Congress may throw wrench in Texas privatization plan

[sonias]

AAS article 2/4/08
Congress may throw wrench in Texas privatization plan
Proposal attempts to limit the role of private workers in food stamp program.

By Jason Embry and Corrie MacLaggan
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Monday, February 04, 2008

WASHINGTON — In a direct response to problems in Texas, Congress is considering new limits on the role that private companies can play in states' public assistance programs.

A provision in a major farm bill approved by the U.S. House would bar states from allowing employees of private firms to interact with people who are applying for food stamps or to decide someone's eligibility for the program. The measure could force Texas to rework its plans to privatize food stamp enrollment.

The author of the provision, U.S. Rep. Joe Baca, D-Calif., said it was inspired in part by problems in Texas, where some eligible families were improperly denied food stamps, Medicaid and cash assistance during a 2006 privatization test in the Austin area.

"The disastrous attempt to privatize food stamps in Texas was a large reason behind my anti-privatization provision in the House farm bill," Baca said. "The Texas project was a complete fiasco."

(snip)
Baca said he is committed to making sure that his provision is in the final version of the farm bill. "If we open the door for the privatization of food stamp administration, we risk putting sensitive information about millions of families into the hands of private companies, with no way to monitor how this data will be handled or protected," he said.

The federal government should rein in Texas. The republicans and libertarians can howl all they want, but the truth is private companies are costing the state of Texas more than a public employee run program, in the long run. The Accenture HHS disaster is proof of that.

Sonia

[GOPisEvil]

1. The feds already stepped in once.

Back when we had a REAL president, the feds stopped privatization. Nice that Congress is stepping up to the plate.

[sonias]

2. Come Jan 2009 we'll have another REAL president

And the 8 years of hell this county and world went through under the bush idiot son will be over. Then it will take us a decade or more to clean up his mess and recover financially.

350 days to go before our nightmare is over.

Sonia