Millions in tax payer dollars stolen by "needy"

[jaxjaguar]

Homeless, vagrants and needy selling their EBT cards so local merchants can pad their sales.

I think this sums it up pretty well...

Why would the person needing government benefits sell the card?

"It's free money," said Cook. "It didn't cost them anything to get it, so it doesn't cost anything for them to lose it

http://www.news4jax.com/news/ebt-fraud-steals-millions-in-taxpayer-dollars/29640166

[coredumped]

I think the point is it's being abused.

We offer too much money to people to NOT work in this country, it's amazing that anyone works at all.

[I-10east]

^^^Give the crooked convenience store clerks some medals then, geez...

[spuwho]

Back during Katrina, my employer was asked to supply $500 and $1000 debit cards paid for by FEMA to people who were displaced by the flooding. This was to make sure that the needy were getting adequate cash to meet their needs during an extraordinary event. Food, liquids, diapers, etc.

We were dispatched to several areas where FEMA had set up shelters. Shreveport, Houston and some other cities.

FEMA stopped the program after 48 hours.  The local BestBuy's were reporting a run on big screen TV's and were calling us to verify if the cards were valid or not because they were seeing so many. After notifying FEMA that the cards were being used for non critical items FEMA asked that the distribution cease. And after only 72 hours all the cash value in the cards were consumed.

The economic benefit to Best Buy was never disclosed.

[jaxjaguar]

^ This is exactly why I have a problem with government assistance. I'm all for helping those who need it, but let's be real here... There's a reason most of these people are in the situation they are. They've lived out of their means or made poor life choices. When the government gives them free money or things they can sell for cash they use that money to purchase the very things that drove them into poverty; drugs, expensive jewelry & clothes, and other non essential items.

Sure there are people who legitimately need the help and those with mental illness who have been abandoned, but a very large portion of the people receiving this help just see it as a "bonus."

[fsquid]

this has been going on for years.

[I-10east]

Overreaction much???

[fsquid]

this has been going on for years.

what?  You mean people cheat and steal?  And it doesn't matter whether you are poor or wealthy?

could you point me to your posts pointing out that Rick Scott stole billions of dollars from medicare?  Because this criticism seems to only be valid when talking about people who don't have a pot to piss in.

Just the portion that he had to pay back (1.2 billion) could fund all the losses described herein for 15 years.

And thats just ONE wealthy person stealing from the system.

people selling their EBT cards and food stamps before that.  I had friends that did these transactions in college.   Unsure what Rick Scott has to do with this topic other than pointing out that the governor candidates in Florida are severely lacking.

[vicupstate]

this has been going on for years.

what?  You mean people cheat and steal?  And it doesn't matter whether you are poor or wealthy?

could you point me to your posts pointing out that Rick Scott stole billions of dollars from medicare?  Because this criticism seems to only be valid when talking about people who don't have a pot to piss in.

Just the portion that he had to pay back (1.2 billion) could fund all the losses described herein for 15 years.

And thats just ONE wealthy person stealing from the system.

people selling their EBT cards and food stamps before that.  I had friends that did these transactions in college.   Unsure what Rick Scott has to do with this topic other than pointing out that the governor candidates in Florida are severely lacking.

Theft is theft is it not?  Only in Rick Scott's case he got anyway with it, and has more than a few extra zeros on the end of his net worth because of it. Give me a break. 

[fsquid]

this has been going on for years.

what?  You mean people cheat and steal?  And it doesn't matter whether you are poor or wealthy?

could you point me to your posts pointing out that Rick Scott stole billions of dollars from medicare?  Because this criticism seems to only be valid when talking about people who don't have a pot to piss in.

Just the portion that he had to pay back (1.2 billion) could fund all the losses described herein for 15 years.

And thats just ONE wealthy person stealing from the system.

people selling their EBT cards and food stamps before that.  I had friends that did these transactions in college.   Unsure what Rick Scott has to do with this topic other than pointing out that the governor candidates in Florida are severely lacking.

Theft is theft is it not?  Only in Rick Scott's case he got anyway with it, and has more than a few extra zeros on the end of his net worth because of it. Give me a break.

ok, he got away with it, life's not fair.  Unsure what that has to do with EBT cards.  Maybe we can talk about eminent domain or something next.

[I-10east]

Regardless who is the Governor is and what he did (integrated into topic for whatever reason..cough cough..thread hijack) I guess that the EBT system is perfectly fine the way it is! Everybody is getting their hustle on, taking resources away from people that really need help, so it's all good, and no need to complain... 

[coredumped]

you literally don't know what the hell you are talking about.  but thats ok.  its a free country.

Sound argument, what I've come to expect.

imagine if your own purchasing decisions were held up and judged every time you needed a raise or a credit transaction.

My purchases ARE held up and judged EVERY time I do a credit transaction....by ME! I watch my money and try to live within my means.

If others were more accountable maybe we wouldn't have so many people on welfare. Yes, some people genuinely need it, but these "lifers" need a hard end date. Instead, we pay people to NOT work, and, from the article, they get MORE money if they have MORE kids.

How could this not get abused???

[coredumped]

You brought up people who sold their cards for two hundred dollars, and were outraged.

But you don't seem to care about 1.2 billion dollars?

What gives?

Who are you talking to?

[I-10east]

One thing that I noticed politically looking at it from an objective view. Republicans and Centrist GENERALLY are more straight forward than Democrats. Republicans generally stick to the script, and use less political cliches than Democrats; Even if a far right issue is controversial or is a detriment (being all for the rich, environmental issues, NRA etc) they generally stick to the script, while democrats and progressives sidetrack alot. IMO sidetracking issues isn't doing good for the cause concerning the left.   

[TheCat]

It's bound to happen. We probably spend more money trying to prevent some person selling their card than the actual cost of the loss. We probably shouldn't worry about how the money is spent, whether it is on iphones or food. Money is money, and we would have more of it available (I assume) if we didn't try to manage it on a per person level.

I'm more interested in which retailers profit the most from EBT money. What percentage of Wal-Mart's revenue, for instance, is derived from food stamps?

That information, apparently, is super confidential (last time I checked). Maybe, food stamps could be a sufficient leveraging tool of the federal government to lift people out of welfare status.

If a certain xx size retailers would like to accept food stamps then they have to ensure their employees earn some base amount of money.


This is an interesting article about food stamps and walmart from slate:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/08/05/how_much_walmart_gets_in_food_stamp_dollars_the_answer_may_be_forthcoming.html


It  seems likely that the USDA will end up releasing retail data on food stamps. They are being sued on the matter.

It's estimated that walmart brings in about 18 percent of all food stamp revenue, which accounts for 4 percent of their US sales or $13 billion.

In at least one walmart, 15 percent of their employees were on food stamps.