FNS Documents & Resources

These SNAP and Food Stamp Program Quality Control annual reports present official quality control error rates and other statistical data derived from SNAP QC reviews conducted for each fiscal year.

The SNAP Quality Control database contains detailed information on the economic and demographic circumstances of a sample of households selected for review as part of the SNAP QC System. The data include households from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  Data are available from 1996 through the most recent year for which QC error rates are available.

The diets of most Americans fall short of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This exploratory analysis examines dietary patterns of low-income individuals classified as healthy and less healthy eaters based on their score on the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2005. The HEI-2005 is a 100-point score that measures how well populations adhere to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 

This report, required under the 2008 Farm Bill, reviews the nutritional quality of the food package provided through USDA’s Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, comparing its content to scientific standards including the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the Dietary Reference Intakes, the Thrifty Food Plan nutrient standards and the Healthy Eating Index-2005. 

Using Food Stamp Quality Control data from fiscal year 2000, this analysis suggests that the simplified reporting policies adopted by states in 2004 could have lowered error rates by 1.2 to 1.5 percentage points.