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How Techies Rescued Food Stamps (wired.com)

New submitter rgh02 writes: There is an endless variety of apps designed to manage life for the upper middle class, but most low-income Americans don't benefit from the same time-saving hacks. Thanks to new trends in civic technology, that's beginning to change. The 43 million Americans depending on food stamps are seeing the introduction of apps like Propel's Fresh EBT, which allows users to check balances, track deals, and organize budgets accordingly. And Propel is only one of several companies looking to disrupt outdated social programs, Tonya Riley reports at Backchannel. But the Trump administration, with its hiring freezes and budget cuts, poses threats to these advancements. Riley dives deep into the progress that's been made and how companies are navigating these obstacles.

2 of 292 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Does not happen. by zifn4b · · Score: 3, Interesting

    This, of course, does not happen. It is a made-up story with the cynical intent to make middle-class people hate poor people.

    I have seen this happen. There was a women that worked with my ex-wife who was not married but had a domestic partner. The domestic partner bought a brand new 5 bedroom house and this women and her kids lived there. She drew on every single social program they could including EBT. She drove a newer Durango to the store to use EBT. Yes, it does happen. People game the system. In addition to this anecdote, I have several white trash family members who engage in similar gaming. I can call them white trash because they are my family and we both know they are. They have no problems proudly admitting it either and emphasizing how they are justified in doing what they're doing because everything is corrupt and this and that. They consider it social justice.

    --
    We'll make great pets
  2. Re:EBT... a good idea, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting


    WTF is the government allowing cash back on EBT cards in the first place????

    The OP is likely either:
    1. Lying.
    2. Quoting a story he/she heard that was a lie.
    3. Misunderstood the transaction, and the cash back came from a debit card.
    4. The vendor was committing fraud.

    AFAIK you can't get cash back from an EBT transaction. EBT won't allow you to purchase non-food items with it. This includes things everyone needs, like toilet paper.