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2019 Jan 21, 10:04am   1,871 views  15 comments

by Al_Sharpton_for_President   ➕follow (5)   💰tip   ignore  

Food Assistance Payments Came Early But Have To Last Until March

Sabrina Rubich shopped for milk, bananas and other basics this week at an Albertson's grocery store in Missoula, Mont., with her nine-month-old son, Kenny. When she got to the checkstand she paid for some of her groceries with money from the USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP—which is issuing its February payments early.

Rubich is one of about 39 million people who are now spending their SNAP payments not knowing when the next one will come due to the federal government shutdown.

When she first heard SNAP benefits were coming two weeks early and would have to last until at least the end of next month, Rubich thought, "no they can't be doing that."

Then she got a text about it.

"And sure enough, checked my balance on the app and was like, 'Oh my god. This is real.'"

Rubich works full-time at an AT&T call center, and her wife stays at home with their two children. SNAP benefits vary based on income; Rubich and her family get $158 a month. She says it's helping them afford groceries while they climb out of debt.

Rubich is making extra food bank trips to hold off as much as possible on spending the money that just dropped, until the beginning of February—especially because she doesn't know if the money for March will come in time.

"I am losing sleep over this, man," Rubich says.

The Department of Agriculture funding for SNAP expires this weekend.

Lorianne Burhop, chief policy officer at Montana Food Bank Network, says her biggest concern right now is making sure recipients understand their benefits are early, and not extra.

Many families depend entirely on SNAP for their food. And even in a normal month, Burhop says the money doesn't always last long.

"A lot of people end up skipping meals, going without in those last couple weeks of the month," Burhop says.

So Montana food banks are doing more to fill some gaps, and the state is calling SNAP recipients and sending out fliers to make sure people know the payment they just got has to last until March.

"If the shutdown continues, we all have questions about what will happen in March and potential months beyond that," says Jamie Palagi, administrator of the human and community services division of Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services.

Palagi says the USDA advised the state to keep taking applications for SNAP. If the government re-opens soon enough, the next payment would be issued the first week of March.

https://www.npr.org/2019/01/20/686606008/food-assistance-payments-came-early-but-have-to-last-until-march

Comments 1 - 15 of 15        Search these comments

1   HeadSet   2019 Jan 21, 10:35am  

her biggest concern right now is making sure recipients understand their benefits are early, and not extra.

Good luck with that. If a typical welfare recipient has access to money, they will spend it. Future be damned.
2   theoakman   2019 Jan 21, 10:39am  

haha...she don't look like she's skipping any meals. I literally bought a 20 pound bag of rice and 20 pounds of Pork shoulder. It's enough to feed me for a month if I wanted. It cost me under 30 bucks.
3   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Jan 21, 11:23am  

willywonka says
Rubich works full-time at an AT&T call center, and her wife stays at home with their two children. SNAP benefits vary based on income; Rubich and her family get $158 a month. She says it's helping them afford groceries while they climb out of debt.


What?!
4   MAGA   2019 Jan 21, 8:10pm  

Her wife? ?
5   Heraclitusstudent   2019 Jan 21, 9:08pm  

She looks like she has some 'savings'/reserves.
6   FuckTheMainstreamMedia   2019 Jan 22, 1:38am  

There are two adults? Why aren’t they working staggered shifts or one of them working two jobs?
7   anonymous   2019 Jan 22, 5:17am  

There are no shortage of military families getting monthly assistance including the Coast Guard who is doing without pay while intercepting drugs, illegals, etc.
8   Patrick   2019 Jan 22, 8:03am  

People who really need food should be given food, not money.
12   zzyzzx   2019 Jan 22, 9:55am  

Because walls don't work:
13   mell   2019 Jan 22, 10:45am  

Patrick says
People who really need food should be given food, not money.


Totally agree, however the problem is that this is more expensive in terms of bureaucracy. Unless they let volunteer programs, people who are doing a social/volunteer year or other lower paid workers handle the distribution of food it will go to government workers who will be extremely expensive in selecting and distributing food, not to mention the corruption wrt who they buy food from and at what prices.
14   RC2006   2019 Jan 22, 11:13am  

Just about every single modern day government intervention has had the complete opposite outcome that it intended and encouraged a greater cycle of abuse.
15   Heraclitusstudent   2019 Jan 22, 11:57am  

If a wall is built, it should be zombie proof.

www.youtube.com/embed/g4K41NczMfI

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