Thursday, April 11th, 2013 @ 1:11AM

On 4/10/2013, Dee Hall of the Wisconsin State Journal writes:

Proposed state law to prevent purchase of junk food using food stamps hits roadblock

“A bill that would ban using food stamps to buy junk food hit a wall of opposition Tuesday ranging from anti-hunger activists to potato growers to grocers. They said the measure would be unworkable, further stigmatize low-income people and do little to curb widespread obesity in Wisconsin.

Not everyone was opposed to the idea of encouraging better eating habits, especially when taxpayers are footing the bill.

But speakers during a two-hour hearing before the Assembly Committee on State Affairs said the measure proposed by Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, is too vague on how the state would sort through an estimated 300,000 food items and thousands being developed or modified each year to determine which ones have “sufficient nutritional value.”

“This bill goes against the grain of efforts to streamline regulations, reducing the cost of compliance and government mandates,” said Brandon Scholz, president of the Wisconsin Grocers Association.

Chairman Rep. Mike Kuglitsch, R-New Berlin, also delayed a committee vote on Assembly Bill 110 that had been scheduled for Thursday after Democrats complained they had no time to propose changes to make it more palatable to business, recipients and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which must approve any change in the federally funded program.

Under Wisconsin’s program, known as FoodShare, recipients of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits use electronic benefit cards to purchase food to be eaten at home. Liquor, alcohol, non-food items, pet food and hot items are excluded. This bill would create a pilot program that would also exclude unhealthy food as determined by the state Department of Health Services.

About 857,000 Wisconsin residents receive roughly $1.2 billion in benefits yearly.

Kaufert said his office has been “flooded” with hundreds of emails and letters complaining about recipients using their FoodShare cards for soda, snack food and extravagant items such as lobster and Porterhouse steaks. He said the bill is intentionally “short on details” to let DHS craft the program.

“I’m not trying to be (New York City Mayor) Michael Bloomberg and telling people what they can buy with their money,” Kaufert said. “I am saying that we should be able to have some influence and some decision-making process when it’s being used with taxpayer money.”

But state Rep. Robb Kahl, D-Monona, suggested that Kaufert add all 132 lawmakers to the list of people whose food purchases would be regulated since their daily allowances also are taxpayer funded.

“I’m not sure any of us would meet the standards and the nutritional values you’re talking about,” Kahl said.”

To read the entire article click here.

Posted by admin
Categories: In the News
Tags: 47th Assembly District, food stamps, Robb Kahl, Wisconsin