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OCR Page 1 of 121Recommendations
A recent analysis of the value of food stamp benefits to working poor families found that the income of a
family of four with a full-time minimum wage worker can be litted almost to the poverty line, if not above.
when food stamps are combined with earnings and the earned income tax credit.59 Unfortunately, too many
eligible working poor and needy families and individuals are not taking advantage of the useful benefits to
which they are entitled due to some of the bureaucratic ban identified in this report.
Fortunately, the red tape divide can be cut by state actions and policies which simplify food stamp applica-
tions, the application process, and lengthen certification periods. Immediate action at both the state and
federal level can greatly reduce administrative barriers and improve program access.
The following recommendations include suggested reforms to both the applications and the application/
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re-certification process.
1. Shorten the food stamp application length.
The sheer length of many food stamp applications is a barrier to participation. Food stamp applications
should be reduced to a length of one or two pages. In 1999, Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman sent a
letter to the nation's Governors urging them to simplify the food stamp application forms. States should
begin this process of simplification as soon as possible.
Applicants should be clearly informed on the first page of applications that the name, address, date, and
signature are all that must be submitted to initiate the process. his is particularly important considering
that nearly two-thirds of people applying for food stamps are applying only for that program and that those
leaving TANF may remain eligible for food stamps but are often not informed of their eligibility. Most
importantly, USDA should provide a model, simplified food stamp application, similar to the simplified
Medicaid form designed by the Health Care Financing Administration of the Department of Health and
Human Services to address similar concerns with confusing Medicaid applications and falling enrollments.
2. Streamline the application processes.
The average application process takes five hours of client time to complete and often includes multiple trips
to the local welfare office. This process can and should be streamlined and made more accommodating to
the needs of working poor applicants and those with small children.
Applications should be processed in one visit. Two visits to the food stamp office should be the exception,
not the norm. Re-certification visits should also be limited to once annually.
The two greatest reforms in this area would be the automating the process, utilizing technology to identify
what questions to ask and what information would require verification to be provided by applicants, and
assisting caseworkers with caseload difficulties. Applicants should be asked to which program they are
applying, and should only be required to answer eligibility, income, and resource questions required under
federal law for that specific program. Similarly, verification requirements should be solely limited to the
information required by federal food stamp regulations, for those applying only for food stamps. As the
Access Denied report identified, in those instances in which additional information is requested, applicants
should be informed of all the programs for which they are eligible.
States should require caseworkers to familiarize and assist clients with the use of EBT card technology.
Further application process reforms should include: making applications available in multiple languages,
not only English and Spanish, and translators must be available for non-English speakers; expand office
hours to include at least some evenings and weekends: and provide mobile offices or out-stations at places
where potentially eligible families frequent such as health clinics, schools, food banks, food pantries,
churches, and soup kitchens.
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