Illinoisans rely on food stamps for Christmas dinner
This holiday season, nearly 2 million Illinoisans will rely on federal food assistance. Illinois is eighth in the country for highest reliance on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
1-in-6 Illinoisans rely on food stamps for Christmas dinner
Illinois has the 6th-highest number of residents buying their meals with nutrition benefits, and the number grew almost 11% from a year earlier.
Up to 140,000 able-bodied Illinoisans may need jobs to get food stamps in 2020
Just Cook County food stamp recipients were facing work requirements Jan. 1 if they were under age 50, able-bodied and had no dependents. Now the rules will apply throughout Illinois starting April 1.
More Illinoisans on food stamps this Thanksgiving, 50K recipients will soon need jobs
This Thanksgiving, about 17,500 more Illinoisans will be using food stamps. By New Year’s, about 50,000 Cook County recipients must find jobs or lose benefits.
Illinois is more dependent on food stamps than any other neighboring state
Illinois has a higher percentage of its residents on food stamps than its neighboring states, and has seen a much slower decline in food stamp recipients following the recession.
This Thanksgiving, food stamps will buy nearly 14 percent of Illinoisans’ meals
Food stamp participation has seen an encouraging decrease, but lagging economic growth leaves Illinois ranked highest among neighboring states in SNAP enrollment.
Ill-timed computer glitch causes drop in Illinois food stamp rolls
Some SNAP-dependent households saw their benefits disappear this holiday season.
This Thanksgiving, nearly 1M Illinois households forced to rely on food stamps
The failure of lawmakers to enact policies that spark growth will render millions of Illinoisans dependent on assistance for meals this holiday season.
Cook County officials claim resolution of food stamp soda tax problems
Retailers will now have to either program cash registers not to tax purchases made with food stamps, or implement a “manual override.”
Cook County soda tax could cost Illinois $87 million in federal food stamp funding
Certain provisions of Cook County’s penny-per-ounce soda tax could cost Illinois more than $86 million in federal administrative funding.
