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Richard Armstrong: Food stamps help keep families fed in hard times READER'S VIEW

The Food Stamp Program is a federal program that helps low-income families and individuals put food on the table. It is a supplemental food assistance program, meaning it is designed to help buy a portion of the food needed to stay healthy. The federal government pays for the food, while states administer benefits at the local level.

In Idaho, the Food Stamp Program is a major force in the fight against hunger. The U.S. Department of Agriculture ranks Idaho as the 13th-hungriest state in the nation, improving from eighth-hungriest.

The Food Stamp Program serves more than 104,000 Idahoans, with more than half of those being children. There was a 17.8 percent increase in the number of households served over the past year, and with current economic conditions, the program projects to grow another 12 percent during the next year.

To receive Food Stamp benefits, applicants must meet certain criteria and are required to participate in "self-reliance activities."

Eligible individuals and families must agree to look for and obtain a job, or seek training and educational opportunities to help advance them into better paying jobs. They also must cooperate with the Child Support Program, so that both parents are contributing to the welfare of their children. These activities are required to help individuals and families become self-reliant, no longer needing public assistance.

Once an eligible person is enrolled, they receive a food stamp card - called an EBT (electronic benefit transfer) card - that acts much like a debit card. When the card is swiped at the grocery checkout stand, the store's computer system looks at the purchase and compares the items to a list of approved foods that can be purchased with food stamps; it will not permit the sale of nonapproved items.

Approved food items include breads and cereals, fruits and vegetables, meats and dairy products. Items that cannot be purchased include beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes, vitamins, medicines, food eaten in the store, hot foods, and any nonfood items.

In Idaho, EBT cards have multiple purposes. Along with food stamps, they are used in other programs, such as Child Support. Funds on the card from child support are not bound by the same limitations as food stamps and may be spent with more choice. To put it simply, the data systems that perform the transactions in stores are programmed to differentiate between approved items and non-approved items, pulling the funds from the appropriate account.

The Food Stamp Program can be traced back to the Depression era. It has gone through many changes since that time to strengthen its original design to help Americans maintain a basic level of nutrition when they are experiencing financial difficulties. Idaho's Food Stamp Program has received national awards for its outstanding performance.

If you have more questions about the program, contact your local Health & Welfare office, or visit the official federal Web site at www.fns.usda.gov/fsp.

If you are interested in helping the hungry in Idaho, please contact your local food bank or visit the Idaho Hunger Relief Task Force Web site at www.idahohunger.org.

Richard Armstrong is the director of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

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