SNAP Emergency Allotment Expiration and Socioeconomic and Housing Disparities In Food Insufficiency Among US Households with Children

Background and Purpose: The expiration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Emergency Allotments (SNAP-EA) in 2023 resulted in a substantial reduction in food assistance for participating households. However, less is known about how this policy change affected food insufficiency among households with children and whether impacts varied across socioeconomic and housing contexts. This study examined the association between SNAP-EA expiration and food insufficiency among U.S. households with children.

Methods: Data were drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey (August 19, 2020 to February 13, 2023), a nationally representative repeated cross-sectional survey. The analytic sample included 671,219 respondents from households with at least one child under age 18. Food insufficiency was measured using a four-point self-reported scale of food adequacy in the past seven days. SNAP participation was defined as a binary household-level indicator, and state-level SNAP-EA expiration timing was merged by survey week. We employed a two-way fixed-effects difference-in-differences (DiD) framework with state and survey-week fixed effects to estimate the association between EA expiration and food insufficiency, comparing SNAP-recipient and non-recipient households over time. Models incorporated survey weights and clustered standard errors at the state level. Fully adjusted models controlled for sociodemographic characteristics and five state-level SNAP administrative flexibilities. Subgroup analyses assessed heterogeneity by household income and housing tenure.

Results: SNAP-EA expiration was associated with a significant increase in food insufficiency among SNAP-recipient households relative to non-recipient households. In fully adjusted models, EA expiration corresponded to a 0.13-point increase in food insufficiency among SNAP households compared to non-SNAP households (95% CI: 0.08, 0.17). Event-study estimates supported the parallel trends assumption and showed a sustained increase in food insufficiency following EA termination. Subgroup analyses revealed meaningful heterogeneity. Lower-income households experienced larger increases in food insufficiency, whereas higher-income households showed attenuated effects (e.g., $75,000–$99,999: β = −0.30, 95% CI: −0.47, −0.13, relative to <$25,000). Housing instability further amplified vulnerability: households occupying housing without payment experienced a significantly greater increase in food insufficiency (β = 0.38, p = .02), while no significant differences were observed among renters or homeowners with mortgages.

Conclusion: The expiration of SNAP-EA was associated with a disproportionate increase in food insufficiency among households with children receiving SNAP, with the greatest impacts concentrated among economically and structurally vulnerable populations. These findings highlight the importance of considering income and housing instability in the design and phase-out of nutrition assistance policies.