Food Stamp Fraud, Rare but Troubling [View all]

[liberal N proud]

IRWINTON, Ga. — In the back of Shinholster’s Grocery and Meat Market, they simmer pig skin and lard in an old black kettle. Hams from animals raised in the yard hang near an aging cash register.

As Republicans in Congress demand cuts to the $79.8 billion food stamp program, every aspect of it is being examined, including whether people should be allowed to buy candy bars and energy drinks with the aid, and who qualifies for help that averages out to about $133 a month for one person.

Allegations of fraud, including an informal economy in which food stamps are turned into cash or used to buy liquor, gasoline or other items besides food have been used to argue that the program is out of control. In fact, the black market accounts for just over 1 percent of the total food stamp program, which is far less than fraud in other government programs like Medicare and Medicaid.

Still, some abuse persists, even in unlikely corners. The little country store that Elbert Eugene Shinholster, 77, opened in the 1980s did not start out as a criminal enterprise. But slowly, as poverty in Wilkinson County worsened, Mr. Shinholster began swiping customers’ electronic benefits cards and handing over a mix of groceries and cash to help people get by.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/19/us/food-stamp-fraud-in-the-underground-economy.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20131219&_r=0#h[]

Hey teabaggers, did you hear that just 1% amounts to fraud 1%