Food stamp budget makes folks hungry

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Click here to enlarge this photo Submitted photo Rebecca Bridgett, director of the Charles County Department of Social Services, participated in the state’s Food Stamp Challenge earlier this month. Bridgett survived on $14.85 worth of food for five days to get a clearer picture of the issues facing low-income residents who must feed their families by using food stamps. E-Mail This Article | Print This Story

There are 6,000 people in the county – 350,997 in Maryland – who are enrolled in the Maryland Department of Human Resources Family Investment Administration’s food stamp program, said Rebecca Bridgett, director of the Charles County Department of Social Services in La Plata. With rising food costs and no projected monetary increase for the program in the near future, it is becoming a real struggle for low-income adults to feed themselves and their families, she said.

To better understand the dilemma and to raise awareness about the problem, the department of human resources asked the directors of local departments of social services in Maryland to take the Food Stamp Challenge, Bridgett said.

It was quite an eye-opening experience, she said, adding she was given $3 a day to provide food for herself for five days. She subsisted on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, yogurt, two bananas, soup and generic tea.

Forget eating a nutritious meal or having anything left over to buy a few snacks, Bridgett said.

‘‘It was very tough to be able to afford any amenities,” she said. ‘‘It was very restrictive. They only give you enough to supplement your existing income.”

The food stamp program’s criteria are very tight, Bridgett explained.

Eligibility is based on gross monthly income from a job and any other money that is available in the household such as child support and alimony payments.

For example, a single person who makes a gross income of $1,170 a month could receive up to $162 in food stamps, Bridgett said. A family of four with a monthly income of $2,238 could receive up to $542.

The program is restrictive. For example, pet food and a lot of extra items people normally pick up while they are grocery shopping cannot be paid for with food stamps, Bridgett said.

Money for the food stamp program comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food and nutrition program, Bridgett said, adding that increases in the food allowance come from that department.

State officials hope that the Food Stamp Challenge will alert federal legislators that an increase in the program is critically needed, she said.

‘‘The point of the challenge is for people to take a look at hunger across America,” she said. ‘‘It’s an awareness exercise.”

The state receives a $400,000 annual grant to administer the program, said Kevin McGuire, executive director of DHR’s Family Investment Administration. It is imperative that federal legislators raise the program’s benefits in order to reach more people who are struggling to buy food during tough economic times, he said.

McGuire, along with at least a dozen officials across the state, participated in the Food Stamp Challenge to drive that message home.

‘‘There are a lot of people out there who work real hard and aren’t making a lot of money,” he said. ‘‘The point of taking the challenge was to drive home to people that it isn’t easy. There’s a lot of need out there. We’re watching the food stamp rolls climb.”

Between November 2006 and November 2007, there was an 11.2 percent increase in the number of people enrolled in the program in Maryland, McGuire said, adding that enrollment is expected to climb as the economy worsens.

‘‘When you don’t have a lot of money it’s very difficult to eat a healthy diet,” he said. ‘‘You don’t have a lot of choice in the types of food you can purchase.”

Bridgett said that she learned a stark lesson about the challenges people face when they have to rely on state assistance to buy food for their families.

‘‘I was really hungry [during the five days of the challenge],” she said, adding that she had an unexpected emergency where she had to take her son to the doctor and did not pack a lunch before leaving her house.

‘‘I was trying to decide whether to drive home to get a sandwich or break the challenge and buy a sandwich out. I called my husband and he was able to bring a sandwich to me.

‘‘This challenge was to focus attention on hunger and raise awareness to the food stamp program,” she said. ‘‘It helped those who participated in the effort to realize the challenges that people who receive food stamps have to face on a daily basis.”

People who are struggling to feed their families should check out the food stamp program to see if they meet the eligibility requirements, McGuire said.

‘‘People who work see that the minimum benefit level is $10 a month and they feel that the juice that they can buy with it isn’t worth the squeeze,” he said.

‘‘It’s not costing the Maryland taxpayer any additional money for this program and the money gets spent in local communities.

‘‘I’m a very strong advocate for my clients,” he added. ‘‘Anything that I can promote to make changes in the program that will benefit local folks I will do so that when the tide comes in they’re not left behind. I want to make sure that people get enough to eat.”