Consumerist
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assistance
Costco Will Expand Food Stamp Program Nationwide
It turns out more Costco customers use food stamps than CEO James D. Sinegal originally thought, because after a test run earlier this year the company has decided to roll out the program nationwide. More » -
recession watch
More Stores Accepting Food Stamps Now That 39 Million People Use Them
We're going to have to start offering tips for shopping with food stamps now that a record number of consumers —and stores— are using them. More » -
government
Here's An Extra $25 A Week — Whoops, Now You Don't Qualify For Food Stamps
The economic recovery plan includes a nice little $25 a week bump for unemployed folks — but for some it comes with a catch — they no longer qualify for hundreds of dollars a month in food stamp benefits. Whoopsies! More » -
warehouse clubs
Costco Now Accepting Food Stamps, Sort Of
Finally following the lead of its competitors, Costco will accept food stamp cards. For core food items, not other merchandise. Two New York City stores, in Astoria, Queens, and in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, will serve as test sites because of the high numbers of food stamp recipients nearby. If the program is successful, Costco will expand it to all other New York City stores, but there are no plans to expand the program to other cities or states. More » -
government
We're Outsourcing Food Stamp Jobs To India
Poverty in America is creating jobs for people overseas, says ABC News. The saga began when a Florida resident's hours working as a nanny got cut back when her boss' hours also got cut. She called a toll-free line to inquire about her food stamps and noticed that the call center obviously wasn't in the US. More » -
groceries
Grocery Auctions: Going Once, Going Twice, Going Off!
Grocery auctions are sweeping the nation! The concept is simple: you bid on super-low-priced food items and paper goods, and walk away with a cart full of groceries for $100s less than you'd spend at your local supermarket. But the reality is that most of the food is expired, damaged, or past its promotion deadline. So are you really getting a good deal? And what do those "best before" dates really signify? More »
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recession watch
Why Doesn't Costco Accept Food Stamps?
The New York Times City Room blog asks an interesting question. Why doesn't Costco accept food stamps? Even farmers markets accept them! What's the deal, Costco? More » -
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anti-trust
Food Stamp Users Subsidize Your Credit Card Rewards Programs
Food stamp users are helping pay for your credit card rewards programs, according to "Priceless? The Social Costs Of Credit Card Merchant Restraints" (PDF), a paper by Gerogetown professor Adam Levitin published in the Harvard Journal on Legislation.
Merchants have to pay credit card companies a fee for every credit card transaction. Merchants are forbidden from passing this surchage directly to the customer incurring it and so raises all his prices (see pages 37-46). These fees are used to pay for credit card reward programs. The result is that customers who don't enjoy the benefit of rewards programs, like food stamp users, are paying for them.
Priceless? The Social Costs of Credit Card Merchant Restraints [SSRN]
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complaints
Kroger Illegally Charging Tax On Food Stamps When Used With Coupons
"I do the grocery shopping for my partner who is totally disabled. He is paralyzed on the right side and suffers from quite a few other health related issues. When we moved to Savannah, Georgia two years ago, I noticed that when I used his EBT (food stamp) card at a Kroger store that I was being charged tax on food coupons. While Georgia is a state that does charge tax on grocery store food, and some grocery coupons state that it is the customer's responsibility to pay any tax, it is illegal to charge food stamp recipients tax no matter what." More » -
money
Personal Finance Roundup
Playing the Student Loan Game to Win [Yahoo Finance] "The student loan scandal reveals why it pays to compare offers from multiple lenders when you borrow money for college." More »
More and more "regular-Joe working Americans" are on - 1
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