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Thursday, September 11, 2025

Food assistance in Union County up 9.7% since 2015

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Kelly Garcia Director of the Iowa Department of Health Human Services (HHS) | Official Website

Kelly Garcia Director of the Iowa Department of Health Human Services (HHS) | Official Website

Union County saw a 9.7% increase in the amount of money received from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) since 2015, according to Iowa's Department of Human Services.

In 2024, the county received a total of $2,596,112 worth of benefits provided by SNAP, compared to $2,367,572 in 2015.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides monthly benefits to help low-income households buy food. The program is federally funded and administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Qualified recipients in the program are eligible to receive financial assistance in the form of Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards, which can then be used to buy selected groceries. The amount of benefits depends on the net income and household size.

Statewide, Polk County recorded the highest total of food assistance benefits, amounting to $106,299,625 in 2024.

Overall, Union County registered 1,351 people across 683 households receiving food stamps in 2024. In 2015, there were 1,838 residents assisted by the program living in 875 households.

Since 2015, $25,751,722 has been allocated to Union County as part of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Annual Union County Food Assistance Funding (2015-2024)
2024202320222021202020192018201720162015$2,596,112$2,596,112$2,567,843$2,567,843$2,801,838$2,801,838$3,779,302$3,779,302$2,791,342$2,791,342$2,017,221$2,017,221$2,192,535$2,192,535$2,225,037$2,225,037$2,412,920$2,412,920$2,367,572$2,367,572

SNAP Funding Among Iowa Counties in 2024

CountyAmount Allocated (2015)Amount Allocated (2024)% change
Adair$936,752$878,158-6.3%
Adams$513,122$533,4004%
Allamakee$1,717,601$1,498,961-12.7%
Appanoose$2,628,524$2,553,770-2.8%
Audubon$615,981$697,00813.2%
Benton$2,675,025$3,013,82512.7%
Black Hawk$26,653,275$28,794,2058%
Boone$3,310,324$2,692,830-18.7%
Bremer$1,596,412$1,666,7304.4%
Buchanan$2,123,958$2,197,1773.4%
Buena Vista$3,271,946$3,745,30414.5%
Butler$1,629,734$1,414,580-13.2%
Calhoun$1,035,958$1,178,62513.8%
Carroll$2,236,608$2,327,0394%
Cass$2,196,508$2,500,56713.8%
Cedar$1,758,711$1,467,910-16.5%
Cerro Gordo$7,111,517$7,424,6514.4%
Cherokee$1,276,789$1,292,3571.2%
Chickasaw$1,132,776$849,652-25%
Clarke$1,680,907$1,461,411-13.1%
Clay$2,141,787$2,296,4107.2%
Clayton$1,476,353$1,506,2362%
Clinton$11,550,398$11,272,300-2.4%
Crawford$2,504,356$2,194,357-12.4%
Dallas$5,141,964$7,078,29237.7%
Davis$865,664$894,0283.3%
Decatur$1,737,095$1,419,001-18.3%
Delaware$1,548,556$1,573,3781.6%
Des Moines$10,192,988$10,340,7101.4%
Dickinson$1,451,688$1,760,47321.3%
Dubuque$14,666,572$15,011,4022.4%
Emmet$1,383,867$1,353,614-2.2%
Fayette$3,191,293$3,345,6414.8%
Floyd$2,653,839$2,761,9794.1%
Franklin$1,345,144$1,335,831-0.7%
Fremont$1,158,479$1,099,981-5%
Greene$1,656,114$1,649,617-0.4%
Grundy$775,343$1,040,46734.2%
Guthrie$1,278,770$1,226,701-4.1%
Hamilton$2,077,059$1,681,703-19%
Hancock$878,836$990,09912.7%
Hardin$2,351,777$2,322,527-1.2%
Harrison$2,012,485$2,056,5692.2%
Henry$3,283,393$3,331,7401.5%
Howard$941,614$950,0650.9%
Humboldt$1,038,456$1,007,766-3%
Ida$783,751$884,91912.9%
Iowa$1,269,142$1,291,9761.8%
Jackson$2,921,316$2,840,943-2.8%
Jasper$6,032,342$5,732,094-5%
Jefferson$2,894,728$2,880,009-0.5%
Johnson$15,075,777$19,968,42732.5%
Jones$2,327,285$2,205,756-5.2%
Keokuk$1,418,555$1,614,58913.8%
Kossuth$1,363,343$1,661,18821.8%
Lee$8,059,945$8,459,9735%
Linn$36,098,009$43,746,20821.2%
Louisa$1,476,642$1,326,658-10.2%
Lucas$1,642,393$1,605,494-2.2%
Lyon$678,206$777,05814.6%
Madison$1,650,709$1,261,046-23.6%
Mahaska$4,163,825$3,675,642-11.7%
Marion$3,990,286$3,573,220-10.5%
Marshall$7,838,919$7,659,875-2.3%
Mills$1,928,865$1,888,851-2.1%
Mitchell$755,410$818,7728.4%
Monona$1,369,684$1,447,2705.7%
Monroe$1,147,607$927,484-19.2%
Montgomery$2,209,537$2,265,1962.5%
Muscatine$9,269,773$8,779,512-5.3%
Osceola$531,838$633,63019.1%
Page$2,624,261$2,491,990-5%
Palo Alto$1,012,715$1,056,2174.3%
Plymouth$1,909,516$2,278,62419.3%
Pocahontas$1,041,031$1,092,4344.9%
Polk$98,363,692$106,299,6258.1%
Pottawattamie$21,787,870$21,651,635-0.6%
Poweshiek$1,728,246$1,940,12112.3%
Ringgold$711,697$759,5696.7%
Sac$1,056,184$1,011,262-4.3%
Scott$45,762,384$42,734,077-6.6%
Shelby$1,325,120$1,327,4130.2%
Sioux$1,861,251$1,969,3375.8%
Story$7,998,341$8,344,0954.3%
Tama$2,384,386$2,386,7220.1%
Taylor$930,726$806,210-13.4%
Union$2,367,572$2,596,1129.7%
Van Buren$970,749$1,091,76812.5%
Wapello$9,088,157$10,191,13012.1%
Warren$4,587,129$4,148,114-9.6%
Washington$2,654,108$2,553,991-3.8%
Wayne$1,048,750$1,056,0170.7%
Webster$8,327,147$8,488,0941.9%
Winnebago$1,259,596$1,112,981-11.6%
Winneshiek$1,232,518$1,230,253-0.2%
Woodbury$24,813,917$24,916,4900.4%
Worth$726,234$796,4749.7%
Wright$2,054,040$1,594,795-22.4%
Total for Iowa$513,319,148$533,540,3873%

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