Trends in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation Rates: Fiscal Year 2010 to Fiscal Year 2015

The participation rates presented in this report are estimates of the percentage of individuals eligible for SNAP benefits under Federal income and resource rules who chose to participate in the program. Of the 50 million individuals eligible for SNAP in an average month in FY 2015, nearly 42 million (83 percent) participated, and more than 8 million did not. From FY 2014 to FY 2015, the number of both SNAP participants and eligible individuals decreased by about 2 percent. The participation rate among individuals was 83 percent in both years.