Thread: Assets now tied to food stamps

Assets now tied to food stamps

Some states ask about cash, cars to decide eligibility
32 commentsby John Wisely - Oct. 20, 2011 12:00 AM
USA Today

How rich is too rich for food stamps? The answer depends on where you live.

In Michigan, if you have $5,000 in liquid assets or a car or truck worth more than $15,000, you're probably out of luck under new rules launched this month.

Earlier this month, the state of Michigan began asking residents about their assets - homes, cars, stocks, bonds, even lottery winnings - in addition to income when they receive benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the formal name for food stamps.

The decision to ask about assets rests with the states. Arizona, Texas and Indiana are among the states that ask. Oregon, Oklahoma and New York are among those that don't, USA Today research showed.

Michigan wants the test to weed out people who are gaming the system, said Brian Rooney, director of policy and compliance at the Michigan Department of Human Services.

"If you're driving an Escalade, maybe it's time to find a car that better fits your current economic situation," Rooney said. The state has identified about 15,000 recipients who could lose benefits.

Food stamps have been around since 1939 as a way to help low-income people get their groceries. More than 40 million Americans used the benefit in September, receiving an average benefit of $134 per person or $290 per household, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program.

Michigan's policy is a shift away from one that based eligibility strictly on income and runs counter to a trend that many states have adopted in recent years, said Jennifer Brooks, director of state and local policy at the Corporation for Enterprise Development, a national non-profit that advocates for poor people.

"Telling them they can't have assets, you're undermining the premise of the program, which is helping people create a personal safety net," Brooks said. "A lot of these benefits go to people that were, a few years ago, solidly within the middle class and now need some help. It's probably going to be temporary help."

Most states have gone to a system that assumes people are eligible for food stamps if they qualify for other services to the poor, such as Medicaid or Temporary Aid to Needy Families, she said.

Some states have eliminated asset tests, said Stacy Dean, vice president for food-assistance policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

"There are (a) number of states in this downturn, Nebraska and Louisiana among them, that have lifted them," she said. "With the growing number of unemployed workers who may put modest savings aside, we don't want them to have to spend down their assets

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/ ... z1bLZxvYnP

Boy oh boy, a LOT of illegals would be S.O.L. in NC if this were actually checked! They ALL drive Escalades, Yukons, Navigators or dually pick-ups, and used? Not on your life, they're all brand spankin' new!