More than 800,000 Oregonians received food stamp benefits in January
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More Oregon food stamp recipients in January than ever before: http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index...ns_re.html

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Excerpt: "More than 800,000 Oregonians relied on food stamps to put meals on the family table in January, the highest number ever.

A report released Monday by the Oregon Department of Human Services shows 800,785 people --or 22 percent of Oregonians --received help in January from the state-federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That reflected a 5.9 percent increase from January 2011.

Social service officials said they were not surprised to have broken the 800,000 mark. Food stamp numbers have grown steadily over the past few years and state forecasts indicate the number of food stamp recipients could top 840,000 by June.

But it does come at a time when Oregon has been seeing some encouraging economic signs, including an unemployment rate that finally dropped below 9 percent.

Oregon started the year off with an 8.8 percent unemployment rate in January and the state reported 5,400 new jobs were created.

The view from social service offices wasn't as bright.

"If they're going back to work they may not be getting the hours or the wages they used to get," says Belit Stockfleth, the state's food stamp program manager. "We're helping to keep them afloat while they get back on their feet."

Traditionally, the demand for food stamps rises in winter and eases in the summer, when more people are working in agriculture or construction. But the recession and slow recovery have upset that pattern.

In January, the most recent numbers available, every region in Oregon saw a growth in the number of food stamp recipients, with Multnomah and Clackamas counties among those reporting increases higher than the state average.

In Multnomah, 159,527 people received food stamps, a 6.6 percent increase over last year. In Clackamas there were 51,285, an 8.3 percent increase.

In Hood River and other Columbia River Gorge cities, 10,064 received food assistance, which was a 7.9 percent jump over January 2011. In Medford, Ashland and surrounding areas, 77,059 received similar help, an increase of 7.5 percent.

"Yes, the economy is improving. However we're still deep in the hole," says Tim Duy, an economist at the University of Oregon.

He suspects a combination of factors could be contributing to the continued rise in food stamp recipients in Oregon.

Many of the new jobs that have been created are in the leisure and hospitality sectors and may not pay enough to lift family incomes beyond the food stamp range, Duy says.

For example, a family of four can earn as much as $3,554 per month and still qualify for some benefits.

Also, people may have waited to sign up, either because they were too embarrassed or they thought their situation would soon improve, Duy added. With 500 Oregonians exhausting their unemployment benefits each week, many may not have been able to hold off any longer.

A demographic breakdown from the previous month showed children under age 18 accounted for more than 37 percent, or 293,379, of the December recipients statewide.

Oregonians over age 60 comprised 8.5 percent or 26,748 recipients. But seniors accounted for the fastest growing group, Stockfleth says.

Part of that is by plan.

In Multnomah and Clackamas counties, the state is working with churches and other non-profits to make sure the elderly know they're eligible for benefits.

And part of it out of anybody's control.

"Many seniors were supplementing their income with part-time jobs that no longer exist," Stockfleth notes, "and boomers are aging in."

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More than 800,000 Oregonians received food stamp benefits in January - by PonderThis - 03-13-2012, 01:49 PM

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