BOSTON – Welfare recipients who accumulate high balances on their electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards will have those cards shut down under new state rules, and it’s about time said state Rep. Nicholas Boldyga (R-Southwick).
“It’s appalling,” Boldyga said of the discovery that some EBT card holders were found to have thousands of dollars on their cards. “We have people with EBT cards with a $7,000 balance – basically, they’re hoarding cash on their cards. Something should have been done about this a long time ago.”
Cash assistance recipients with balances above $1,500 will be notified to see if they still need assistance, and EBT cards with balances exceeding $2,500 will be closed, Stacey Monahan, commissioner of the Department of Transitional Assistance, announced Wednesday. The move, she said, would ensure that only clients who truly need benefits receive them.
The DTA will also begin contacting recipients of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program with balances greater than $5,000 to ensure they still need the benefits.
‘‘The fact that some clients are accumulating high SNAP or cash balances is inconsistent with the department’s goal of helping vulnerable individuals meet their most basic and immediate needs, and that’s why we are taking this action,’’ said Monahan.
According to data provided by the state welfare agency for the month of March, about 83,000 households in Massachusetts received cash assistance and the average monthly benefit per household was $450.
The average cash balance during the month was $25.21, the DTA said, and 99.8 percent of recipients had balances of less than $1,000 on their cards.
Thirty-seven households reported balances above $1,500 and six exceeded $2,500, according to the data.
‘‘People who are eligible for these benefits are in many cases the poorest of the poor, so having an accumulated balance certainly raises issues,’’ Gov. Deval Patrick told reporters Wednesday.
Patrick added that there could be explanations for a higher than normal balance, such as a lengthy hospital stay for a recipient.
Officials said the new policy of shutting down cards with the high balances was consistent with DTA regulations requirements that limit countable assets for welfare recipients to under $2,500.
The SNAP program, formerly known as food stamps, does not prohibit clients from accumulating high balances, but accounts that are inactive for six months will be now moved offline.
SNAP benefits cannot be converted to cash and can only be used to purchase household food.
Boldyga said EBT cards, however, are another story.
“They can be used just about anywhere that accepts debit cards,” he said. “I have reports that show on a month-to-month basis where EBT cards are being used and some are in the Dominican Republic, the Virgin Islands, on cruise ships . . . it’s unbelievable.”
Boldyga said there are checks and balances in place for ensuring cash assistance recipients are legitimate and using the cards as they were intended. The problem, he said, is that’s not being done.
“We live in a state where the current administration is not truly serious about cracking down on this, because the technology is there,” said Boldyga. ‘This could have been stopped a long time ago.”
Boldyga said a person who is supposed to be in need and has thousands of dollars on their EBT card most likely is not in great need.
“In Massachusetts the average working taxpayer has less than $10,000 in savings and retirement,” he said. “They are trying to make ends meet and can’t save or pay for college, and there are people on assistance who are taking vacations.”
Lawmakers have been pushing for EBT reforms in response to several recent reports critical of the system, including a state audit in May that found millions of dollars in questionable payments to people who were dead or otherwise ineligible for benefits. Patrick disputed the scope of that report, but he has ordered his administration to take immediate steps to end fraud and abuse.
“Patrick has not yet said whether he plans to approve a budget amendment that would require photo identification on all EBT cards. Boldyga said the only way to change the system is to change the leadership.
“Hopefully taxpayers have realized enough is enough,” Boldyga said. “And come election time, I hope they vote for people who will make changes.”
In related news, Gov. Deval Patrick says he will support a requirement that photo identification be placed on Electronic Benefit Transfer Cards used by welfare recipients, but is asking lawmakers to amend the proposal before he signs it.
The amendment would require state officials to conduct a review after three years of the effectiveness of photo identification on the cards.
Patrick also said Thursday he would request $2.5 million to implement the requirement, which was attached to a $125 million spending bill to cover outstanding costs for the fiscal year that ended June 30.
Supporters of requiring photo IDs on EBT cards say it will help cut down on fraud and abuse.
