90 



10 

 into a comparable increase in the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan 

 and increases Food Stamp Program costs by $300 million. Outlays 

 for food assistance programs — including the Food Stamp Program, 

 the Child Nutrition Programs, the Special Supplemental Food 

 Program for Women, Infants and Children, and the Commodity 

 Supplemental Food Program — are currently expected to exceed 

 $37 billion this fiscal year, more than half the USDA's total 

 budget . 



Smaller food price increases, along with improvements in the 

 general economy and a resultant stabilization in participation, 

 may cause food assistance outlays in fiscal year 1994 to rise by 

 less than the annual increases in recent years. 

 The State of the Rural Economy 



The state of the rural economy is mixed. In 1992, the 

 average annual unemployment rate for rural areas was 7.1 percent, 

 lower than the urban unemployment rate for the first time since 

 1979. Rural employment grew 2 percent, while urban employment 

 stagnated in 1992. The recession and slow growth of 1990-92 led 

 to an increase in the urban poverty rate, narrowing the gap 

 between urban and rural poverty. However, the rural poverty rate 

 remained 2.5 percentage points higher at 16.1 percent. 



As employment in farming has declined, rural manufacturing 

 employment has grown and absorbed many workers leaving farming. 

 Currently, twice as many rural workers are employed in 

 manufacturing as in farming and forestry combined. The economies 

 of only 20 percent of rural counties are dependent on farming and 



