Food Stamps Benefits and Reductions in Other Aid – Indiana

Indiana accused of cutting aid to food-stamp users, By Charles Wilson (AP), July 20, 2010, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette: “For at least a decade, potentially thousands of Indiana’s neediest adults have seen some of their state aid payments slashed simply because they receive food stamps – a practice that advocates and legal experts said is a clear violation of federal law. The policy has affected people with developmental disabilities who need financial help to live independently and who receive additional assistance to buy groceries. The issue apparently went unnoticed for years until this month, when the father of a severely autistic Indianapolis man challenged it in court. ‘I’ve never heard of a state being confused about this before. The law is unambiguous,’ said Stacy Dean, director of food stamp policy for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington. Under the current system, when the federal government raises food stamp amounts, Indiana officials reduce grocery allowances so a person’s total food benefits do not exceed $200 a month. But since 1964, federal law has barred states from counting food stamps as income or using them to reduce any other public benefits…”