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"Heat & Eat"
Pennsylvania among states to block food stamp cuts
The farm bill Congress approved with bipartisan support this year slashed a total of $8.6 billion over 10 years from food stamps, known officially as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The reductions occurred after years of debate over how to stem the continued growth of spending on food stamps, which topped $82 billion in fiscal year 2013
.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said last week that the states were undercutting the intentions of Congress. He called on his colleagues to crack down on the “fraud” by states in avoiding the cuts.
“Since the passage of the farm bill, states have found ways to cheat once again on signing up people for food stamps,” Boehner said
.
The eight states and D.C. have been able to thwart Congress because the cuts affect only those states using the so-called “Heat and Eat” provision of the food stamps program. Under “Heat and Eat,” a household is entitled to more food aid if it is enrolled in the federally funded Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps people pay their utility bills. Each state gets a specific amount of federal money to run LIHEAP as it sees fit.
Under the old version of “Heat and Eat,” it didn't matter how much LIHEAP help a family got. Some states signed food stamp recipients for LIHEAP, then gave them a nominal payment of as little as $1 per year.
Under the revised rules, food stamp recipients must receive at least $20 each year in utility assistance to qualify for more food aid. The change was projected to ax benefits by about $90 per month for the 850,000 households affected. The average monthly benefit per household for all 50 states and the District of Columbia in fiscal year 2013 was $275.
In response, states boosted LIHEAP funding to meet the threshold. In most cases, they have been able to do so without using state dollars.
The farm bill Congress approved with bipartisan support this year slashed a total of $8.6 billion over 10 years from food stamps, known officially as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The reductions occurred after years of debate over how to stem the continued growth of spending on food stamps, which topped $82 billion in fiscal year 2013
.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said last week that the states were undercutting the intentions of Congress. He called on his colleagues to crack down on the “fraud” by states in avoiding the cuts.
“Since the passage of the farm bill, states have found ways to cheat once again on signing up people for food stamps,” Boehner said
.
The eight states and D.C. have been able to thwart Congress because the cuts affect only those states using the so-called “Heat and Eat” provision of the food stamps program. Under “Heat and Eat,” a household is entitled to more food aid if it is enrolled in the federally funded Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps people pay their utility bills. Each state gets a specific amount of federal money to run LIHEAP as it sees fit.
Under the old version of “Heat and Eat,” it didn't matter how much LIHEAP help a family got. Some states signed food stamp recipients for LIHEAP, then gave them a nominal payment of as little as $1 per year.
Under the revised rules, food stamp recipients must receive at least $20 each year in utility assistance to qualify for more food aid. The change was projected to ax benefits by about $90 per month for the 850,000 households affected. The average monthly benefit per household for all 50 states and the District of Columbia in fiscal year 2013 was $275.
In response, states boosted LIHEAP funding to meet the threshold. In most cases, they have been able to do so without using state dollars.
--more--
http://triblive.com/state/pennsylvania/5797085-74/states-cuts-aid#ixzz2wcVkRnFj
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