By Associated Press
Montgomery, AL – New data shows nearly one in six Alabamians receive food assistance.
Data from the state Department of Human Resources shows the troubled economy is sending Alabamians in record numbers to sign up for help in feeding their families.
The rolls for Alabama's Food Assistance Program - previously known as food stamps - swelled from 551,802 in August 2007 to 740,929 at the end of this past August.
The overwhelming majority of people signed up for the food assistance program in Alabama are not welfare recipients. DHR records show only 17 percent are on welfare.
The program is open to families whose gross monthly income is 130 percent or less of the federal poverty line and who meet other requirements.