Corbett still moving forward to stop food stamps to households with more than $5,500 of assets

[JPZenger]

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/03/top_pennsylvania_house_republi.html

Excerpts:

"The Corbett Administration plans to reinstate an asset test on May 1 as a way to ensure that people with a certain amount of cash or other assets top those dollars first before dipping into the pool of tax dollars. Food stamp eligibility here is now defined solely by income. If the state moves forward with the change, people under age 60 holding more than $5,500 in cash or certain other assets would lose eligibility for food stamps. For those age 60 and older, the threshold would be $9,000. A person’s home, a first car or funds being saved for a child’s education would all be exempted from the assets test, but it could include a family’s second vehicle worth more than $4,650 and other personal property such as a boat or plane.

But given Pennsylvania’s historically strong compliance record in its food stamp program, the fact that the money comes directly from the federal government into Pennsylvania’s economy, and national trends are to move away from asset tests, DiGirolamo said he’s not sure this particular measure helps.

At a public hearing Thursday, a battery of witnesses argued that reinstating an asset test — last used for the food stamp program in Pennsylvania in 2008 — would change the program from being a support for all kinds of households having financial difficulties, to a last-resort service. “We should be about stopping people who don’t deserve them from getting any kind of benefits,” DiGirolamo said Friday. “But this just doesn’t seem to fit into that category that we’re all concerned about.”

In an op-ed published in The Patriot-News Friday, Weis Supermarkets President and CEO David J. Hepfinger called the DPW’s plans a “misguided attempt to prevent fraud.” He wrote that in 2011, about 10 percent of all Weis purchases came from food stamps, now formally called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program [or SNAP]. Hepfinger wrote that the top-selling items purchased with SNAP benefits are staples such as white bread, milk, ground beef, bananas, and potatoes. “We can clearly see how the poor economy impacts our customers,” he wrote.

[MindMover]

1. Soon it will be pull out those gold fillings and sell them so we can eat.....

[kestrel91316]

2. I assume this means that if they have micro-business assets

in excess of $5500 and are limping along, not really getting by, but trying to support themselves when there are no JOBS to be had, that they will be told to sell those assets and lose future hope of supporting themselves fully, or just effin' starve to death.

[JPZenger]

3. AND IT WILL COST PENNSYLVANIA MONEY TO DO THIS!

The most absurd part of an uncompassionate proposal is that IT WON'T EVEN SAVE PENNSYLVANIA ANY MONEY. In fact it will cost PA. money. This is because the Federal Government pays 100% of the food assistance, but PA. has to pay most of the administrative costs. This proposal might save the feds a few dollars, but it will greatly increase the number of state caseworkers needed to do all these asset tests.

This is one more example of why Corbett is not really motivated by temporary budget shortfalls - he is trying to drastically "shrink the size of government so he can drown it in a bathtub."

[pscot]

4. In fairness

you probably should have to sell the Beechcraft before you start collecting foodstamps.

[JPZenger]

5. People shouldn't have to hit rock bottom before they can eat

Most states don't bother with an asset test, they simply rely upon current income. However, if there is an asset test, it should be a higher amount. If a family has money set aside to pay real estate taxes on a cheap house and a couple thousand dollars for medical bills or other emergencies, they can't collect food assistance.

Food stamps/food assistance actually subsidizes the cost of Meals on Wheels for many disabled and elderly home-bound persons. The Meals on Wheels programs will have trouble paying their bills.

Much of the safety net has been ripped up in PA. Tens of thousands of people have lost their subsidized health insurance, because Adult Basic was abolished by Corbett and because he gave clients and human service workers a short period to go through a new bureaucratic "recertification" process for medical assistance and the system couldn't handle it.

Corbett is also cutting all human service budgets by another 25% this year.

He is eliminating the last bit of cash assistance that is available to people in need. This funding is often used by people who are severely disabled but are waiting for the lengthy federal social security process to agree they are disabled. When that certification occurs, the state ACTUALLY GETS PAID BACK. Now, that cash program won't exist.

[PA Democrat]

6. Corbett's battle on the poor, the disabled, continues.

Just close your eyes to the suffering of others. There is no money for anything but special favors for Corbett's biggest campaign contributors.

[Sillysoft]

7. Raise the amount

If there will be an asset test they should raise it higher. A family with 5500 in assets will then end up losing their assets anyway if they cant get help. I thought foodstamps/welfare was for temporary assistance to help someone limp along until they can get back onto their feet. Not make it a way of life.

http://ebtcardbalance.com/