New York State Executive Chamber | Governor Eliot Spitzer

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GOVERNOR SPITZER ANNOUNCES EXPANDED ACCESS TO
FOOD STAMPS FOR WORKING NEW YORKERS
Benefits Extended to 100,000 Low-Income Families
New York to Receive $200 Million in Federal Funds with No Cost to the State

Governor Eliot Spitzer announced today that the federal government has approved a critical component of his economic security agenda by expanding access to the Food Stamp Program to low-income, working families in New York.

“This announcement is welcomed news and an important component of my efforts to increase economic security for low-income New Yorkers struggling to support their families,” said Governor Spitzer. “By expanding access to the program, fewer families will be forced to risk missing work in order to put food on the table. Additionally it allows recipients to begin saving and put money toward other important priorities without jeopardizing their continued eligibility for Food Stamps.”

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved the Governor’s Working Families Food Stamp Initiative and allowed New York to waive complicated enrollment requirements such as the prerequisite that families applying for the program submit to a face-to-face interview at a social services office. This requirement is particularly difficult for individuals working full-time.

With this and additional program changes, the initiative, with no cost to the state, will extend federally-funded food stamp benefits to as many as 100,000 additional households, or more than 200,000 people, over the next 18 months. It will also bring more than $200 million in additional federal funding into the New York State economy annually.

Parts of the program will be implemented first in New York City and several Upstate counties before being rolled out statewide.

Specifically, families with an adult working 30 hours per week, or households with two adults who each work at least 20 hours per week, would be offered a simplified and streamlined application process. Eligible applicants will be able to apply on-line and bypass the face-to-face interview at social services offices. In addition, resource limits will be eliminated for low-income food stamp recipients in New York State, allowing them to save for important family needs without jeopardizing their food stamp benefits.

Enrollment in the Food Stamp Program had been on the rise in New York since 2002 but has leveled off in recent years even though a significant number of households remain eligible. Nationally, 30 percent of all households participating in the Food Stamp Program have household earnings. In New York State, the percentage of such families is just 21.6 percent.

David A. Hansell, Commissioner of the State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, which developed the initiative and administers the program said: “There is still a significant number of eligible households, particularly low-income working households, not utilizing this vital economic support. This initiative will simplify the application process for eligible working families, expand on-line application procedures, and remove existing barriers to enrollment. And we will do this while maintaining our all-time high levels of Food Stamp program integrity, as recently acknowledged by the USDA.”