PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Life is only getting more expensive, which means a lot of Virginian's rely on help from the government to get by.
Part of that help comes by way of food stamps, otherwise known as SNAP benefits, however some people are taking advantage of it.
News 3 Problem Solver Erin Miller spoke with Sara Levi, a Portsmouth woman, who said she sees people in her neighborhood selling their SNAP benefits for money.
"I've seen people, where I live, hand somebody their card and get money," Levi said. "I don't understand why we don't stop some of this fraud."
Levi makes around $10,000 a year and relies on social security and SNAP benefits. Even so, she said it's barely enough.
"How do they expect you to live on $800 some dollars a month? My gas is $55 to fill my car up every two weeks," Levi said. "There's hoops - just hoops and hoops and hoops. I think that's why people cheat."
She said in her Portsmouth neighborhood she sees people selling their food stamps and pocketing the money.
"When you're getting cash for your food stamps, and then you're going to every food bank in Portsmouth to get food. There's something wrong," she said.
Selling SNAP benefits is also illegal.
Virginia's Department of Social Services reports as of June, the state has served 442,315 households and 874,689 people. Tens and thousands of those cases have been allegations of fraud.
VDSS said while they're tough cases to prove, they are investigated.
A spokesperson told News 3,
"If there is enough evidence to determine intent, some clients are taken to court (not the USDA clients) and prosecuted or taken to the Administrative Disqualification process. If found to have committed fraud, they are disqualified for a period of time from receiving SNAP benefits."
"People are abusing the system all the time. It just doesn't make sense to me," Levi said.
People are also soliciting benefits online. News 3 did a quick search on Facebook for "food stamps for sale" and no shortage of postings came up. For this reason, the USDA works with states to enforce policy's and give technical help.
Businesses can also be on the hook.
The USDA looks for retail owners who have trafficked benefits. Retail trafficking is when someone with an EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) buys food with their card, and in exchange, gets cash or store credit.
Let's say a supermarket owner is caught trafficking. The USDA sends that information to Virginia's Department of Social Services to start an investigation.
According to the SNAP Authorized Firms FY 2021 Year End Summary, of the 254,350 authorized firms across the country, 1,595 have been permanently disqualified, including 47 in North Carolina and 22 in Virginia.
"What needs to happen is that the government needs to put IDs on their cards. I don't understand why we don't stop some of this fraud," Levi said.
There are states that have tried to implement photo identification on EBT cards.
According to the Urban Institute, "states’ use of photo EBT cards in SNAP has sparked controversy. These policies place in direct conflict two principles: the desires of state government agencies and taxpayers to uphold program integrity, and the statutory rights of SNAP household members and their designated representatives to use program benefits without being subjected to additional scrutiny in the retail marketplace."
The Washington D.C.-based think-tank went on to say that "following congressional enactment of the 2008 provision allowing states to use photo EBT cards in SNAP, Massachusetts was the first state to proceed with statewide adoption of a photo EBT policy. The state’s policy rollout occurred in November 2013, with exemptions for significant segments of the caseload."
The policy was later rescinded in 2004 under Governor Mitt Romney. Click here to see the case study conducted by the Urban Institute.
Levi said she'll keep advocating for some type of accountability for other honest people in the system.
"People will say, 'oh, you know, she she's trying to blow the whistle.' I'm not trying to blow the whistle. I'm trying to make it equal for everybody," Levi said.
