SNAP cards give low-income customers access to farmers markets, By Lindsey Nair, August 17, 2011, Roanoke Times: “Elbert “Tee” Reynolds has become the official greeter at the West End Community Market in Roanoke, where every Tuesday afternoon he swipes customers’ benefit cards and hands them wooden tokens. The cards represent Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for low-income families, while the tokens represent welcome cash for hardworking local farmers. Reynolds, a SNAP recipient who volunteers at the market, said some families who live in the surrounding neighborhoods do not have easy access to fresh, healthy food. Until recently, residents did not shop at the farmers market because they didn’t have the money…”
Tag: Electronic benefit transfers (EBT)
TANF Benefit Payments – South Dakota
Federal push may restrict welfare checks, By Jonathan Ellis, June 4, 2011, Argus Leader: “South Dakota is one of a handful of states that sends a check each month directly to welfare recipients, meaning the state has no control over how recipients spend those dollars. That’s a departure from how many states administer their programs, known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Most states issue TANF benefits through Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, a system that allows the government to directly transfer benefits onto a card that can be used for food stamps, TANF, child support and other benefits. The electronic cards work like debit cards, allowing recipients to use them at ATMs. They also enable state governments to restrict where the cards may be used. Many states choose not to enact restrictions, but others do. Now it’s possible the federal government will require all states, including South Dakota, to restrict where TANF benefits can be spent. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, have introduced a bill that would require states to ensure that benefits aren’t accessed in casinos, liquor stores or strip clubs. The legislation comes after a host of media investigations throughout the nation found that benefits were withdrawn at ATMs in those locations as well as at tattoo parlors and other questionable locations…”
Restrictions on Electronic Benefit Transfer Cards
California’s limits on welfare debit cards inspire U.S. response, By Jack Dolan, May 11, 2011, Los Angeles Times: “Welfare recipients nationwide would be barred from using their government-issued debit cards at casinos, strip clubs and liquor stores under a bill to be introduced Wednesday by leaders of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. A co-sponsor of the measure says he was inspired by the fact that nearly $5 million in cash benefits issued in California and meant to help struggling families feed and clothe their children, was spent or withdrawn from ATMs at casinos and poker rooms between January 2007 and May 2010. Tens of thousands of dollars in Temporary Aid for Needy Families assistance was accessed or spent with the debit cards at Los Angeles-area strip clubs in the same period. The Times last year detailed all of those transactions, prompting immediate changes in the state’s network of ATMs that accept Electronic Benefit Transfer cards…”