Governors Will Shield More Than One Million Families From Food Stamp Cuts

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Governors Will Shield More Than One Million Families From Food Stamp Cuts

Close Inspection of Alleged "Draconian" Cuts in Food Stamp Program; Mish SNAP Proposal

Close Inspection of Alleged "Draconian" Cuts in Food Stamp Program; Mish SNAP Proposal
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVW_o8L5DTEg1vfdi0vIS8aOWqGsHEyRkDBxWCVJ7-rq3FNdnxFz_zO514G3jB0V_lkwi0_dsCjs1mhdP8ccteXV79ctPIoEBuZlynz8vpZ_LDOTbRSNC2grSxwzgwG8WCYSZpjVjkvCA/s400/SNAP+Benefits+Wallace+1.png

Inquiring minds are digging into the alleged “Draconian Cuts” in Food Stamps as championed by the Daily Koz. Of course the Daily Koz is not alone in whining about “draconian” cuts.

Note: The food stamp program is now called “SNAP” Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. 

“The Unthinkable”

On December 5, Greg Kaufmann, writer for The Nation wondered Why Is a Senate Democrat Agreeing to Another $ 8 Billion in Food Stamp Cuts?

On the same day that President Obama eloquently described his vision of an economy defined by economic mobility and opportunity for all, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow was busy cutting a deal with House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas to slice another $ 8 to $ 9 billion from food stamps (SNAP), according to a source close to the negotiations.

“That was the first time in history that a Democratic-controlled Senate had even proposed cutting the SNAP program,” said Joel Berg, executive director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. “The willingness of some Senate Democrats to double new cuts to the program…is unthinkable.”

Mother Jones Says “Kill the Farm Bill Entirely”

Bitching and moaning would not be complete without Mother Jones getting in on the act. On November 12, Mother Jones proposed House Dems Can Block GOP Food Stamp Cuts—by Killing the Farm Bill

The food stamps program—which helps feed 1 in 7 Americans—is in peril. Republicans in the House have proposed a farm bill—the five-year bill that funds agriculture and nutrition programs—that would slash food stamps by $ 40 billion. But by taking advantage of House Republicans’ desire to cut food stamps as much as possible, Democrats might be able to prevent cuts from happening at all.

To pull it off, Democrats would have to derail the farm bill entirely, which would maintain food stamp funding at current levels.

Where’s the Beef?

On December 10, The Tennessean more evenly covers the issue in its report TN House Republicans back $ 40 billion in food stamp cuts.

The future of food stamps — the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — remains the largest sticking point in House-Senate negotiations to finalize a new farm bill before the end of the year.

In September, the House approved a farm bill that cuts almost $ 40 billion from food stamps over 10 years — about 5 percent a year. The Senate earlier approved a bill that would cut $ 4 billion over that time.

At $ 80 billion a year, food stamps remain the single costliest item in the farm bill. The program serves almost 48 million Americans and 1.34 million Tennesseans — about 20 percent of the state population.

Among House members from Tennessee, all but Reps. Jim Cooper of Nashville and Steve Cohen of Memphis — the two Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation — voted for the bill making $ 40 billion in cuts.

Groups such as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal-leaning Washington think tank, say cuts of that magnitude would result in denying benefits to 3.8 million low-income Americans in 2014.

“Those who would be thrown off the program include some of the nation’s most destitute adults, as well as many low-income children, seniors and families that work for low wages,” the CBPP said in an analysis of the House bill. “The House SNAP bill is harsh.”

Rep. John Duncan, R-Knoxville, complained that administrators of the program “have no incentive to keep people off.”

“They will get bigger offices, staffs and funding if even more people get food stamps,” he said.

Close Inspection of “Draconian” Cuts

Please note that the alleged $ 40 billion in cuts is really only $ 4 billion in a close to $ 80 billion program. They arrive at $ 40 billion by multiplying $ 4 billion by 10 years.

OK Fine. The cuts then are $ 40 billion in an $ 800 billion program. And I actually doubt we will ever see those “cuts” in the first place.

A few charts from reader Tim Wallace will help explain.

SNAP Growth in Benefits

 

click on any chart for sharper image

SNAP Benefit Facts

• SNAP benefits more than doubled between 2000 and 2007.


• Between 2007 and 2013 snap benefits went up another 150%.


• Trendline growth would have annual benefits at about $ 32.5 billion.


• Instead benefits are more than double.


• Liberals are whining about a 5% cut when a cut to the trendline would be a 50% cut

SNAP Participation

SNAP Participation Facts

• Participation is nearly double what it was in 2007.


• Participation in 2013 is 275% of the 2001 total.

SNAP Per Person Benefits

 

SNAP Per Person Benefits Facts

• Monthly benefit goes up over time because of inflation.


• Benefits per person jumped in 2007.


• Monthly per person benefit is now $ 133.


• Trendline benefit is $ 117.

Supposedly a 5% cut is draconian.

The Problem

• Growth in the number of participants is on an unsustainable trend. 


• Growth in benefits per person is also on an unsustainable trend.


• Multiply the two together and you get the first chart.

As is typical with government programs, there is no incentive by the administrators to eliminate waste or fraud. 

The more funding for food stamps, the bigger the salaries and staffs of the administrators.

I suggest that we need a way to provide necessary safety-net benefits while simultaneously providing an incentive to get off the program and get a job.

I repeat my proposal.

Mish SNAP Proposal

• Prohibit food stamp purchases of potato chips, snacks, soft drinks, candy, pizza, frozen foods of any kind except juice.


• Limit food stamp users to generic (store brand vs. name brand) dried beans, rice, peanut butter, pasta, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, frozen (not bottled) juice, canned vegetables, canned soup, soda crackers, poultry, ground beef, bread, cheese, powdered milk, eggs, margarine, and general baking goods (flour, sugar, spices).


• Calculate a healthy diet based on current prices, number in the family, ages of recipients, and base food stamps allotments on that diet.


• In the interest of health and cleanliness, expand the food stamp program to include generic soap and laundry products.

My proposal will not only lower the cost of the food stamp program, the resultant healthier diets would lower Medicaid and Medicare costs as well.

Moreover, my proposal would give people a strong incentive to get off the food stamp program without intrusive, costly big-brother ideas like drug testing which cannot possibly work for the simple reason that anyone who fails will steal to get food rather than starve.

Mike “Mish” Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

Mike “Mish” Shedlock is a registered investment advisor representative for SitkaPacific Capital Management. Sitka Pacific is an asset management firm whose goal is strong performance and low volatility, regardless of market direction. Visit http://www.sitkapacific.com/account_management.html to learn more about wealth management and capital preservation strategies of Sitka Pacific.

Mish’s Global Economic Trend Analysis

Read more about Close Inspection of Alleged "Draconian" Cuts in Food Stamp Program; Mish SNAP Proposal and other interesting subjects concerning Economy at TheDailyNewsReport.com

Why Is a Senate Democrat Agreeing to Another $8 Billion in Food Stamp Cuts?

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Why Is a Senate Democrat Agreeing to Another $8 Billion in Food Stamp Cuts?

Artist Sues USPS Over Lady Liberty Stamp Error

Artist Sues USPS Over Lady Liberty Stamp Error
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The Postal Service just cannot catch a break these days. A sculptor has sued the USPS because it mistakenly used his version of the Statue of Liberty on a stamp instead of the original in New York Harbor, reports AP . The mistake itself is old news : The Postal Service created…
Crime & Courts from Newser

Read more about Artist Sues USPS Over Lady Liberty Stamp Error and other interesting subjects concerning Crime and Justice at TheDailyNewsReport.com

Wal-Mart Shelves Cleared During Food Stamp Card "Glitch"

KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather

MANSFIELD, LA (KSLA-TV) – Shelves in Walmart stores in Springhill and Mansfield, LA were reportedly cleared Saturday night, when the stores allowed purchases on EBT cards even though they were not showing limits.

RealClearPolitics Video Log

Wal-Mart Shelves Cleared During Food Stamp Card "Glitch"

WALMART SHELVES CLEARED DURING FOOD STAMP PANIC

MANSFIELD, LA (KSLA) -

Shelves in Walmart stores in Springhill and Mansfield, LA were reportedly cleared Saturday night, when the stores allowed purchases on EBT cards even though they were not showing limits. 

The chaos that followed ultimately required intervention from local police, and left behind numerous carts filled to overflowing, apparently abandoned when the glitch-spurred shopping frenzy ended.

Springhill Police Chief Will Lynd confirms they were called in to help the employees at Walmart because there were so many people clearing off the shelves. He says Walmart was so packed, “It was worse than any black Friday” that he’s ever seen.

Lynd explained the cards weren’t showing limits and they called corporate Walmart, whose spokesman  said to let the people use the cards anyway. From 7 to 9 p.m., people were loading up their carts, but when the cards began showing limits again around 9, one woman was detained because she rang up a bill of $ 700.00 and only had .49 on her card. She was held by police until corporate Walmart said they wouldn’t press charges if she left the food.

Lynd says at 9 p.m., when the cards came back online and it was announced over the loud speaker, people just left their carts full of food in the aisles and left.

“Just about everything is gone, I’ve never seen it in that condition,” said Mansfield Walmart customer Anthony Fuller.

Walmart employees could still be seen putting food from the carts away as late as Sunday afternoon. “I was just thinking, I’m so glad my mom doesn’t work here [Walmart] anymore, that’s the only thing I could think about, those employees working, that would have to restock all that stuff,” said O.J Evans who took cell phone video of the overflowing shopping carts at the Mansfield Walmart.

Evans believes it was natural human reaction that led people to fill up their carts during the glitch, but Walmart shoppers Stan and Judy Garcia feel very differently. ”That’s plain theft, that’s stealing that’s all I got to say about it,” said Garcia.

Lynd says contrary to rumors, nobody was unruly or arrested and they were mainly there to help prevent shoplifting and theft. 

 A dispatcher for Mansfield police also confirms officers were called in for crowd control at the Mansfield Walmart. She said the shelves were cleared out, forcing Walmart to stop selling food at 9 p.m. There were no arrests.

There was, however, a huge mess left behind. Pictures and videos obtained by KSLA News 12 show aisles packed with shoppers emptying the shelves in Springhill. Another video shows what appear to be at least dozens of overflowing carts left abandoned in the aisles at the Mansfield store, against the backdrop of emptied shelves in the meat department.   

It all happened at the end of a day in which the EBT system went down in several states, including Louisiana. Xerox, a vendor for the EBT system, experienced a power outage while conducting a routine backup test in one of the company’s locations. While the system was back up Saturday night, it appears that it was not functioning entirely properly in some areas.

Kayla Whaling, a spokesperson for Walmart, tells KSLA News 12 that the company was “fully engaged and monitoring the situation and transactions during the outage.”

“We did make the decision to continue to accept EBT cards (and purchases on WIC and SNAP) during the outage so that they could get food for their families.”

Asked whether Walmart would be taking the loss on any food purchased on the cards that did not show limits, or on the perishable food left behind in carts, Whaling would only say that “we monitored transactions during the outage.”

A spokesperson for the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services says they take all allegations of potential fraud seriously, they are aware of the reports and they will be investigating.

Copyright 2013 KSLA. All rights reserved.

Drudge Report Feed

WALMART SHELVES CLEARED DURING FOOD STAMP PANIC

Food stamp recipients empty Walmart shelves during system glitch

Some Walmart stores in Louisiana allowed food stamp recipients to shop despite the fact that the computer system was down and it was impossible to know how much in benefits the shopper could access.

The result – unbelievable:

Shelves in Walmart stores in Springhill and Mansfield, LA were reportedly cleared Saturday night, when the stores allowed purchases on EBT cards even though they were not showing limits. 

The chaos that followed ultimately required intervention from local police, and left behind numerous carts filled to overflowing, apparently abandoned when the glitch-spurred shopping frenzy ended.

Springhill Police Chief Will Lynd confirms they were called in to help the employees at Walmart because there were so many people clearing off the shelves. He says Walmart was so packed, “It was worse than any black Friday” that he’s ever seen.

Lynd explained the cards weren’t showing limits and they called corporate Walmart, whose spokesman  said to let the people use the cards anyway. From 7 to 9 p.m., people were loading up their carts, but when the cards began showing limits again around 9, one woman was detained because she rang up a bill of $ 700.00 and only had .49 on her card. She was held by police until corporate Walmart said they wouldn’t press charges if she left the food.

Lynd says at 9 p.m., when the cards came back online and it was announced over the loud speaker, people just left their carts full of food in the aisles and left.

“Just about everything is gone, I’ve never seen it in that condition,” said Mansfield Walmart customer Anthony Fuller.

Walmart employees could still be seen putting food from the carts away as late as Sunday afternoon. “I was just thinking, I’m so glad my mom doesn’t work here [Walmart] anymore, that’s the only thing I could think about, those employees working, that would have to restock all that stuff,” said O.J Evans who took cell phone video of the overflowing shopping carts at the Mansfield Walmart.

Evans believes it was natural human reaction that led people to fill up their carts during the glitch, but Walmart shoppers Stan and Judy Garcia feel very differently. ”That’s plain theft, that’s stealing that’s all I got to say about it,” said Garcia.

Lynd says contrary to rumors, nobody was unruly or arrested and they were mainly there to help prevent shoplifting and theft. 

 A dispatcher for Mansfield police also confirms officers were called in for crowd control at the Mansfield Walmart. She said the shelves were cleared out, forcing Walmart to stop selling food at 9 p.m. There were no arrests.

Carts overflowing with food left in the middle of aisles after it was announced that the EBT cards now showed limits.

A “natural human reaction?” Stealing is a conscious choice, hardly natural. Also, how did so many people get word that the store wasn’t checking limits? Some sort of network must have been in use – perhaps social media via phone.

If it turns out that dozens of people went over their limit I wonder if Walmart will look at the thousands of dollars in lost sales and be so magnanimous about not pressing charges.

KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather

American Thinker Blog

Food stamp recipients empty Walmart shelves during system glitch

Food Stamp Fight: Great For GOP Base But Not For Outreach

Enlarge image i

During George W. Bush’s presidency, Republican leaders won praise for expanding food assistance. Now the House GOP is drawing criticism for cutting it.

Matt Rourke/AP

During George W. Bush’s presidency, Republican leaders won praise for expanding food assistance. Now the House GOP is drawing criticism for cutting it.

Matt Rourke/AP

The Republican-controlled House’s vote to cut $ 40 billion from the food stamp program is just the latest example of how the GOP balance of power has shifted rightward over the past decade.

President George W. Bush isn’t fondly remembered by progressives for much. But anti-hunger advocates credited him during his administration for strongly supporting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (the formal name for food stamps) and other policies to help unemployed or low-income workers and schoolchildren from such families escape the fear associated with not knowing where their next meals would come from.

Under Bush, funding for SNAP doubled. When I talked with anti-hunger advocates fairly early in the Bush administration, they were already praising Bush for doing more than President Bill Clinton to directly respond to the food insecurity crisis affecting many people.

Whether it came from Bush’s sincere desire to help those most in need, political calculus or both, it was the kind of “compassionate conservatism” policy meant to appeal to voters beyond the fiscal conservatives in the Republican Party’s base.

With its expansive aspects, softer edge and its potential to broaden Republican appeal to voters beyond the base, it resembled Bush’s successful expansion of Medicare benefits to include prescription drug coverage and the failed effort at an immigration overhaul.

By contrast, with its locked-in focus on fiscal austerity, the House GOP’s approval of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s bill that would deeply cut food assistance more closely resembles a case of political base cultivation.

It’s safe to say it will do little to expand the party’s national base and could even lose it some votes. After all, 15 House Republicans voted against the legislation.

What it comes down to is a kind of political pointillism. National Republicans like Bush and his chief political strategist Karl Rove focused on the big picture created by all those little dots.

House Republicans, meanwhile, are focused instead on the individual points —dollar amounts and their congressional districts.

News

Food Stamp Fight: Great For GOP Base But Not For Outreach

As Lawmakers Target Food Stamp Funding, New Report Finds 1 in 6 in U.S. are Going Hungry

As Republicans move to cut billions of dollars in funding for food stamps, a new report finds one in six Americans live in a household that cannot afford adequate food. In “Nourishing Change: Fulfilling the Right to Food in the United States,” the International Human Rights Clinic at New York University’s School of Law reports that of these 50 million people going hungry, nearly 17 million are children. Food insecurity has skyrocketed since the economic downturn, with an additional 14 million people classified as food insecure in 2011 than in 2007. The report comes as Congress is renegotiating the Farm Bill and proposing serious cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program. Millions of Americans currently rely on the program to feed themselves and their families. The report’s co-author, Smita Narula of the International Human Rights Clinic at NYU’s School of Law, joins us to discuss her findings and why she is calling on the U.S. government to ensure that all Americans have access to sufficient, nutritious food.

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As Lawmakers Target Food Stamp Funding, New Report Finds 1 in 6 in U.S. are Going Hungry