By 1977, the Food Stamp Program in Puerto Rico was larger, in terms of both the percentage of the population participating and expenditures, than any of the programs operating in the 50 U.S. States, with 56% of the Puerto Rican population participating in the program.[9][10] In total, it accounted for approximately 8 percent of the national program's beneficiaries, and its operations and benefits awarded accounted for 8 percent of the national program's total federal expenditures.[10]