue, Biden signed an order streamlining the delivery of stimulus checks for those still in the dark about where their money is.

Beyond accelerating current stimulus payments, Biden also noted that he’d like to increase those payouts to $2,000. To make it happen, he’s slated to ask Congress to pass legislation allowing for additional $1,400 checks to meet that $2,000 amount.

Food Stamps

Although moratoriums on evictions may have given struggling families some breathing room for paying the rent, a need that has never stopped is the one for food. As breadwinners lost their jobs and saw their income drop, they had to find ways to keep putting food on the table.

One way is via food assistance from the government, with food stamps or SNAP benefits being the most popular option. Under another order signed by Biden, the U.S. Department of Agriculture allows states to offer more SNAP benefits to recipients thanks to a 15 percent increase in funding for the food program.

Congress had passed a bill to increase the maximum SNAP benefit by 15 percent. Unfortunately, that increase didn’t apply to 40 percent of food stamp recipients already at the max. With Biden’s new order, that can change, giving more people food assistance who need it. How many people could be affected by this move? According to the White House, approximately 12 million more could receive additional benefits.

Beyond upping the food stamp maximum, Biden also vowed to increase Pandemic-EBT, a program that gives electronic debit cards to students eligible for free or reduced-priced meals. Not only has Biden asked the USDA to increase P-EBT benefits by 15 percent, as with food stamps, but he also wants to make it easier to receive such assistance. By doing so, the White House estimates that families with three kids could receive an extra $100 in monthly support.

Last but not least, the Thrifty Food Plan may be reassessed. It’s what the USDA uses to determine SNAP benefits, but officials from the White House have called it outdated, especially with all of the low-income households that are currently struggling during the pandemic. Data from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that nearly 20 percent of adults with children say they didn’t have enough food to eat within the last seven days. By revamping the Thrifty Food Plan, that number could decrease.

Expanding SNAP benefits could also benefit the overall economy. As more people enroll in SNAP, they spend those federal funds on food, which provides income for those who produce, transport, and sell it. For every $1 billion increase in food stamp benefits, the United States’ GDP could rise by $1.54 billion, supporting almost 14,000 jobs. That’s according to the USDA Economic Research Service.