Food stamp use soars, By Keyonna Summers, January 9, 2010, Florida Today: “The gnawing feeling of an empty stomach is something Neville Durant became accustomed to after losing his job as a restaurant cook two years ago. Though he searched daily for work to support himself and his paraplegic brother, jobs were scarce. The latest unemployment rate in Brevard County hit 11.9 percent. In August, Durant signed up for food stamps. ‘I never thought I would have to turn to food stamps,’ said Durant, 45, of Cocoa. ‘You think things will get better but then you turn to that point of desperation . . . when your stomach starts growling. You can’t go out looking for a job starving.’ Durant said food stamps have helped give him peace of mind. There’s food in the house. And he’s not alone. There are about 30,000 households in Brevard County currently receiving food stamps — a number that’s tripled in the past decade and more than doubled in just the past four years. Nearly 9,000 families signed up in the past year alone…”
Use of food stamps soars in Vermont, By Tim Johnson, January 10, 2010, Burlington Free Press: “Vermonters using food stamps have increased nearly 80 percent over the last four years, and about 1 in 8 state residents now relies on this federally funded program. But Vermont’s food-security profile also includes two other noteworthy statistics:
• About one-fourth of the people eligible for food stamps — now known as 3SquaresVT — have not signed up. That’s according to a national survey of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which put Vermont’s participation rate at 73 percent (compared to a national average of 66 percent).
• Of those in Vermont who are receiving food assistance, about 1 in 12 has no other source of income. The number of Vermonters depending solely on 3SquaresVT totaled 7,139 in November, according to the Department of Children and Families, which administers the program…”
Poverty line drop could hurt Vermonters, By Daniel Barlow, December 15, 2009, Rutland Herald: “The federal government’s poverty level guidelines will drop in 2010 for possibly the first time ever, changing the qualifications for a host of programs ranging from state-subsidized health insurance to food stamps. The reduction in what the federal government considers poverty could result in Vermonters either losing benefits they now receive or seeing a decrease in their subsidies depending on their annual household income. For example, for a single person to qualify for a state or federal program that covers up to 100 percent of the federal poverty level they would need to make less than $906 a month. Starting next year, that benchmark changes to $899 a month for a single person…”
Calculating poverty, Editorial, December 16, 2009, Rutland Herald: “It is hard to believe that poverty is decreasing in Vermont, but it appears the federal government may be preparing to make that declaration. The federal government establishes federal poverty level guidelines each year to determine who is eligible for a wide variety of assistance from state and federal programs. At present, the poverty level for a single person in Vermont is less than $906 per month. Officials in state government have learned that federal statisticians have run the numbers and found that the poverty guidelines for 2010 may fall for the first time since guidelines were established in 1965. This is alarming to those in state government who manage benefit programs, which include food stamps, welfare and health care programs. If poverty levels drop, people who now rely on federal and state assistance could see their benefits drop significantly…”
