THE number of households receiving food stamps under the federally funded Nutrition Assistance Program went up by over 20% from fiscal year 2022 to FY 2024, according to NAP office data.
The increase can be attributed to job losses and work-hour cuts, acting Department of Community and Cultural Affairs Secretary Vivian Sablan said.
In Oct. 2021, there was a total of 4,543 households receiving food stamps. This number increased to 5,231 in Oct. 2023.
As of this month, December 2023, the number of households receiving food stamps benefits at the NAP office in As Lito is 5,159, representing a total of 13,182 individuals.
In FY 2022, Sablan said, the DCCA-NAP received American Rescue Plan Act funds amounting to $16.2 million.
This infusion of ARPA monies resulted in an increase in benefits in FY 2023, she added.
For FY 2024, although the CNMI has received $34.8 million in NAP base funding, the ARPA money is down to $2.8 million, Sablan said.
But the NAP office was still able to issue an estimated average of $3.6 million a month in food stamp benefits to date.
In an interview on Tuesday, Sablan said unemployment allows qualified families to receive additional food stamp benefits while reduced work hours can make one eligible for food stamps.
NAP Administrator Margaret Aldan, for her part, said they are now working with their grantor, the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Food and Nutrition Services, and U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan to increase the CNMI’s NAP funding for FY 2025.
Vivian Sablan
