The Food Stamp Program has undergone a number of major changes since its modern version was established in 1961. It is now one of the largest "welfare" programs and provides an income supplement to the food-purchasing power of more than 18 million persons each month, at a cost of nearly $7 billion annually. This report traces the history of the program from 1961 through 1979, with an emphasis on how program rules, philosophy, participation, and costs have changed over the years.

The Food Stamp Program has undergone a number of major changes since its modern version was established in 1961. It is now one of the largest "welfare" programs and provides an income supplement to the food-purchasing power of more than 18 million persons each month, at a cost of nearly $7 billion annually. This report traces the history of the program from 1961 through 1979, with an emphasis on how program rules, philosophy, participation, and costs have changed over the years.

Congress has available a variety of statutory and non-statutory techniques, other than the "legislative veto," that have been used to overturn Federal agency rules, prevent their enforcement, limit their impact, or hinder their promulgation. This survey of the different statutory instruments of congressional control—direct overturn of rules, modification of agency jurisdiction, limitations in authorizing and appropriating statutes, requiring inter-agency consultation, and advance notification to the Congress—discusses a variety of mechanisms that vary in their use and their specificity, range of impact, and length of effect.