Impact of a Higher Minimum Wage on Enrollment of SNAP

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect that minimum wage policy has on enrollment in public assistance programs, specifically the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, SNAP. If raising the minimum wage decreases enrollment in SNAP, this could uncover a method to reduce spending without eliminating programs. Using a time-demeaned model to account for fixed effects, I take advantage of the variation in the minimum wage in the 50 states between 1998 and 2014. I estimated that on average an increase in minimum wage in a prior year results in a decrease in SNAP participation by 3.95%