1 in 5 U.S. children getting food stamps

WASHINGTON – Sixteen million children were on food stamps as of last year, the highest number since the nation’s economy tumbled in 2008.

Numbers released by the Census Bureau Wednesday as part of its annual look at children and families show that 1 in 5 children were on food stamp assistance in 2014. The survey was taken last spring.

The number of people receiving food stamps – now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP – spiked through the recession and has stayed at a higher level since. In the 2007 Census survey, 9 million children received SNAP assistance.

Boston rebounds after big snowstorm

BOSTON – Boston bounced back quickly Wednesday from the Blizzard of 2015, with subways, buses and trains up and running again the morning after the storm buried a swath of New England in 2 to 3 feet of snow.

Many businesses reopened, as did Logan Airport, and homeowners, drivers and storekeepers dug out with grudging praise for the forecasters, who missed the mark in New York but got it right in New England.

Associated Press