The Maine Department of Health and Human Services plans to appeal a demand by the federal government that the state repay nearly $5 million in erroneous food assistance benefits.
DHHS in late July notified about a third of the Mainers who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps, that their benefits would be reduced to recoup the overpayments.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees and pays for the program, in a letter this week prohibited DHHS from collecting the overpayments from about 70,000 recipients and billed the state for the full amount of $4,861,920.
“I am very disappointed and dismayed at [USDA’s] inconsistent approach to the program, and we will be appealing this recent decision,” DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew said Thursday.
Mayhew cited an earlier letter sent March 30 by the USDA that she said instructed DHHS to pursue collection of the overpayments. The letter encouraged the state to consider repayments case by case and gave DHHS the green light to waive or lower repayments for recipients who would suffer hardship or were unlikely to return benefits within three years based on their economic circumstances.
DHHS sought to recover a total of up to $80 from each affected household. While beneficiaries were notified that their benefits would be reduced, those deductions have not been made, Mayhew said.
Between April and July 2011, the program paid out more than federal regulations allowed. The overpayments went out after the federal government decided to cut back the portion of benefits that helps recipients pay their utility bills. The USDA had previously boosted those benefits temporarily when oil prices rose to record levels last year, so the reduction was a readjustment.
Maine law prevented DHHS, which administers the program, from reducing benefits until a formal rule change in the program was made, according to the department. In June, DHHS restored benefits for a several-month period to comply with state requirements, according to the Sept. 24 letter to Mayhew from James Arena-DeRosa, northeast regional administrator for the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service.
Arena-DeRosa wrote that the overpayments were “the result of a systemic state error.”
“It is unfortunate that Maine did not pursue a consultation with FNS,” the letter states. “This would have afforded FNS the opportunity to properly advise the state of their legal responsibilities and options, and likely would have prevented the establishment of these claims.”
Mayhew said DHHS was in contact with USDA about the overpayments, including before the March 30 letter.
DHHS “certainly would have preferred to have our changes in state policy immediately coincide with the changes that needed to occur to be consistent with the federal requirement,” she said. “We do not see that as a systemic error.”
The feds are asking Maine to pay back about $2.8 million of the $4.8 million that’s owed. USDA deducted from the total about $2 million in bonus awards that the state was eligible for in fiscal year 2011.
Mayhew said it was “troubling” that USDA cited systemic problems in Maine’s oversight of the food assistance program while in the same letter acknowledged bonus payments for DHHS’ performance in accurately providing benefits and access to the program.
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, said many families complained about having their benefits cut to make up for DHHS’ error.
“We heard from dozens of food stamp beneficiaries who suddenly, out of the blue, were informed that they owed the state $80,” she said in a statement issued Thursday. “For people struggling to put food on the table, that represents a big hit to their budget. These families didn’t do anything wrong; the overpayment was due to an administrative mistake, and there was no way they could have possibly known they were getting a few dollars more a month than they should have.”
Mayhew categorized the request for repayment as an attempt by the feds to unfairly shift the financial burden from recipients to Maine taxpayers. Senate Democrats issued an opposing statement saying DHHS should take responsibility rather than shift the costs to Maine families.
“The administration’s ongoing neglect of the law and mismanagement is costing Maine taxpayers,” Assistant Democratic Leader Sen. Justin Alfond of Portland said in the statement. “As seen here, the administration’s arrogant approach is harmful to Maine families and now it’s costing all of us.”
Republican Sen. Richard Rosen of Bucksport, co-chairman of the Legislature’s budget committee, dismissed Democrats’ claim that the food assistance error was part of a pattern of behavior by the LePage administration.
“That sounds like campaign rhetoric a few weeks before the election,” he said. “That doesn’t line up with the historic reality.”
Lawmakers should let DHHS’ appeal run its course through the federal review process, Rosen said.
The USDA didn’t state in this week’s letter when it expects payment from DHHS, but indicated it would consider allowing the state to repay the debt over multiple fiscal years.
DHHS has 10 days to file its appeal.
Good finally the state has to be accountable for their actions and can’t take it out on the elderly and less fortunate.
“Good finally the state has to be accountable for their actions and can’t take it out on the elderly and less fortunate.” …and thieves.
If a store sells an item for $2 less than it should have, and you buy that item regularly, are you a thief?
And how is that the same? Our taxes don’t support that store, but you can damn well bet our taxes paid for those folks to get their assistance for booze and cigarettes. And plan on your taxes to go up to pay for the money the Feds want back. I hope Joe-Jim-Bob and his wife Henrietta enjoyed their parties on our dime.
SNAP does not pay for alcohol or cigarettes. Get your facts straight.
Nope, that’s Tanif
Like,hiccup,like,cough,cough,like,like….!
And how do you know that? You a collector?
No, you’re right, but we give’em cash to buy their junk food (which they CAN get with SNAP) and then they use their CASH to buy cigs and liquor.
I am a single mom and was one of those “welfare” people that you love to degrade so much. I do get SNAP benfefits, and was one of those people who were “overpaid” if I was overpaid, it was during the time when I was FIGHTING with the state as an unemployed single mom with NO INCOME to get more than $16 a MONTH. I do NOT get TANF so no one is paying for my “cigs and liquor”. How far do you think $16 a month goes to feeding my almost 3yr old daughter and myself??? There are definitely people abusing the system, I’ve seen it with my own eyes, but that doesn’t mean EVERYONE that gets snap benefits is a loser and abusing the system, to sterotype us all is very degrading. I’ve worked my entire life and paid far more “taxes” than I received in benefits, I now have a Job i’m starting (Even though I’ve seen many times that “WE” don’t want to work). You obviously have never had the bad luck of being in that position (having no job, no income to support yourself and your child(ren)) so feel very fortunate, but don’t put down those of us who have, not all of us are looking for the state to be our “baby’s daddy” and take care of us. I have to say, collecting from the state hurt my pride, and was one of the most embarrassing things I’ve had to do.
Here we go again. Another poor single mom. I hate that term, single mom. Does that mean you got pregnant by divine intervention?
I will repeat, the only single parents out there are widowed. In which case, if the deceased parent paid into social security, the child will get a death benefit from the government. Unless your child’s father is dead, you are NOT a single parent. You might be divorced, you might be unmarried, but there is another parent out there somewhere.
If your daughter’s father is alive and isn’t paying child support, it is NOT THE PROBLEM of the taxpayers. Get over it and TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for the CHOICES you made as a woman.
you seriously have no clue do you? my daughters father is alive.. I presume anyway, but I have no idea where he is. he chose not to be a part of her life, he does not work, and if he does he does it under the table, or quits his job as soon as child support catches up to him. so because my husband turned out to be a person I didn’t know, and i had a child with him, my child should suffer? I should not collect the whopping $16 a month I get in SNAP benefits to help feed her? You either are here to start trouble… or are simply a cold hearted man.
You know what? I’d not have a problem with the government providing financial assistance to people like you who hook up with jerks if there was a mechanism for having you pay it back after you get your feet on the ground.
Let me be clear– I am not cold hearted. I am clear thinking. The government cannot be the fall-back position for people who make lousy life-altering decisions like deciding to have babies with losers. If you decide to let him walk away without providing financial assistance for the child he helped create, that is NOT the taxpayers’ problem. Soooooo sorry.
I am pretty sure that I paid my $386 work of SNAP Benefits in taxes in the 12yrs of work I had… and pretty sure that it won’t take long to pay another $386 worth of taxes now that I am fortunate enough to be re-employed.
Not good enough. If we give you a direct benefit, you pay it back dollar for dollar above your regular taxes.
yes, we the people CAN be the backup when men duck their responsibilites. Which happens an awful lot. Instead of focusing on being real, why don’t you do your part to teach men that their babies are their responsiblity? Speaking of tom cats.
When over 40 percent of all babies born in the US are born to women who define themselves as “single mothers” you’d better be sure there are people left who work 9 to 5 jobs who are willing to be the “backup” for women who make stupid choices.
Taught all of my kids that if they weren’t ready to have heart to heart discussions without embarrassment about sex with their prospective sexual partners, they weren’t ready for sex. No out of wedlock babies. I did my part.
Not my role to pay for the stupid choices of women who want to have sex and can’t afford the babies they produce and are too selfish to put them up for adoption.
It’s always the women, isn’t it.
Having the babies, yes. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of a case where the man could force a woman to have an abortion or put a baby up for adoption.
Just wondering how women get pregnant without the help of a man. Who obviously isn’t wearing a condom. Shouldn’t the same punitive attitude apply to them?
Again, the person who would best be in the position (pun intended) to insist on that would be the woman.
so I’ve been collecting SNAP benefits in the amount of $16/Month for approximately 2yrs while looking for a fulltime job so I can support my daughter and myself..Prior to that I worked for 12yrs with no gap in work history, the last job 7yrs… do You think that maybe in that time, I paid more than the $16/Month I have received…$16x24months…so thats about $386… I’m pretty sure I paid my dues to get the help I received.
Being real: Please know there are many of us who wish the best for you and your daughter. tomcaterwaul is an angry person who probably doesn’t understand how hurtful his careless words are. I wouldn’t be surprised if he receives benefits himself and is embarassed about it. His opinion of you DOES NOT MATTER. Good luck. Do your job and love your little one. :-)
Nope. not angry. Just not willing to accept that the purpose of my government is to fund women who choose to have babies without partners.
The men share equal responsibility.
Which is exactly why legislation exists that require men to be full financial partners. If women choose to forego requiring the men they were sexually intimate with to provide for the fruit of that intimacy, I should not be required to fund that choice.
=====
single |ˈsi ng gəl|
adjective
2. unmarried or not involved in a stable sexual relationship : a single mother.
My objection to the term, “single mom” is that it implies the total non-existence of the father of the child.
(Although I do appreciate the part of the definition that says, “not involved in a stable sexual relationship.” But explain to me why the government exists to support people who choose to be in unstable sexual relationships. NOT the function of government.)
I am Single, I am a Mom, the father DOESN’T exist to my daughter, she has NO IDEA who he is, he walked out while I was 7 months pregnant, so contrary to your belief, i am a SINGLE MOM, hell, I even fit into your criteria since “father” doesn’t exist in childs life.
Boo hoo. Poor you. Married to a loser and now you want me to pay. No way.
Someday you will be singing a different tune when you find out that you are not immune from the complexities of the world.
Hey, I’m almost 65. Been through lots more complexities than you, probably.
Congratulations on the new job! I wish you much luck. I do understand that not all welfare recipients are like those portrayed by these blogs. But for every person like you there is the counter argument of a person like my sister. She is single with 2 children and lives with these 2 kids and their father in Government subsidized housing, collects food stamps and her cash every month. She hasn’t worked in years (the kids are 6) but always has her cigarettes and booze. I can’t count the number of times the police have been out to her home because of alcohol induced domestic violence (the two of them call on each other). DHHS has been to house but the kids are still there. Baby daddy hasn’t worked in years either and it wouldn’t surprise me to hear that he collects his own food stamps and cash. I know that but for a paycheck I could be where you’ve been. Again good luck on your new job.
Thank you.. I’m very excited..Its soo hard to find fulltime work that pays enough to support a household. I understand what you are saying… I know that there are people who are professional welfare people… but it just irks me to see everyone classified that way…do you know how embarrassing it is to go to the Dr’s and tell them that you’re insurance is MaineCare? It sucks.. because so many have the mentality that we are all just “sucking it up”. its very narrowminded of people to assume (and MANY do) that I’m a bad person because I get MaineCare and SNAP benefits. I collect no CASH from the state, and trying to provide for my daughter, I don’t buy $100 meals.. I can’t.. I collect only $16 a month.. that doesn’t cover the amount of milk my daughter drinks… If people know so much about fraud… then they should report it.. can be done anonymously through online or phone…. if you are worried about it being tracked go to a public computer… if people know abou the fraud and aren’t reportng it.. then they are just as wrong and liable as those who are committing th fraud in my opinion
Do you get WIC?
BTW, what part of SUPPLEMENTAL don’t you get?? SNAP was never intended to be the sole source of nutrition for you and your family. If you can’t afford your child, then you are selfish not to seek out a home that could provide adequately for her. Instead, you complain that the US taxpayers aren’t providing enough. What part about “personal responsibility” don’t you understand??
Yes, I’m sure they’re laughing it up at our expense with those extra macaroni and cheese dinners they bought to fill an empty stomach. Cretin!
If they didn’t buy gigs and booze, they could have steak instead of mac and cheese. LIBERAL!
Actually, it’s exactly the same. When a store fails to cover its expenses, it has to raise prices. And in my example, the store’s mistake could very well add up to a large chunk of money. Who will pay? Why you, the consumer, even if you don’t buy the product that wasn’t priced correctly.
If a bank incorrectly credits you with cash, then you have to pay it back. Actually heard of a case where twenty dollar bills were loaded incorrectly into the ten dollar slot of an ATM. People lined up to take out their limits. Later on, some were charged with theft when it was shown they made repeated withdrawals to cash in on the two for one “deal.”
If your employer gives you a job and you negotiate a contract with a salary of $800/week and your paychecks all of a sudden increase to $850/week for no apparent reason and you say nothing about it does that make you a thief?
Despite their best efforts to do so.I couldn’t be happier that LePage and Mayhew got it stuck to them YET AGAIN.Incredible incompetence.
The problem is that it isn’t LePage and Mayhew who got stuck, it was you and me (the taxpayer). You can spend your money any way you want, but you don’t have the right to spend mine. Look, I think Mayhew should have been gone about 3 screw-ups ago but I resent the idea that nobody seems at all upset about my tight budget or things I have to do without, like the new tires I need for my car before winter. Cry me a river.
Boo hoo to you also. Once the tax is paid it isn’t yours any longer.
I’m not spending your money-the two clowns are and I doubt my tires are much better than yours.At least you’re acknowledging Mayhew’s screwup but the buck stops with Paulie.I don’t know too many people with extra $$ except the Anthem folks who got the giveaway last year.They’re not worried about either one of us or anyone else who’s paying premiums.
Obama and SOLYNDRA, now THAT was competance! No payback there, though. On the State side , Baldy and his cohorts fumbled a few expensive balls in his 8 years at the helm. Selective memory or a what?
If Solyndra didn’t exist your gang would have to invent it to have a bogeyman.At least my President didn’t bomb the WTC and cost thousands of Americans their lives and millions more their livelihood.Selective indeed.
Solyndra does exist, and Baldy’s buddy David Lamoine lost $20 million of taxpayer money investing in a Ponzi scheme, so no bogeymen have to be invented here. Luckily, we got some of that money back, but not because Baldy or Lamoine were savvy. Then there was Baldy’s Green Energy Alliance, and I could go on, but that would be pointless, right?
As the old saying goes, “You can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip.” Sadly it seems that such a simple concept hasn’t stopped Mr. LePage and his GOP/Tea Party allies from trying.
I only have one thing to say Still. November 6th
You said it! Voting Democrat all the way down the line will make this poor-excuse-for-a-governor a nonentity. Maybe then we can actually accomplish something in Augusta, other than the partisan nonsense we’ve had to endure.
ya right…lol
Very good logic, your reasoning skills are as sharp as:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tpAOwJvTOio
That’s one of the best ones yet! Thanks for the laugh this morning!
Yeah we can go back to losing hundreds of millions, wasting hundreds of millions more, and giving away ten of millions to connected Dem insiders like the failed Baldacci administration did. If you really want to go back to that then you’re a bigger moon bat than I suspected.
Sure We need some more Toxic Landfills, Public paid feasibility studies for private toll highways and Tax Free sales on Lear Jet Parts so the ruling class can fly above the frackus with impunity on their way to the cayman islands to hide their cash!
You haven’t learned the lesson over the past 30 years of Dem. control in our State? I’m not a fan of Republicans or Democrats because one side can be just as bad as the other when they are in control for too long, but I do not want to slide backwards.
If nothing else, at least vote independent or for the person you believe to be most qualified regardless of party lines.
Lots and Lots of Turnip Juice!
LOL
I guess the rules for poor people should be different from the rest of us.
Iguess then the Dems and Obama should be responsible for Obama care and taking millions of dollars out of Medicare, and cutting money to the State in certain areas.
You believe any crap Fox spews,don’t you?This is LePage and Mayhew’s problem and NOBODY else’s!Let me know when you have your hand out.You won’t tell us about that.
I do not watch Fox news, nor other political news. And Baldacci and the computer mess is LePage’s I suppose also. yea right.
Huh? Are you one of the same people who thinks Shipyard Brewery should be accountable for the money the City of Portland lost because Portland Water District undercharged them for years and years? Many people think Shipyard should pay all of that back because they got a “free-ride” and way underpaid. So if the brewery should pay back the city, even though it wasn’t their fault, shouldn’t the welfare recipients pay back too?
they took two dollars off mine got to call the office now
Can’t make the people over paid pay it back
but they want those of us who didn’t get food
stamps can? Feds can’t ask us either then.
Iraq owes you a billion dollars, get it from them.
Must have hit a nerve with you, my kids went without so you could eat. I dont think
they like you.
Those who made the error can start automatic deduction for re-payment then
May-be they could just give you back the food, in its current condition.
Why don’t you take it up with DHHS? They made the mistake, as usual. Tell them how you feel. It costs American taxpayers an average of $ 78 per year. That’s about $.22 a day! If $.22 a day means your kids have to go without, maybe you should apply for Food Stamps. I sure wouldn’t want to see your kids go hungry.
Lot of takers out today I see.
Do you use your kids as a tax shelter? I don’t
Are your kids meaning the food stamp takers the reason for
taking from others?
The love of my life is quite ill and not working but if anyone
wants to take my job cleaning up animal crap take it. If anyone
wants my other job mucking out a barn take it. If anyone wants my other
job cleaning up puke and crap take it. I’ll take the free ride and you
tell me about ,22 cents a day
kids as tax shelters? so,you didnt claim them on your taxes??
If I claim my kids on my taxes then it takes money out of someone else’s pocket
like a single persons. I’m single so then I’m making my taxes go up. Doesn’t make sense to me.
I chose to have my 3 kids and not with the idea of taking from other people.
It would seem other people think it’s ok to expect others to pay for their taxes
or kids, however you want to look at it. I have 3 kids not 33,000
I want my money I earn to take care of my own, I will never take from
others.
thats stupid..you are getting back money you paid in !!
Ok if I were to claim my 3 kids, head of household, day care. I’d get back more than I
paid in. So who pays my share of taxes? Why should I get back more?
Whose paying for my kids education if I get back what I paid in? Does the government
say good job on the 3 kids your tax free ? Oh no, no they tax it out of some single
schmuck, oh wait I’m single. How does that work? Take it out of you?
plus much of education is paid for with property taxes. So your rent money pays for your kids’ educations.
You can deduct your kids. I don’t mind paying more in taxes. They are my future, too.
No, I don’t use my kids for anything! Both have been out on their own for years and doing great. I am very proud of them. I know that either one of them would give you the shirt off their back if you need it. sorry your life ie so bad that you have lost track of empathy. I wish there was something I could do to help, but I am retired and , like you, living on a shoestring.
Thank you. I hope my kids fair as well. The good thing is, this rough time we’re having is teaching my kids the meaning of self support. It’s heart breaking to watch my little one have to weed the neighbors garden but they have graciously offered to pay my kids to do this.
We’re not totally jaded.It just drives me insane that people think they are entitled and get mad at those who are being taken from that need their money.
I hope things improve for you.I am sure that if you were to talk with and visit the people who got this $80 you would find VERY few people living high and cheating.My understanding is that DHHS already sent a letter telling people to pay that $$ back and now has to go back on that after frightening people.
“Takers”.
Nice to see you have the new Teabully buzzword in play!
Tres au courant ala Ayn Rand mon ami.
Ayn who? Google her. She’s GOP Vice Presidential Romney running-mate Paul Ryan’s political philosophical guru fiction writer from Russia born in 1905. An avowed atheist and unapologetic adultress who eschewed altruism and put forth selfishness as virtue in her 50 to 60 year old fictions and died a sad figure in 1982. See Ryan on You Tube speaking to the Ayn Rand Society. It’s like a freakin cult of creepy weirdos. Very strange.
The one good thing about Rand is she supported abortion.Ryan and all the other Rand crazies won’t.The stopping of the population bomb would fix the budget without anything else being done.But we’re screwed thanks to the conservatives as usual.
Maybe the recepients should be acct. for soda,water,smokes and beer? I am not saying all, but if they have money for those things and let the kids go hungry something is wrong there too.
Right. No one wants to see their own kids go hungry, either. Just sayin’
If your children went without then it is/was your own fault.
I guess it wasn’t the $7500. in taxes I paid in
If you are poor then get some help to feed the kids and pay the medical bills.
I went into a relationship and family eyes wide open not my hand.
We make do but not like we should be for the amount of hours I work.
With God Blessing or magic I don’t know ,my loved one will get better
and back to work
You know..in spite of what you read and hear, the government exists for the people, not just a few. Not everyone who needs help is lazy, shiftless, or scamming the system. There are litterally millions of people out there who are ready, willing, and eager to help someone like you who is struggling and needs help. You should take advantage of that. Maybe later on, you can pay it back by helping someone else. Just think what a great world this would be if everyone did that.
No Sir, I have to differ, the government is in it for the free ride. Mitt Romney said “He isn’t talking to the 47% that means middle class, welfare, those who work under the table because we “don’t pay our fair share of taxes.”Like they pay at all.
I won’t take from others who work just as hard. We’ll be ok, we just are wounded that people who got more than they deserve feel angered that they should have to pay it back. Makes me want to quit my jobs, I would if I didn’t need to pay for a house, car, kids and ill partner, but I’m living in responsiblity and will see it through, us who work aren’t given choices.
The Federal Government needs to pay us workers back and go away.
Someone whose situation changes for the worse like yours is EXACTLY what the safety net is for.I have a friend of mine who is 26 in a wheel chair through no fault of his own.Do you think if he were offered $10K a year more,to pay 50% in taxes on that,and to walk again that he wouldn’t do that in one second?
ummm, be careful. You are sounding a little self-righteous.
Get an accountant now!
No it’s the government and the takers, only a taker wouldn’t understand the meaning of self respect and hard work and taking care of your own.
Something about your story doesn’t ring true. No one puts ideology before their kids. No one finds it heartbreaking when their kid weeds the neighbor’s garden.
Closer to a Trillion dollars!
Get a job and you can instead say “us/we” instead of “you”.
…or haven’t you heard? The growth in food stamp spending is for families who WORK!!! Democrats are has happy to suppress wages as Republicans; then expect the “working poor” to be grateful for the charity and condescending “programs” upon which they are forced to survive in lieu of decent wages.
Neither Republicans nor Democrats stand for decent livable wages, even though they are essential to a strong economy.
Here’s another bulletin for ya — Americans log more paid hours, than any other citizen on this planet; yet their wage base continues to shrink. I’m sick to death of people sneering at the hardest working people in this country; the REAL “productive class” to “get a job”! Stop looking for our nation’s lost wealth among the poor.
You completely missed my point. But nice blather.
Good line.. “Stop looking for our nation’s lost wealth among the poor.”
“Get a job and you can instead say “us/we” instead of “you”.
When will the tax cuts for the wealthy actually result in “the job creators” creating enough jobs to do what your dream of, enough jobs so there is not that “us/we”, the written off 47% thing, going on in America, anymore ?
Maine and the Nation have a spending problem, not a tax problem. 15trillion says i am right….
That’s only a problem when we have a Dem in the White House and the Repubs can’t find anything else to complain about. Put a Repub in there and they will be spending monet like a drunken sailor again. Name a Repub president that cut spending! you can’t. They just say, ” It’s just numbers on a piece of paper.”
We did then gave it to Egypt.
“Can’t make the people over paid pay it back
but they want those of us who didn’t get food
stamps can?”
In business isn’t the CEO and board directors responsible to the shareholders, those who elected them, for the profit or losses that occur to the all the share holders ?
Why are you not blaming the CEO, in the Blaine House for loosing your money,
… and the other stake holder’s confidence ?
What do you conservatives really expect, what is your own bottom line,
besides “no compromise” AND a pass on passing on all the costs of your own failed tax policies to the middle class, TOO ?
Fundamental difference: shareholders contribute $$$ in order to be called a shareholder. They bought their share of the business through investment, and therefore- YES, the CEO and Board are responsible to the shareholders. However, there is no such contract in welfare.
Welfare recipients are not comparable to shareholders. They did not build a company’s capital by buying stock. That would be an excellent system- I believe that’s how welfare was designed. It was intended for people who contributed their time and dollars throughout their working years, and when a tragedy or pitfall occurred- they would benefit from their work ethic (or the work ethic of their father’s, in the case of fatherless children). You cannot tell me the system still works like that. For some? Sure! But for most? No!
Your theory of why welfare started is interesting but just a little piece of fiction.
Welfare was developed to help those who need it most. Period.
…and it’s become a wage subsidy for our richest, and largest employers as Wal-Marty/McJobs are where the growth is. The richest corporations on the planet can’t be “responsible” and pay their OWN labor costs? We’re supposed to control corporations. We create them, after all via a charter.
That’s EXACTLY what I said- try reading my post again.
I said welfare BEGAN as a solution to help that who most need it– but it has transformed into an alternative to a career for many people.
Still on the point;
“Can’t make the people over paid pay it back”
How ?
They are poor enough to to be on food stamps, already.
Conservative fiscal policies depend on getting blood out of a turnip
… like the poor and working class poor.
Oh yeah, isn’t that the same 47% that Mitt Romney has written off, already ?
“but they want those of us who didn’t get foodstamps can?”
“Fundamental difference: shareholders contribute $$$ in order to be called a shareholder. ”
But who never pays any sales tax ?
So you are not a tax paying stake-holder in Maine, the USA
or effective government ?
What is your nationality, then ?
But the bottom line is that tax cut for wealthy dividend can’t be so big.
It is just good business.
No compromise on that, is there, honestly ?
You know half of everything in the world….too bad common sense is in the other half….
Otay, Mr. Waldo.
Where did that come from? First of all, there is a difference between welfare and FoodStamps. There are a lot of prople getting Food Stamps without getting welfare. Second of all, the Food Stamp program started to distribute surplus food to the ones who could use it the most, thus helping the farmers by keeping the price of their goods in a range that they could make a living. If ypou want to complain, work on the Corporate Welfare that costs the taxpayers $100,000,000,000 per year!
I think when I said, “those who over paid can start getting deductions taken
out of their checks to pay it back” would cover the CEO.
I’m not a conservative but when I bust my arse at 2-3 jobs and
have to go without still yet that makes me not like the whiny babies
who take and think it’s their right to take from my kids. More than
anyone else the takers are abusing my kids. I don’t like that
If you only worked one job instead of three, that would mean two other unemployed people would have a job and wouldn’t need welfare assistance.
It’s others who are ‘whiny babies’ but you are not? You think you’re the only one who works? Those that are on welfare are just plain lazy, right? If you can’t feed your kids, why did you have them? Just using your logic.
‘You think you’re the only one who works? ‘
Well in fairness to him, that is Mitt Rmoney’s message to his insiders about the 47% of Americans that he is willing to write off, after all.
No I don’t think I’m the only one who works, you can pay all you want. I’d perfer to choose who gets my money. And no I don’t think everyone whose on welfare is lazy but more than half are.
It’s my money and I am entitled to whine. I earned the right.
Half of the rich are lazy!
So whats the point?
LOL
So you don’t mind literally taking the food out their children’s mouths,
because the LePage Administration was inept.
But your best point is those people, THEM, who sadly only can find one low paying job to support their family and pay their mortgage, too…
they are FIGURATIVELY, taking taking the the food of your children’s mouths, right ?
Did I miss anything, here, Scintillate ?
This administration will do whats fair to the people who foot the bill for these benefits, and will do it fairly…just like its fair for people to access govt benefits, its just as fair that they are administered fairly
Many of those who receive food allowances use it to pay fines for boyfriends who aren’t even biologically related to the kids the money is supposed to feed. Wake up.
Many? Do you have numbers to back that up?
Sure, you can verify it yourself. Go to any court in Maine on the day they have defendants in custody for failing to pay fines. All the little girlfriends are there to say they will pay their bfs fine with their food benefits intended for children. When you have extended that effort, and find that it is EXACTLY as I say, let me know, and then we’ll talk more.
Where are all the fraud convictions, then ?
Go ahead, take the time to go to any courthouse in Maine on the day they deal with overdue fines. See for yourself where your tax dollars, intended to put food in the mouths of families, is actually going.
Why isn’t reading the Superior Court reports in the BDN good enough to find all the convictions for all the fraud cases that are being brought and and won by the LePage Administration ?
Are the welfare queens out smarting Mr. Charley Summers and his whole crew ?
Well, in point of fact, it turns out they sure have, so far.
FROM The BDN ;
Headline;
Statewide Medicaid fraud probe ends with no charges
http://bangor-launch.newspackstaging.com/201…
So, sending him to the Senate to represent you might make some sense, then.
Gotta give ya, that.
“Many of those who receive food allowances use it to pay fines …”
I must guess that if you know what you are talking about,
then someone at the Clerk of the Courts office needs to be arrested .
There would be where all the fraud that conservatives are always looking for, everywhere, but in indictments would actually be, if you really did know what you are talking about.
If there is so much fraud, still, after two years and so few convictions for it, why shouldn’t all we all be thinking Boss LePage and his straw-boss Mr. Charley are just weak on crime ?
Taken from the Pinetree Legal Website–how to use your EBT at an ATM:
How to Use Your Benefit Card at an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Choose an ATM in a place where you feel safe.
Always follow directions on the ATM.
Put your card in the machine.
Never let anyone see you enter your PIN.
Press Withdrawal.
Press Checking.
Enter the dollar amount you want.
Take your cash, card, and receipt from the machine.
Keep the receipt so you will know how much you have left in your account.
Check the receipt to make sure it is the same as the amount you got.You will have two free ATM withdrawals each month at ATMs which do not surcharge.
Where’s the beef, Tom ?
If it is fraudulent, the State has a record of their account activity.
Where are all the convictions for all the fraud you would have us think that you just proved exists ?
Why should we not think that conservatives in Maine are not only inept on the front end,
but also weak on the crimes that THEY would say that any fool can see happening ?
Tighten it up, man, you’re looking as bad as the State for screwing this up in first place.
That’s a silly thing to say, that because there are no convictions, it can’t be so. By analogy, I point out that the VAST majority of people who drive on the interstate go faster than the posted speed limit. (You can verify this yourself.) So your question, where are all the convictions, is like saying, “if everyone goes over 65 m.p.h. on the interstate, where are all the speeding tickets?”
The welfare system is broken beyond repair, that’s why no one in a position to do something is saying anything or acting.
‘That’s a silly thing to say, that because there are no convictions, it can’t be so. ”
Yeah, where could I have picked up such a politically incorrect notion like innocent until proven guilty ?
FROM The BDN ;
Statewide Medicaid fraud probe ends with no charges
http://bangor-launch.newspackstaging.com/201…
:o
You can not draw cash from a food stamp benefit. You can only buy food with food stamps. These instructions refer to any cash benefit a person receives, not food stamps. Maybe you need to learn a little about how the program works before you judge people.
I’m referring to the EBT program.
Food Stamp benefits go on an EBT card, but can not be withdrawn as cash. No one can use their food stamps to pay a court fine. Both cash benefits and food stamps go on the EBT card but olny the cash benefit can be withdrawn at an ATM.
I direct you to my post earlier which was taken directly from the Pinetree Legal website. You most certainly CAN use your EBT card to withdraw cash.
How to Use Your Benefit Card at an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Choose an ATM in a place where you feel safe.Always follow directions on the ATM.Put your card in the machine.Never let anyone see you enter your PIN.Press Withdrawal.Press Checking.Enter the dollar amount you want.Take your cash, card, and receipt from the machine.Keep the receipt so you will know how much you have left in your account.Check the receipt to make sure it is the same as the amount you got.You will have two free ATM withdrawals each month at ATMs which do not surcharge.https://www.pinetreecard.com/meebtclient/
We read it.
You have no idea what you’re talking about.
You CANNOT withdraw the food benefit portion on your EBT card as cash. Which part of cannot don’t you understand. You are so typical of the many people on here who judge when they have no idea what reality is.
Yup, you can use benefits provided to families, intended to put food in their children’s mouths, to pay court fines. Check it out–what do you think TANF is?
Food stamp money and TANF money are 2 separate accounts loaded on one EBT card. I know what TANF is probably better than you because I worked for the programs for 31 years before I retired.
Are you thick or just purposely being obtuse? The point is that cash withdrawals from EBT cards are regularly used to provide FINE PAYMENTS. Are you denying that? Are you saying that is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars???
You said “food allowances.”
This story is about SNAP, not TANF or other cash benefits. You claimed that people are using their “food allowances” to pay court fines. Then you refer to a primer from Pine Tree Legal on how to get cash benefits from an EBT card (a separate matter) at an ATM. EBT is NOT synonymous with SNAP. All EBT stands for is “electronic balance transfer.”
My point is simply that TANF, which is intended to provide emergency food, shelter, etc, for families is being used to pay court fines. What a hell of a system. Again, instead of arguing with me, why don’t you just go to court and verify for yourself???
Just how does one use SNAP to pay a fine? I highly doubt any court clerk accepts canned goods in lieu of money.
This weeks Twilight Zone: Mitt Nival Rules the World….From a Deep Sleep”
Can’t cope with with his points ?
It is not your fault, I know that , daahin’.
It is a function of still supporting the failed conservative policies and the accompanying false propaganda that comes with it .
So, who needs to wake up , really ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tpAOwJvTOio
Niced try, Rocket! Guess when that free phone program started! I’ll give you a hint…2006. Guess who was President then…Dubya President- now more than ever. You need to check your facts.
A-a-a-ar-r-r-gh
Ok, ok, ok, uh yeah it;s to track the welfare and time to
oust the Federal Government. Each State runs it’s self.
This whole mess is a fine example of the obvious logical result of conservative policies.
How do the heartless elite think people on food stamps can cover tab for the business of Government errors of those that claim that being business people they can run government like they do their own business ?
That is just passing on the costs of our mistakes to our customers.
For how long does that ever work ?
Then, while the topic is how foolish it is to have people who qualify for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program pick up the tab for the Boss’s screw ups, the underlying notion that tax cuts for the wealthy will solve any problems must be examined, too.
Never mind that the Conservative keystone policy has clearly failed, such that tax cuts for the wealthy have not resulted the “job creators” creating jobs….
the article clearly shows who the conservative business minded Bosses expect to pay for their own screw ups and failed policies, just pass on the costs of our mistakes to our paying customers … the working middle class.
your resoning is just ludicrous…but please continue, the working class enjoys hearing your folly….strenghtens the resolve to vote in Nov for candidates who know how to govern. The previous administration was warned repeatedly not to extend elegibility above what the federal govt allows…he did it anyway, and now when the piper comes calling, the piper is out of line…
You just CAN’T be suggesting that this foul up began with Baldi can you?
Oh… the shame of it all!
“your resoning is just ludicrous…”
Otay, Mr. Waldo.
I just check my balance this morning and had available balance of $4,861,920. Prime rib for everyone!
Hey Gestapo LePage, get your house in order and swallow this bitter pill. See you at the polls in Nov.
Umm, he’s not on the ballot. Gary, I really hope you don’t regularly vote. You need to educate yourself first. You can do it; use the internet.
‘Umm, he’s {the CEO, LePage } not on the ballot.
His board of directors is up for election, silly
“See you at the polls” implies one will see the governor voting at the polls in November. The wording would be completely different for someone voting for/against a person on the ballot. You need to educate yourself . You can do it; use the internet.
Many of his partners in crime are on the ballot and they will pay the price for his stupidity and arrogance. As far as education I know the difference between true and false, right and wrong unlike Romney and LePage. Yes I vote and I will cancel yours.
according to the 2010 vote count, you will need to garner some of the 80% of voters who chose someone OTHER than a democrat….
Damn you got P3wned!!!
This is nuts, because other state and federal programs make adjustments to account for overpayments or underpayments ALL THE TIME. In fact, the feds are notorious for demanding repayment when they have screwed up and given out too much money.
Totally political.
“This is nuts ”
Does anyone else remember when conservatives used to speak of taking
personal responsibility ?
BOY!! Thanks to OBAMA BIN LYIN, I can still buy my steak and lobster next month…. He’s so great that I know I will vote for him in november… Such a great man!!! OHHH… the country is so lucky to have him for president…..
If a member of the U.S. Military gets overpaid, he or she must pay it back. Even years later, when the money is long gone. Isn’t it funny that the citizens who TAKE from this country have more financial safeguards than the citizens who GIVE their lives to this country?
(And obviously, I’m not referring to the elderly and poverty stricken- the people who welfare is supposed to be reserved for. I’m talking about those able-bodied recipients who take, take, take and are never held accountable.)
The elderly and poverty stricken are the ones getting food stamps. Single people who make over $270 a week do not qualify. Try paying rent, heat, electricity, transportation, etc on $270 gross pay (plus remember that SS and medicare and insurance are all taken out before a check it cut) then get back to us.
Yeah, the poverty-stricken–who get every kind of assistance available and STILL manage to have the widescreen tvs, the x-boxes, tattoos, and top of the line cellphones.
My husband works and I am a full time college student hoping to have a well paying job in 4 years, we get food stamps and I can tell you, we lost more than $20 a month in SNAP benefits when the error was discovered. My husband makes $8.10 an hour, seldom seeing 40 hours a week. Are we lazy? Do our kids deserve not to eat?
I would be upset too….that the previous administration set elegibility req’s higher than allowed by federal rules….thats the beef, not the current admin
Nope, not lazy, but sounds like you can’t afford to be a fulltime student. Part-time worked for me. Had a family too. Never used public assistance. You should check it out.
I don’t believe food stamps were designed to subsidize college educations. YES, your children deserve to eat- along with you and husband. And NO, you’re not lazy. College is hard work. I recently graduated (still haven’t found full-time job; a degree doesn’t guarantee a job). But, if I had kids- there’s NO way I could put thousands of dollars into my education and expect the government to put food on the table. Seems backwards to me. It’s your choice to make, so I’m not condemning you. I simply do not believe that is the best use of food stamps.
That being said, I thoroughly hope your husband finds more work in the future and that your education pays off in a few years.
Time for hunting and gathering….
Sounds to me like you should get hold of the Feds and tell them. grats on going to school and good luck with your future! Anyone who is trying to better their life for themselves and their kids deserves all the support this country has available! Maybe someday you will be in a position where you can help others in the same situation as you are now.
>If a member of the U.S. Military gets overpaid, he or she must pay it back.
They are NOT protected by US Constitution because they agreed to live under the
Uniform Code of Military Justice , too.
Another fine example of the high paid,do nothing,not my job management people that the gov.has in place.They continue to make mistakes raise their hands in an oh well we will do better next time,and these hard working people need a raise to 17.00 an hour.This is good news for the people that need it.
they can take it out of the pay of LePage’s puppet.
Did not notice the twenty dollars extra.Sure noticed the twenty they got to pay!As usual the few that pay taxes have to pick up the payment.Thanks.
Changes happen to the amount a person or family receives for many, many reasons and explanations are not always given, or understandable.
In this case the higher amount had been legitimately in the monthly allowance but DHHS was supposed to stop giving that extra $20 or so.
How on earth was a food stamp recipient supposed to be aware that their $$ amount had stayed the same but should have changed? That is the responsibility of LePage’s DHHS.
I can pretty much gaurantee that if these food stamp recipients were shorted $20 in any given month they’d be hopping on the horn asking why they were shorted.
OK. So what does that have to do with the fact that they saw NO CHANGE in their monthly food stamp amount yet a bunch of fools are declaring that they should have reported the fact that NOTHING CHANGED?
good they took two dollars from me
Hmm lets fire Mayhew how many times does she have to have her department cost tax payers millions more then they should??
Not a peep for 8 years as the previous admin gave benefits above and beyond what the feds allowed…now when the piper comes to the door, its the Pipers fault…..perfect..
The problem is that there is a requirement for all policy changes to go through rulemaking including posting all proposed changes in the news. This administration has required all rule changes to be aproved by the AG and the governors office. This slowed the process enough to cause the overpayments. If LePage had not fired everyone with knowledge of both the process and requirements it would not have happened.
So in a way the Governor saved us money.
No, he cost us almost 5 million dollars.
Sarcasm! If LePage had not fired everyone with knowledge of both the process and requirements it would not have happened.
Being familiar with someone who has been on foodstamps forever, I’m sure most want to re-pay the government once they are back on their feet. Right….
So do we get back the FS they originally took from us ($20 per month)?
Are you really freaking out over families being paid up to 20 dollars a month in benefits.. up to.. those people who were over paid got an extra day or two of food, didnt have to go to the food pantry that week or what have you. The food stamps they recieve is intended as a supplementation of their income. Some people depend only on those food stamps to put food in their children’s mouths or in grandma’s belly. I am sorry but as a person who works in social services and does NOT receive benefits of the state I believe it is a good thing that they do not have to repay. I take my neighbor to the food pantry every other wednesday and help her with her grocery shopping, and she never has enough to keep her fed while on benefits. Now for those who are scamming the state and using those benefits to buy soda, chips and junk food , or not providing their entire income when it comes time to re-evaluate their benefits and getting far more than they deserve.. they should pay. But once the card is handed out there is no way to keep track of what they are purchasing. I saw families buying lobster ( when it was 9 buck a lb) and paying 100 dollars for what would be one meal and find that incredibly distasteful. That 100.00 would feed my own family for two weeks.
once in a while a treat is okay but not $100 meal….
Yeah, I can see blowing the last of the food stamps on a celebration of getting the first pay check from your new job AND closing on the sale of your underwater house just before it was foreclosed, , all on the first real good day in a really long time, too.
Who couldn’t as they prayed that it never gets that bad, ever again ?
I’ve read somewhere that, for everything, there a is a time.
Since when is buying soft drinks and chips “scamming” the state?
Yep…my freebies increased..no notice as to why but I
don’t care. I got more so I had no need to ask why.
Someone else was paying so I deserved it. Wasn’t
up to me to check. It was all Bush’s fault..oops and
LePage too.
Augusta is finally learning that they can’t dictate to the Federal Gov. what ever they want to do? When the waiver does not come through for the cuts LePage wants to make that will add to his woes. Oh well!!
BOOSHIT
A lot of comments flying around here about this. I for one work with the mentally handicapped, who get food stamps to supplement their around 800 dollar per month income from the government. Many work as well, in low paying, low hour jobs to supplement this income a bit. (Mostly due to needing a job coach to accomplish tasks.) I will tell you that for them, that extra 20 dollars per month given to them was barely a drop in the bucket when added, but when taken, was quite noticeable. For them, this is a good thing. I however also work at a convenience store……..so I get the gripes!
Given your full perspective on food stamps, I am sincerely asking you why the topic never goes so far as how or why the State is so weak on law enforcement relative to the crime of fraud, in all its forms ?
We all read the court news, so where are all the convictions for all the fraud that some people in the positions of power say any fool should be able to see ?
Why don’t they do something about it, like enforce the laws, as they are sworn to do?
Some people talk like it is bloody crime wave.
You are a position to really explain this.
Please, do.
Why does it seem they, the State’s top law endorsement persons, are only able to whine about all the fraud that they just know exists ?
It would be interesting to see how much fraud is caught and resolved in the administrative process. Not all fraud is referred to the A.G. for review for criminal charges.
We are all accountable for our finances. A person or family in good conscience would see the added $ and know something was wrong and it needed to checked for a correction. If the monthly funding was $5.00 short it would have been a different story with the state phones ringing of the hook. People have to be accountable and honest. Maine should appeal for the nearly 5.0 mil. The fed’s law should be corrected for any such over payments.
” A person or family in good conscience would see the added $ and know something was wrong …”
Only if you really know all about Gov. LePage and his policies.
“Maine can’t make families repay food stamp benefits”
If I were a Red Throat, a headline like that would drive me right through the roof.
The BDN certainly knows how to push buttons. Knowing the response it would elicit, the editors sat around laughing over that one.
The humble Farmer
If you had good sense you would know WHY they can’t.
You’re just being silly unless you know how to get blood out of a turnip.
Would you have them take it out their rent or mortgage payments ?
We all know just where that leads:
BDN HEADLINE:
Midcoast towns see sharp increase in liens due to delinquent property taxes
http://bangor-launch.newspackstaging.com/2012/09/19/news/midcoast/midcoast-towns-see-sharp-increase-in-liens-due-to-delinquent-property-taxes/
Good job, LaPage.
The state made the mistake !!
We need a change and a good way to start is by voting for Danny Dalton United States Senate, Maine.
http://www.daltonsenate.com
This a cheap trick that they almost gor away with. I know sp,e people that told me about the short change.
I was one if those people who were overpaid people last year. I had no ill feelings of paying it back. It seems like the state doesnt know what its doing. One week I will get a letter saying that my benefits will be reduced and the next week I’ll get a letter saying my benefits will be increased. Its hard to know month to month what to expect. This month my food stamps went up by $9 but I also lost my health coverage for wound care. I am a rather young person on disability. Now don’t jump down my throat, I would much rather still be working but but for health reasons that is not possible. For some reason a lot of people think if you are getting benefits from the state then you most likely have 5 kids from 4 different men. But there are people like myself that never took a hand out before and never expected to need it.
I worry about what other kinds heath benefits I will lose thanks to LePage and the rest of his minute men. I’m scared of what kind of healthcare we that truly need it will have before he is done.
You might also ponder the influence of recipients who fraudulently claim benefits not deserved.
Just ask a check-out clerk at WalMart or Hannaford for their observations.
Those folks make it much harder for you to receive what you’re due…
I doubt any cashier at those places knows the financial situation and living conditions of customers other than close friends.
Maine isn’t “the Pine Tree State”, it’s the Gimme, Gimme,Gimme State. Stole that from ABBA
so I have to ask….when is the state of Maine going to get their fiscal house in order, and stop making SO MANY financial mistakes? Every time they repeatedly make the same mistakes, the poor/elderly and disabled have to pay for it-never mind putting our state in more of a financial crisis. Gee, I wonder how the state plans on replacing the funds it has to pay out? I’m thinking that despite being told that they cannot recoup their loses by reducing benefits, that money will come out of the taxpayers wallets anyway or the state will cut more services. Either way, we lose.
“It is unfortunate that Maine did not pursue a consultation with FNS,” the letter states.
What’s even more unfortunate is that Maine has a bull-headed, egotistical, less-than-bright governor who thinks he rules the country.
Our Governor’s daughter and brother in law are overpaid…will we get that money back at some point?
The free meals seem to agree with their historic appetites.
A video gone viral on the foodstamp president:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tpAOwJvTOio
Once again Lepage muffs it. One month till this dope is powerless!
cry babies
Oust the federal government
yeah but you can take from all of the freeloaders that take advantage of the system . Love the TEA Party Throw out the bums
Through an administrative error I was over paid for about a month….I didn’t do anything wrong but it was definatly deducted out of my paychecks for the following month….Did it effect my personal finances? You bet it did! I chalked it up to “life’s not fair!” The recipients should pay it back.
POSTING ERROR, SORRY.
It is an election year, and the compliance has to be on the side of the liberals in charge–
Not necessary to realize that almost $5 million will be coming out of the TAXPAYERS’ pockets, not those who do not pay taxes!
Ryan says,
Let them eat Fish!
LOL
The agency screwed up and they are responsible for the error. The people they want to get money from are living on the edge to begin with. Maybe next time DHHS will be more careful about getting the figures right.
Too bad Pingree doesn’t feel any righteous indignation about Maine taxpayers, who now must foot the bill for the overpayment. I don’t have much patience for this. If I received overpayment by an employer, I would be expected to return the money because it doesn’t belong to me. These people ought to be required to return at least a small amount of what they were overpaid, even if it’s a token of a couple dollars.
Look up estate recovery if you don’t think the grasping hands in this state don’t extend even after you’re cold in the ground.
they made the mistake they can deal with it that would be like you bringing a car for me to fix and i wreak it then after i want you to foot the bill for my mistake makes no sense does it who ever made the blunder should pay for it not the people