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Record numbers in Michigan seek food stamps, other assistance

About 1.9 million residents in economically struggling Michigan are receiving government food assistance, the highest number here in the more than 40-year history of the federal food stamp program and more than in all but five states.
The cost of providing the food stamps for Michigan families grew to $1.24 billion last year, up 145 percent from just five years earlier. And the government estimates that more than 300,000 residents who are not receiving assistance could qualify for it.

``We've seen a pretty steady climb since December 2000 and it's gone up by a few thousand cases each and every month,'' Maureen Sorbet, spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of Human Services, told The Detroit News for a Monday story. ``There must be a time when we reach the saturation point, but it's difficult to determine when that will be.''

The numbers of people relying on nongovernment food banks, pantries and shelters for food needs are also growing. The Food Bank Council of Michigan says more than 1 million people received in excess of 75 million pounds of free food from charitable and religious groups last year.

``Our agencies say there is more demand, more working-poor families and more people who are coming in for the first time ever,'' said Jane Marshall, the council's executive director.

The trend is being driven by massive downsizing in the state's auto industry and the disappearance of manufacturing jobs. Michigan's December unemployment rate of 7.1 percent was second-highest to Mississippi's 7.5 percent and trailed the national average of 4.5 percent.

Rule changes, such as a 2000 rule that increased the income threshold for food assistance, also have increased participation.

The federal government pays 100 percent of the food stamp program and half of its administrative costs. The remainder is covered by states. In Michigan, that was $93 million in 2006.


Information from: The Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com