Spillover Effects of Financial Aid for Education: Does Post-9/11 GI Bill Reduce Veteran SNAP Participation?

Projesh Ghosh; Sarmistha Pal; Sebastian Negrusa

doi:10.21061/jvs.v6i3.203

Spillover Effects of Financial Aid for Education: Does Post-9/11 GI Bill Reduce Veteran SNAP Participation?

Journal of Veterans Studies

Volume 6 (2020): Issue 3

By: Projesh Ghosh , Sarmistha Pal and Sebastian Negrusa

Open Access

|Feb 2021

Abstract

Many veterans rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). We study the change in the veterans’ reliance on SNAP in response to the GI Bill, the veterans’ financial aid for higher education. Using the unanticipated increase in educational benefits due to the Post-9/11 GI Bill and employing a difference-in-differences approach, we estimate that the benefit increase lowered veteran SNAP participation by about 28%, the effect being larger among new veterans. These findings reflect changes in the veterans’ choices that are attributable to wealth effects, SNAP eligibility criteria, and human capital accumulation. SNAP eligibility typically expires when the veteran attends college, and a larger educational benefit increases the veterans’ probability of college attendance. Furthermore, a college degree increases future earnings, which reduces the veterans’ SNAP reliance in the longer run. Quantifying these relationships provides insights into how financial aid for education in general improves veterans’ economic well-being and may help break some veterans’ dependence on SNAP and similar welfare programs.

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Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21061/jvs.v6i3.203 | Journal eISSN: 2470-4768

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Language: English

Page range: 110 - 122

Submitted on: Sep 15, 2020

Accepted on: Nov 11, 2020

Published on: Feb 8, 2021

Published by: Virginia Tech Publishing

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

Keywords:

food stamps,

SNAP,

education,

GI Bill,

veteran

© 2021 Projesh Ghosh, Sarmistha Pal, Sebastian Negrusa, published by Virginia Tech Publishing
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Volume 6 (2020): Issue 3