...More than 35 million low-income Americans (16 million households) received federal Food Stamp/SNAP benefits in June 2009, an increase over the 13 million households that received assistance in June 2008. Congress allocated $54 billion for the program in 2009, up from $39 billion last year, to cover the growing number of eligible families...
...Two states — Wyoming and California — had fewer than 50 percent of those eligible enrolled to receive food stamps. Many of the states that struggled were among the most populous, including New York, where 61 percent of eligible citizens participated; Florida, where 57 percent participated; and Texas, where 55 percent were enrolled...