Southern States Participate Most in Social Welfare Programs

A previous Data in the News postfocused on the rising participation rate in means-tested assistance programs, and an interactive map on The New York Times website this week displayed the geographic distribution of government benefits.  Welfare programs accounted for 17.6% of personal income in 2009, the highest in history.  In 1929, total entitlements accounted for just 1% of Americans’ incomes, but with the expansion of Social Security, the initiation of Medicare and many other government programs, and the overall growth in entitlement spending, the share of income via welfare programs has risen substantially.  

And while all regions have experienced a greater flow of government benefits to their residents, states in the South and in the western portion of the Sun Belt have seen their dependence on government welfare programs rise the most.  States such as Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arizona, New Mexico and Tennessee possess many counties with a high level of dependence on government benefits; some counties have a level of transfer income per capita of over $10,000.

Nearly 1 in 5 Americans Participate in Social Welfare Programs

The Census Bureau reports that 18.6%, or 44.8 million, of noninstitutionalized civilians participated in one or more major means-tested assistance programs (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families  (TANF), General Assistance (GA), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)/Food Stamps, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, and Housing Assistance).  This percentage is up from 17.1% in 2004, driven mostly by a 2.6 percent increase in citizens who receive Food Stamps.  The average monthly participation rate for those under 18 was 34.6% in 2009, far greater than the 13.7% and 12.6% for civilians aged 18 to 64 and 65 years and over respectively.  Blacks and Hispanics were the most likely races to utilize means-tested programs.  38.9% of Blacks, 33.0% of Hispanics, 14.9% of Asian and Pacific Islanders, and 11.8% of Non-Hispanic Whites participated in means-tested programs.

Debunking Myths About Food Stamps

In a recent article, the Chicago Tribune aimed to debunk popular misconceptions about trends in welfare spending and the welfare recipient population, issues that "the Republican presidential race has brought...to the forefront." Reporter Dawn Turner Trice wrote, "When it comes to welfare, perceptions have often trumped reality."

The article provides fact-based commentary on political strategies regarding welfare, including the following:

• "Though blacks are disproportionately represented among food stamp recipients, far more whites receive such assistance. When recipients identified themselves by race in 2010, 34 percent were white, 22 percent were black and 16 were percent Hispanic, the Agriculture Department said."

• "Food-stamp spending has indeed increased under Obama, but its steady climb began under President George W. Bush."

• "The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan think tank, said anti-poverty programs make up about 20 percent of the federal budget, and that's been true over the last three decades when both Republicans and Democrats have been in power."

• "Among the big social safety net expenditures in 2011 are Medicaid ($274 billion) and refundable tax credits, including the earned income tax credit ($102 billion). Food stamps ($71.8 billion) and cash assistance ($6.9 billion) constitute just 2.2 percent of the federal budget, but they pack a bigger wallop when it comes to public perceptions."

The article also quotes Michael Dawson, director of the Center for the Study of Race, Politics and Culture at the University of Chicago, regarding Republican efforts--specifically, those of Newt Gingrich--to bring up welfare as an issue, as saying: "It's a tired tactic but one that's sometimes effective in mobilizing white racial resentment."