NEK Gets Hit With 3SquaresVT Decrease

Details: Created on Wednesday, 07 May 2014 16:44; Written by Elyssa Ellis

LYNDONVILLE- Three Squares Vermont is a Federal USDA Program that was created to assist families to put food on their tables. At the national level it is known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The first program started was in 1939 and was called the First Food Stamp Program and since then has evolved and changed in many ways.

Everything month a family or individual on Three Squares Vermont is allotted money depending on household size, income, and expenses.

As of November 2013 the benefits have decreased nationally. On average the monthly benefit per household is about two hundred fifty dollars.
Now households of two are seeing a decrease of twenty dollars per month and a household of four is seeing a decrease in thirty-six dollars a month.

People who receive Three Squares Vermont benefits receive an Electronic Benefits Transfer card with the amount of money you are allotted every month. But what exactly can you buy with your benefits? You can buy cold prepared food items like potato salad, fruits, vegetables, breads and cereals, dairy products, meats, snack, non-alchoholic beverages. Some of the things you can't buy with the benefits are hot prepared foods, alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, or household supplies.

Vermont's total amount of benefits to give were cut ten million dollars with more than one hundred thousand people feeling the impact of these cuts.
"It does affect me personally it's, I think my decrease was about fourth-seven dollars and it makes a big difference. I can usually get fresh fruit for my children at the beginning of the month but I know I won't be able to by the end of the month," Sam Klepper a Sutton Resident said.
"I never want to see a reduction like that, I don't get to make the law, my job is to administer the law, but if somebody had asked for my opinion on the decrease I would have said I don't think this is a good idea," Dave Yacovone the Commisioner of the Department for Children and Families said.

Now that benefits are decreasing food shelves are having an even harder time keeping food on the shelves.
"I find myself having to go to the food shelf more. Before I was able to get by without it, but it's very difficult to figure out how to budget for a family that is just on food stamps alone," Klepper said.

"I think a lot of people are starting to rely on the food shelf to eat more then they used to. The 3squares program is really an assistance program it always was, it wasn't meant to provide for all your needs and why congress would cut it back is just unbelievably confusing to all of us on this end of the equation," Joe Patrissi the Executive Director of Northeast Kingdom Community Action said.

Families are not the only ones effected by the cut, the elderly are also having a hard time putting food on their tables.
"Over a period of time when families are challenged with buying gas for the car to get to work, clothes for the kids, and winter jackets all of that, and then you add more pressures on the food bill it extracts a toll on people," Yacovone said.

With the increasing price in groceries it's hard to say what the future holds for Three Squares Vermont.