The Debate Over Cuts To The Food Stamp Program
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-07-26/debate-over-cuts-food-stamp-program
One in seven Americans receives food stamps, a number that's up sharply since the financial crisis. Most experts agree unemployment and underemployment have contributed to the number of people in need of food assistance. The U.S. House of Representatives is considering a measure that would cut nearly two million people from the program and cause 280,000 children to lose free meals. Anti-poverty advocates call it unconscionable. But supporters of the cuts say the food stamp program is inefficient and many people are receiving benefits who are not truly in need. Diane and her guests discuss the cost of feeding America's poor.
Guests
Jim Weill
president of the Food Research and Action Center.
Jerry Hagstrom
founder and executive editor of The Hagstrom Report, and columnist for National Journal.
Douglas Besharov
professor, University of Maryland School of Public Policy; senior fellow, the Atlantic Council of the United States; former Welfare Studies scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.
Comments
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a correction from Finland, a rather "socialist" economy nation (and one of the few left with a triple A rating)... we have food lines here... twice a week folks line up at the aid stations and get actual bags of food. Yes there are several safety net programs that will aid with rent and heating bills DIRECTLY... but the cash benefit will not meet the need.
THANK YOU for saying this system makes no sense. As a friend of someone who has gone on food stamps due to a disability the fact that good healthy food like a roast chicken or pre-cut veggies, etc. is not an allowed to be purchased is insane.
For a senior citizen (correct me if I am wrong - the coming majority of this population) or someone recovering from illness or accident the effort of getting to grocery store is an almost an insurmountable obstacle. This population is not thengoing to be able to stand over a stove, lift a hot pan full of ingredients, etc.. This is why you see carts full of cookies & Ensure. Packing calories in is about the best that can be done in a bad situation where there are no family and only fairweather friends.
As my generation ages (I am 41) and continues to pave the way for single person households the system needs to change now to support reality, not nostalgia or ideals of the dustbowl.
Take from the Federal government when convenient and stand up for state rights...that's the double talk certain politicians follow. It is taxpayer money that supports all the programs and as the pie gets smaller, those without a voice always suffer.
cheap food is high in. sugar , salt, and refined flour thus explaining obesity among the poor and the hungry. This camoflages the severity of the issues.
Nicole
One of the guests just confirmed what I said. Food stamps are run by the Dept. of Agriculture, and the intention was to increase demand for commodities. When that demand was reduced, farmers who had borrowed for more land and equipment were unable to service their debts and closed up shop.
Food stamps on the open market sell for 50 cents on the dollar. If you buy enough soda you can pour out the contents in the parking and turn the cans in to purchase tobacco and alcohol. Anyone who believes these benefits buy fruits & vegetables is sadly misinformed. Many many food stamp recipients are addicted to substance including tobacco and food stamps are sold for illicit purposes. I'm all for feeding people but something has to be done.
Food stamps on the open market sell for 50 cents on the dollar. If you buy enough soda you can pour out the contents in the parking and turn the cans in to purchase tobacco and alcohol. Anyone who believes these benefits buy fruits & vegetables is sadly misinformed. Many many food stamp recipients are addicted to substance including tobacco and food stamps are sold for illicit purposes. I'm all for feeding people but something has to be done.
I worked in a Food Stamp office for many years and the real issue with abuse was not with the clients/consumer. It was with the offices being understaffed here in the State of Florida. One office I took over had a 24% error rate because there was not enough staff to keep up with the work. I think most office are understaffed through out the country.
As of 2010, 66% of the U.S. population is white non-Hispanic. Blacks make up 13% of the population and Hispanics make up 16% of the population. So, you can say that Hispanics & African Americans are disproportionately represented in the population of food stamp recipients, that is, a greater percentage is receiving food stamps than their percentage in the population as a whole. Of course, Hispanics & African Americans are disproportionately represented in the lowest economic strata based on population, which is probably why they're getting food stamps.
Was just listening to the call regarding military members on food stamps. If the spouses of those military members would get a job and have their family be a two income family like the rest of the U.S. population has been forced to do, they would not be in poverty. Also military members get a housing allowance when living out in the economy or get free housing on base, so their income is not as low as they always quote. I know a noncommissioned military member with several years in who has a family of four. That member's income is over 75,000 including housing allowance and their health and dental is Free! They also get discounted groceries shopping at the commisary. Quit complaining military families!
I work as the Outreach and Advocacy Manager at the Food Bank Council of Michigan, facilitating the SNAP outreach program statewide. I would love to talk more with Allison about her situation and story, as I find it very compelling and beneficial for people to hear. If it is possible to get her contact information, I would appreciate it so much, or for someone to pass mine along: Kaitlin Skwir, kaitlin@fbcmich.org, 517-664-9904 (office), 517-614-6385 (cell). Thank you so much!
Your guest's comments regarding the choices made by poor people and the fact that we like to pick on poor people is spot on. I have to check myself from time to time also, when I see families in the check out line at Walmart on the 1st of the month, getting shrimp and steak, loads of carbonated beverages, sugary cereals, cookie and candy, and using a food stamp card. I hope this is not typical of most families' food purchases, but plenty of people using their own earnings shop this way, too. In thinking about our perceptions of the poor, it occurs to me that they can be summed up by a common saying: "The rich are different from you and me -- they have more money." I have never heard anyone say, "The poor are different from you and me --- they have less money". I believe the reason we don't hear this is that we really tend to think the poor are different from the non-poor, for all kinds of reasons, and that is the crux of the problem with people who want to asssume the worst about the poor.
I have noticed while in the Grocery stores the bad food that is selected for food stamp usage. And many of the people are rather "robust" in appearance. Then, these people probably are on the public dole for health care, part and parcel caused by their public aided poor diet.
Potato ships, sugar drinks etc. should not be allowed for food stamp usage. It does not matter what the rest of the population selects for food (paying themselves).
In Buffalo when I walked to work in the winter there were lines of people waiting to get home heating assistance. I would say 30% smoke cigarettes. At over 8.00 a pack * 365 days =2920.00. Many smoke more than 1 pack, and the household may have multiple smokers. Seems to me they have more than enough money to pay the heating bill. I do not want to subsidize someone's bad habits. Smoking of course causes more visits to the doctor, and if they can't pay the heating bill or food bill, guess who pays the doctor's bill?
Sure, people can buy seeds or plants, but if you live in an apartment, the growing of your own produce might be a problem.
It is outrageous that we can subsidize Oil and Gas and insist that people starve. We can subsidize agribusiness, but remove children from a program that provides them with what they need. It is outrageous that we would subsidize the outsourcing of American jobs to areas with slave wages and cut the source of food for a family that would work if there was a job for them to go to.
In this great 'christian' nation, we should do better by those who have nothing. All the good 'christians' who complain about the poor getting food stamps need to reevaluate the priorities of their faith. If you believe that the Bible is the word of God, you're mandated to take care of those who have less than you i.e. widows and orphans, the sick and the hungry.
I have been unemployed for 6 months and lost my home about the same time. I went to AZ unemployment to apply for food assistance. I had an unemployment check of $1000.00/mo and about $500.00n child support. My expenses exceed my income but we only qualified for $75.00 a month for 6 months! As a single mom.
They said it was to due child support that I couldn't qualify for more. I said that is for my daughter. But it is considered income. The total annual income with both if only $15,000.00. Still below poverty level.
My second point is what type of food I purchase. I prefer food that is healthy and yes more expensive than highly processed food. I want to stay healthy because I don't have health care.
THx and great show.
Lynn
My problem with ebt cards is that JPMorgan sells them to the government and they get 10% or w/e the normal percentage they get per swipe of the card. If we gave the needy cash then it wont benefit the supper rich and the poor could buy more food.
The last caller talked about how hard it is to keep up with having to recertify...as the human resources person at my company, I am the one that has to complete the forms for the people on state aid every 6 weeks. Its not so hard for everyone!
THANK YOU Alison - for speaking up about the recertification process. Now imagine that you have to do this recertification, while you are trying to recover from an accident and going to doctors appointment 3 times a week.
Cashiers and bag people tend to be very critical of people who use food stamps. The sometimes tend to embarrass them because of their own preconcieved notions about people who use it. I know people on food stamp who use it wisely and then their kid has a birthday and they buy the chip and dips, cookies and soda for the party and get judged by on lookers. There are people who kid graduated from high school and they purchased the lobster and got unfairly judged by the store employees. Its not right. People on disability tend to be more overweight due to inactivity due to their disability they also happen to be more likely to be on food stamps. We forget that we or our familys or even our children may one day end up needing assistance. We want to provide the best net to catch them.
We subsidize agraculture and have been since 1930's. monsanto gets just as much free money everyear as any other company.
It is deplorable and reprehensible that never in a news show is the food stamp program properly labeled a special type of Welfare program. Yes, this "Food Stamp" program was created as and always has been a welfare program or government subsidy for the food industry. Without this corporate welfare program, the food industry would lose these billions in food purchases as the real poor spent less money on more basic food staples. I dare any journalist to introduce a segment on food stamps by telling the truth about the corporate welfare nature of the program.
As a professional social worker for 20 years and an adjunct professor of social work I try to teach new social workers that they must understand the political and social context through which we as a society view poor people. Our history informs that we blame the poor for their circumstance and put rules around how they use their in-kind benefits such as food stamps because we moralize about their ability to make the right choices for their family. We must begin as a nation to understand the disparity in income, opportunity, and education that keeps people under employed, unemployed and hungry in the most prosperous country on earth. People who are struggling and battling to survive feel badly enough about their circumstance without being judged at the check out line as they get what they need for their family.
What about tightening the requirements for food stamp eligibility? For example, I know of a recent college graduate whose parents paid for him to attend an elite private university, and whose parents' home always has a room for him and food in the fridge. He is on food stamps. It seems wasteful to me---surely there are needier people.
I live in Northern Virginia where the cost of living is significantly higher than the rest of the state. The income threshold for SNAP is set at the state level with no regard to geographic cost of living disparities. For example my sister who is a single mom with one child cannot make more than $1500 a month in order to qualify for SNAP. A one bedroom apartment in this area costs 1500 a month. So SNAP in this area seems to only be available for the homeless. If you were not homeless you would have to make more than 1500 in order to pay you electric bill and gas to get to work not to mention the cost to buy groceries. The affordable housing programs in Fairfax County are waitlisted and only provide housing at 1200 a month. It is very frustrating that people never discuss geographic cost of living disparities when discussing social welfare programs such as these.
I am SO grateful for the caller who talked about how much work it was to continue to prove her family's eligibility for Food Stamps. Anyone who talks about people on Food Stamps being lazy and just wanting to sit back and let the government take care of them has never applied for government assistance! The appointments, the paperwork, the waiting in line, the questions....it is not easy! And it shouldn't be. Those who need assistance should be required to prove they need it. But I find it offensive to label those willing to go through the process as "lazy."
Dear Caller Allison, I am so sorry that it is difficult for you to get your food stamps. I have a suggestion. You stated that it felt like all the paperwork and time it took you to prove your need every 3 to 6 months was "like a part time job." Well, how about getting a part time job? I have three small children and worked a part time job for years to supplement my husband's income. I wanted to be a "stay at home mom" like you but we couldn't afford it at the time. I am delighted that your husband is trying to be an entrepreneur. My husband has been working at a soulless but reliable job for twenty years in order to provide for his family. Now, we have been FINANCIALLY CONSERVATIVE for enough years that I can stay at home.
It makes me so angry to hear you complain about how hard it is to spend MY TAX DOLLARS while you are living a life both my husband and I would have liked. Your sense of entitlement (for your husband to pursue his dream career, for you to stay at home with your kids) floors me. I think it is hopeless that anything will change other than when the number of entitled, lazy people overtake the number of hard working, financially conservative people and the system fails.
If you would like to see exactly who on the House Agriculture Committee voted for the SNAP cuts, see Title 4, Amendment #21, at
http://farmbillprimer.org/roll-call-chart-house-ag-committee-farm-bill-m...
See also Title 4, Amendment #40. That one would have DOUBLED the SNAP cuts, an amendment which thankfully also failed.
This chart is a visual presentation of the detail provided at
http://agriculture.house.gov/markup/consider-2012-farm-bill
Couldn't agree with you more. The media has contributed to the demonization of the food stamp program while simultaneously reinforcing false stereotypes. Most of the folks on food stamps are white. Many these days were once in the middle-class and fell into financial ruin when the housing crisis hit its peak, and the banksters bilked the public of our taxpayer dollars. Now these same critics of the Obama administration are playing "southern strategy" where anything the gov't does for poor people, particularly people of color is considered suspect. The media, even here at NPR, has no spine. They continue to reinforce this fallacy. A picture tells a thousand words about their intent to highlight this issue...unfortunately, its incorrect in its representation. (BTW, this is response to a comment above that correctly argues that the picture is not representative of most of the recipients on the program. For some reason, it isn't being shown as a reply to that comment.)
A person who is working,and receives some EDP benefits,(food stamps) should be allowed to buy the fixin`s to pack a lunch,including,soda,chips,and even unhealthy lunch meat,loaded with fat and sodium.
If taxpayers are going to pay the tab on executive lunches,which may include caviar,steaks,and champagne,ordinary folks should not be vilified for their low cost choices.
I have a daughter with 3 children that live with me she lost her home doing a hurricane and her husband left her. She did not have anywhere to go just move in with me. Lost her job she had to go on food stamp. That the only way we can feed the children and Its not enough to feed them for the month if they cut the food stamp I don't no what we will do.
I'm a widow my husband at age 47 died from AGENT ORANGE form Viet-Nam war. I'm 59 year's old I'm working a small salary just enough to pay for houseing. We can't get help from the goverment only if we came from another country. We could that is what the state told us. My husbad die for his counrty and we can not get any help. Us start with helping our courty to fee the hungry in the US befor we go to Courty.