Senate Blocks privatization of food stamp program

[DanCa]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate passed a


$100 billion Agriculture Department annual funding bill on

Thursday that would prevent states from privatizing the food

stamp program by sending some administrative jobs to overseas

call centers.Approved 97-2, the bill also would ban "downer" livestock

from being used as food -- a precaution against mad cow disease

-- and prevent imports of Kobe beef from Japan until Tokyo

ended a 19-month-old ban on U.S. beef. Lawmakers now must work out

differences with the House version of the USDA funding bill for

fiscal 2006, which beginson October 1.


Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin sponsored the ban on replacing

state workers with outside firms to handle food stamp

applications. Otherwise, he said, low-paid workers in an

overseas call center might decide if poor Americans got aid.

Texas has requested permission to privatize food stamps as

part of an overhaul of welfare programs. Anti-hunger activists say

the state wants to close dozens of local offices and do more of the

work by telephone, aided by thousands of hours of donated labor from

volunteer workers. Roughly 25 million Americans receive food stamps

each month, helping them buy food.



Food stamps and other nutrition programs for poor Americans

account for more than half of the USDA's annual budget. The

remainder of the budget goes for crop subsidies for farmers,

food aid to foreign countries, farmland conservation, meat

plant inspections and other farm-related programs.

The Food Research and Action Center said privatization

could mean poorer service and more errors in food stamp

applications, which ask detailed and complicated questions.

LINKS:

[DanCa]

1. Tom Harkin is in on this ? (nt)

[acmavm]

Tom Harkin sponsored the BAN on farming out the government's

responsibilities to call centers somewhere in India. Unlike the IRS who already uses them.

[acmavm]

2. Dammit.

.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. that's a start

[DanCa]

4. George Bush hates poor people

I am on food stamps now i guess they want me to gravel and backflip and gravel to the mighty chimp for his compassionate conservativism. Sorry I can't do it.