Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition

Oh oh. When congressmen start dueling with Biblical quotes we're all in trouble. A couple of days ago, listening to satellite radio, I happened to catch that old Kay Kyser World War II big band song, "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition." I thought about that this morning when I read an article from NBC News on the current debate. "A heated battle is brewing on Capitol Hill over cuts to the food stamp program," said the lead, "with lawmakers quoting Bible verses at each other and benefits for millions of people hanging in the balance." You could almost see the gathering black clouds and hear the guns in the far distance. All they were missing was Edward R. Murrow.

Not to make light of this, but we're talking about finding a spending number we can all live with. This used to be pretty routine in lawmaking. A few overwrought speeches from the floor, a couple of bourbons in the cloak room, and a new highway somewhere, and there  you go. Off to the president for his signature.

Not so much anymore. In the case of the latest (emphasis on the late) Farm Bill, we're talking about the House and Senate trying to bridge a $16 billion spending gap. That's like trying to jump the Snake River Canyon with a BMX.

If you believe the Senate's version, the House proposal would expose two million people to untold misery by throwing them off the program. Or, they should never have been on the program in the first place and we don't have the money to keep them there, if you favor the House's approach. Either way, this gap has to be closed.

Sticking the SNAP budget in the Farm Bill used to make sense  because it gave lawmakers safe harbor for their other spending initiatives in the bill. Maybe that's not the case anymore. It has been suggested that given the wrangling about the Farm Bill it might be time to break out the SNAP budget from the battle over ag subsidies and fight them separately.

All I know is that when lawmakers start thinking it's their job to do the Lord's work, we're all in trouble. I think the Almighty's can handle what's on His plate. I think with a Farm Bill months overdue and a budget process that's not worthy of the name anymore lawmakers should stick to their own work and figure out a way to close this gap and get a deal done. 

It's the Party Pooper: USDA to Blast Fraudsters with a New Cache of Weapons

Reiterating his Department's "zero tolerance" policy towards fraud in the SNAP, program, formerly called food stamps, Under Secretary of Agriculture Kevin Concannon on Thursday announced a number of steps USDA is taking to crack down on benefit diversion and misuse.

The biggest change is that the Department is moving away from an "either/or" punishment for retailers who traffic SNAP benefits. Currently, retailers found to have trafficked in benefits face disqualification from the program or a financial penalty, but not both.

The Food & Nutrition Service within
USDA is the agency that oversees
and monitors the SNAP program,
formerly known as Food Stamps

The proposed new sanctions allow USDA to permanently disqualify a guilty grocer, plus hit him with a hefty fine on the way out the door.

In a release, Concannon stated that "These additional measures reaffirm our ongoing commitment to ensuring these dollars are spent as intended-helping millions of people in need get back on solid economic footing."

The new regulations would require states to take "specific actions" to nail fraudsters on the front end and to make sure ineligible applicants don't get certified to receive SNAP benefits.

USDA has been doubling down on fraud detection and control in the wake of increased oversight by the Administration and Congress. Recently the Department has:

• Sent letters to popular social media sites seeking to prevent Craigslist, Ebay, Facebook and Twitter from becoming an online flea market for buying and selling SNAP benefits
• Proposed regulations that would give states the option of making a recipient contact the state agency for a new card when there have been an excessive number of new card requests on an account
• Proposed tougher rules for so-called high-risk stores trying to get approval to redeem SNAP benefits
• Worked more closely with state and other federal agencies spreading the word about program violators

USDA has also launched a "Stop SNAP Fraud" web page to provide information on reducing fraud in the program. The site includes Frequently Asked Questions about fraud, details the Department's efforts to fight fraud, and includes instructions on reporting and fighting fraud. 

Building a Healthy America: a SNAP Profile

USDA has just published Building a Health America: A Profile of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The publication provides a pretty well rounded picture of SNAP, especially for those who many not know a lot about the program. As EBT professionals, what we do is fairly unique. This might be a good handoff or leave-behind to help explain SNAP. It begins with a nice overview and includes a decent explanation of SNAP EBT. If you're interested, here's the link:
http://1.usa.gov/HCBeLS.