What People Get Wrong About SNAP
Earlier this year, a public official shared a story about a woman who had relied on SNAP benefits throughout her life. He suggested that because she had always used food assistance, she didn't understand how money worked at the grocery store and needed to be taught how to budget.
It's a story that reflects a common misconception about poverty in America.
At the Port Angeles Food Bank, our experience tells a very different story.
The people we serve know exactly how money works.
They know how much a gallon of milk costs. They know which stores have the best sales. They know how to compare prices by ounce, stretch leftovers into another meal, and make a week's worth of groceries last longer than most people would think possible.
Many of our neighbors receiving SNAP benefits are budgeting every single day. They are tracking balances, planning meals, clipping coupons, buying store brands, and making difficult decisions about what they can afford and what they have to go without.
In fact, if you've ever had to make a limited grocery budget last an entire month, you've likely developed budgeting skills that many people with higher incomes never have to learn.
The problem isn't usually a lack of budgeting knowledge.
The problem is that many households are trying to make an impossible budget work.
When rent increases by hundreds of dollars a month, when childcare costs rival a mortgage payment, when a prescription needs to be filled, when a car breaks down, or when grocery prices continue to rise, there comes a point where no amount of budgeting can create money that isn't there.
This is something we see every day.
We serve seniors who carefully track every penny of their fixed income. We serve working parents who juggle multiple jobs while raising children. We serve people with disabilities, veterans, and families facing unexpected hardships. Again and again, we meet people who are doing everything "right" and still find themselves needing help.
SNAP was never intended to cover all of a household's food needs. For many families, benefits run out before the month does. That's where food banks step in.
Food assistance programs exist not because people are irresponsible, but because life is expensive and circumstances change. A lost job, a medical emergency, rising housing costs, or an unexpected bill can quickly put food out of reach.
The stereotype that people receiving assistance simply need to budget better misses the reality of what hunger looks like in our community.
Hunger is not a character flaw.
It is not a sign of laziness.
And it is not evidence of poor money management.
More often than not, it is the result of people doing their very best in the face of circumstances that would challenge any of us.
At the Port Angeles Food Bank, we believe everyone deserves access to nutritious food, regardless of their income, age, or situation. We also believe our neighbors deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.
The next time you hear someone suggest that people receiving SNAP benefits just need to learn how to budget, consider this: the families standing in line at the food bank may be some of the most skilled budgeters in our community.