What Many Americans Don't Know About SNAP

SNAP, is one of America’s most important welfare programs. It is also frequently misunderstood by both lawmakers and citizens who believe it’s rife with fraud; it’s abused by immigrants; it’s typically used to buy junk food. But many economists believe that SNAP is singularly effective.

In a recent interview with the Washington Post, one such economist--Craig Gunderson, who has worked in the field for 20 years--refuted most of these myths:

• Most SNAP recipients are children, and most of those who are not young, elderly, or disabled, work.
• SNAP participants do use their benefits to purchase soda and junk food, but one reason they may do so is that people tend to spend their SNAP dollars at the start of the month, so they buy things that are nonperishable--say bottles of soda. Then for the rest of the month they spend their cash on perishables like milk, fruits, and vegetables.
• Selling SNAP EBT cards is an urban myth. When food stamps were paper coupons, a lot of people used to sell them. But with EBT, you can’t just sell the card--you’d also have to give the buyer your PIN number and trust they would bring the card back to you.
• Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for SNAP benefits. However their children, if they are legal U.S. residents, have as much right to these benefits as anyone else.

Source: Washington Post, 4/4/17, Don't Know Much About Food Stamps

Conservatives Critique Pending Child Nutrition Bills

The House and the Senate might soon consider child nutrition bills that would reauthorize the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Both bills would maintain the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which gives free meals to students regardless of family income (i.e., universal school meals), leave intact (with some minor tweaks) the prescriptive federal school meal standards, and expand welfare and federal food assistance.

Should either bill move forward, the conservative Heritage Foundation maintains, many policymakers, including conservatives, would be conceding child nutrition policy to those seeking greater federal control and a larger welfare state. In brief, the Foundation’s basic objection to the Community Eligibility Provision is that it provides free meals to children whose families can afford to pay. School meal standards, it contends, impose strict, one-size-fits-all rules that dictate the specific types and amount of food that schools can serve. And Summer EBT programs are unneeded because SNAP, WIC, and existing summer meal programs are sufficient.

Source: Heritage Foundation,11/3/16, Child Nutrition Bill Critique

MASS GOES 100% EBT FOR WIC

By the end of this month, all WIC participants in Massachusetts will be receiving their benefits on EBT cards. The federal government is making all states switch to WIC EBT benefits by 2020, and Massachusetts is the first New England state to make the move. Families using the cards in the state feel the EBT system removes much of the stigma associated with receiving and using benefits, said Cheryl Bartlett, commissioner of the Department of Public Health. The state joins 14 states across the country that have made the change.

Source: MassLive, 10/14/14, WIC EBT

USDA STOPS SUBSIDIZING SNAP EBT MACHINES

As part of the 2014 Farm Bill, the federal government will no longer subsidize electronic benefit transaction (EBT) machines, a move that will force many small, SNAP-accepting stores to stop accepting benefits, or raise their prices. In large supermarkets, EBT cards are swiped at checkout terminals along with credit and debit cards. But in around 118,000 bodegas, corner stores, and mom-and-pop markets nationwide, SNAP EBT cards have been used in specific machines provided to stores free through a federal-state partnership, according to the USDA. These small stores could now see bills of up to $1,000 a year to use EBT equipment, supplies, and related services, according to Xerox Corp, which administers EBT cards in 19 states.   

Source: Phiily.com, 10/14/14, EBT Machines

MASS GOES 100% EBT FOR WIC

By the end of this month, all WIC participants in Massachusetts will be receiving their benefits on EBT cards. The federal government is making all states switch to WIC EBT benefits by 2020, and Massachusetts is the first New England state to make the move. Families using the cards in the state feel the EBT system removes much of the stigma associated with receiving and using benefits, said Cheryl Bartlett, commissioner of the Department of Public Health. The state joins 14 states across the country that have made the change. 

Source: MassLive, 10/14/14, WIC EBT