A new study by the Agriculture Department has found that the number of Americans selling their food stamps back to stores for cash has increased by more than 30% over the last several years.
The study on food stamp trafficking – which the agency said included “covert investigation” in stores – compared the periods of 2006 -2008 to 2009 -2011.
As reported by Fox News, the total amount of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program [SNAP] benefits now stands at roughly $858 million, compared to $330 million annually in the 2006-2008 period.
Food stamp users typically sell back their benefits to stores at a discount, according to the agency, which said its undercover investigations and research into electronic SNAP transactions focused on stores that showed “suspicious activities.”
According to Fox, the study found that approximately 10.5% percent of all authorized SNAP stores engaged in trafficking – compared to 8.2% in the 2006-2008 review – and that the likelihood of trafficking varied by store characteristics and settings. More
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