If you were a retailer would you accept SNAP purchases?

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A federal judge in Rhode Island orders the Trump administration to pay SNAP benefits during the shutdown.

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Friday to continue paying for food stamps during the government shutdown, siding with local officials and nonprofits that had sought to spare millions of low-income Americans from losing benefits in a matter of days….

But it remained unclear if or when food stamps would actually reach the roughly 42 million people who rely on monthly federal help to purchase groceries. Lawyers for the Trump administration had previously suggested it could take weeks to disburse the benefits during the shutdown, and the Justice Department could still try to appeal in the case, perhaps further delaying aid.

Nor was it certain the exact amounts food stamp recipients would receive in November…

Roughly one in eight Americans are enrolled in SNAP, which was set to run out of money beginning Saturday in a calamity that would have exacted a substantial economic toll on communities nationwide.

The SNAP benefits, which average around $187 a month per recipient, cost the federal government about $8 billion to provision each month, which lawmakers must regularly replenish as part of their yearly work to fund the government…. [end quote]

According to Google Gemini, Once a household is approved for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), they receive an EBT card. The EBT card is used just like a prepaid debit card to purchase eligible food items at authorized retailers.

The monthly SNAP benefit amount is electronically deposited onto this card by the state agency, which works with an EBT contractor. When the transaction is approved, the purchase amount is deducted from the customer’s SNAP EBT account and electronically credited to the retailer’s bank account through the EBT processor.

Washington State is planning to disburse $2 million per week to food banks but that’s not the same as SNAP in the sense that it isn’t being added to the SNAP EBT card so it won’t work at Walmart or other grocers. It’s not clear to me whether the residual prepaid SNAP funds will be channeled to retailers.

If you were a retailer would you accept SNAP purchases? A judge’s order isn’t the same as money on a card.

The food banks won’t be able to handle the demand. Many people will go hungry.

Wendy

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This is what happens when people are not self reliant. You can’t trust Big Brother.

A few months ago my money transfer was blocked because my passport was about to expire. Without the cash I always have I would have been in big trouble.

Big Brother is a fearsome overlord.

The Captain

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For the people who are truly poor and would have gone hungry without their SNAP - they were never self-reliant.

For the people who could have afforded food but used their SNAP allowance to buy discretionary items and are now reliant on SNAP – you are so right.

Wendy

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This is what happens with the people running things do not know how to run things. The US economy has underperformed since 1981. Putting that on the poor is a disasterous shot at struggling people.

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Any of you believing that there is an equivalent. Most of you have not paid in enough for your Medicare and Medicaid benefits. Medicaid for nursing homes.

We have $38 tr in debt as proof you did not pay in enough.

Will you say you could have paid your own way all along and it was ridiculous you ever got Mediare?

It is a double standard in America for the poor. Shameful.

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It depends. I worked at a small grocery store during college. If the owner had not accepted SNAP, he wouldn’t have made any money.

On the other hand, high end grocers probably shouldn’t accept SNAP. Those benefits won’t go that far if someone is paying $$$$ for staples.

Given current shenanigans and the Big Fugly Bill (BFB) SNAP cuts, it will be interesting to see how Dollar General and Dollar Tree play out.

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So poor people are not supposed to be free?

The other half of the program is for the farmers. Ignore them altogether; we have poor people in our sights.

Let’s crush the poor so we can prove we have a logic system.

Should we discuss CEO pay?

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What are you talking about? Retailers don’t have to accept credit cards, they don’t have to accept EBT cards. Additionally, not all stores can qualify to accept SNAP benefits. It has nothing to do with whether or not poor people are free.

Given that I’m not the only grocer in town, and there are other cheaper options, how am I helping poor people if I’m charging them $5 for a loaf of bread?

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Is this not the operative phrase?

If the card has “disposable cash loaded on it”… Why would a merchant not take it?

It’s a prepaid balance card.
Not a debit card. (I don’t have a debit card, so I do NOT know how they work).

The EBT/prepaid shows the balance available.

If no available balance, the card is rejected.
No judgement, no drama.
Just business.

:thinking:
ralph

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Really we are going to argue over $1 to $1.50 extra being spent on a better quality bread just to control where someone poor can shop?

Not to mention the health benefits. You’ll be treating them for obesity next.

This is a form of means testing. The first step to denial of benefits. The second step is getting rid of the program. Oh…we are watching that now. People here support the program until $1 extra is spent.

What about the farmers? Hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment but we are bailing them out? Not really but it can be discussed that way.

Wait farmers have wealth and are often white. Oh let’s skip this like it never existed. Our bent culture.

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Not all qualify.

Are we going to mandate that every grocery store has to meet all of the qualifications to accept SNAP, and then mandate every business to enroll? That seems bonkers.

Here’s a market that doesn’t accept SNAP -

Bastards…

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Not Sure what you mean by “discretionary items” Wendy–The rules of what can and cannot be bought with EBT cards is pretty clear…

From the USDA….

Any food for the household, such as:

  • Fruits and vegetables;

  • Meat, poultry, and fish;

  • Dairy products;

  • Breads and cereals;

  • Other foods such as snack foods and non-alcoholic beverages; and

  • Seeds and plants, which produce food for the household to eat.

Households CANNOT use SNAP benefits to buy:

  • Beer, wine, and liquor.

  • Cigarettes and tobacco.

  • Food and drinks containing controlled substances such as cannabis/marijuana and CBD.

  • Vitamins, medicines, and supplements. If an item has a Supplement Facts label, it is considered a supplement and is not eligible for SNAP purchase.

  • Live animals (except shellfish, fish removed from water, and animals slaughtered prior to pick-up from the store).

  • Foods that are hot at the point of sale.

  • Any nonfood items such as:

    • Pet foods

    • Cleaning supplies, paper products, and other household supplies.

    • Hygiene items and cosmetics

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Let me clarify…of course you are correct about what SNAP benefits can pay for.

But let’s say that a household decides to (say) use the additional $187 per month to get a lease on a fancier car than they would have afforded without the $187 SNAP benefit. In fact, my husband criticized my contributions to our local food bank because he observed a line of new pickup trucks and SUVs waiting for a handout of free food.

That’s what I meant by “discretionary” spending.

Wendy

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I am fortunate to never had to rely on SNAP funds. According to Google AI:

“No, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides funds for food, not cash. SNAP benefits are loaded onto an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card, which can only be used to buy eligible food items at authorized retailers. Some households may receive cash assistance through a separate program called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which is also loaded onto an EBT card but can be used for other expenses like rent or utilities.”

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I sometimes see notes on the card readers at grocery stores that say something along the lines of “SNAP card first, then credit/debit card”.

Meaning people are buying “discretionary items” over and above what SNAP pays for.

Could be alcohol. Could be a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken. Could be cold medicine.

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I’ve seen two goombas compare how many snap cards they have on them to shop at a gas station mart for garbage.

They had suvs etc

Tptb are scared to prosecute them.

Don’t take that out on the recently laidoff