<P> In December 1979, participation finally surpassed 20 million . In March 1994, participation hit a new high of 28 million . </P> <P> The mid-1990s was a period of welfare reform . Prior to 1996, the rules for the cash welfare program, Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), were waived for many states . With the enactment of the 1996 welfare reform act, called the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), AFDC, an entitlement program, was replaced that with a new block grant to states called Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). </P> <P> Although the Food Stamp Program was reauthorized in the 1996 Farm Bill, the 1996 welfare reform made several changes to the program, including: </P> <Ul> <Li> eliminating eligibility to food stamps of most legal immigrants who had been in the country less than five years; </Li> <Li> placing a time limit on food stamp receipt of three out of 36 months for Able - bodied Adults Without Dependents (ABAWDs), who are not working at least 20 hours a week or participating in a work program; </Li> <Li> reducing the maximum allotments to 100 percent of the change in the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP) from 103 percent of the change in the TFP; </Li> <Li> freezing the standard deduction, the vehicle limit, and the minimum benefit; </Li> <Li> setting the shelter cap at graduated specified levels up to $300 by fiscal year 2001, and allowing states to mandate the use of the standard utility allowance; </Li> <Li> revising provisions for disqualification, including comparable disqualification with other means - tested programs; and </Li> <Li> requiring states to implement EBT before October 1, 2002 . </Li> </Ul>

When did food stamps become part of the farm bill