maine food stamp proposal

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The state of Maine is requiring able-bodied adults who are capable of working to do so in order to qualify for food stamps.

Citing the recession, President Barack Obama issued a waiver of the federal work requirement in 2010 and — despite continued claims from Democrats that the economy is humming along — has not lifted it. Republican Gov. Paul R. LePage, who won re-election handily on Tuesday, allowed the waiver for his state to expire.

As a result, adults 18 to 50 years old with no children and who are able to work must do so or volunteer for 20 hours each week. Otherwise, their benefits will be limited to three months over a three-year period, according to The Boston Globe (H/T Mad World News).

“People who are in need deserve a hand up, but we should not be giving able-bodied individuals a handout,” LePage said in a statement. “We must continue to do all that we can to eliminate generational poverty and get people back to work. We must protect our limited resources for those who are truly in need and who are doing all they can to be self-sufficient.”

“There is no excuse for able-bodied adults to spend a lifetime on welfare at the expense of hard-working, struggling Mainers,” he said in his State of the State address, according to Mad World News. “That is not what I call compassion.”

http://conservativetribune.com/maine-food/

[wmw999 2,600]

I know that when I was helping people fill out food stamp applications, that was one of the requirements. Here in Texas. BTW, the "lifting of the waiver" was only to states that specifically requested it; it wasn't something that Obama did willy-nilly.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)