Alaskans are now able to fill out applications to apply for food stamps online following the announcement by the Alaskan state Division of Public Assistance announced the online application form on Friday.
The state is in the plan to overhaul its food assistance program in order to expedite the processing of applications because many Alaskans have waited for months to receive their benefits.
A backlog of tens of thousands applications has been a problem for the department for over one year. A constant shortage of staff and an attack on the internet, outdated software offices closing and an unexpected surge in demand led to the state slowing down in the months following.
The officials now hope that the application online will allow Alaskans their food aid they require faster.
Ketchikan residents Vanessa Budge is among those who are caught in the state’s backlog of food stamps. On Friday, she had not received any benefits in more than three months.
“I’ve phoned and called, but they keep saying “Oh, we’re working on it. We’re still working through some of the applications'” Budge said by phone.
On top of her role as a caregiver for an assistance service in the home and a mother of two children. She is also responsible for her own elderly parents. Budge has benefited from her Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known by the name of SNAP also known as food stamps for a long time.
She claims that everything appeared to be running smoothly until the outbreak.
In 2021 the year 2021, over 80,000 Alaskans utilized the program.
Food stamp recipients are required to apply for food stamps on a regular basis. In the present, this happens once per year.
Budge was able to apply for benefits again on August 1, she explained. She was able get the benefits in an emergency situation for a month in September, to make sure her children didn’t starve however, since the time, she’s been forced to wait.
“I’m only eating canned food items and soups and other stuff that, you know, last for a long time. However, with kids growing and other things I’m not sure it’s going to last longer than one month,” Budge said.
And Budge is only one of the many who have similar stories to those that are being told across Alaska.
Ron Meehan, with the Food Bank of Alaska, has said he’s witnessed the impact of the backlog in person.
“We are aware that when SNAP isn’t working, people who are in dire need are arriving in our network of food pantries and food banks throughout the state. We’ve been seeing just incredibly the needy across all of our networks,” he said.
In the wake of office closings and software upgrades, officials from the Division of Public Assistance said the backlog increased to 12,000 by the end of December.
Division Director Deb Etheridge told the media that following the introduction of a number of modifications that included the removal of the requirement that applicants be interviewed, the wait list has slowed substantially. The backlog is now at 8,311 with 86 that date back to July of last year the department said. Department of Health spokesperson Shirley Sakaye.
“We’ve achieved significant progress in the backlog of SNAP applications however, we’re also striving to keep current with cases that are being submitted,” Etheridge said.
A new form online that was launched in December could ease the burden, Etheridge said. The form allows recipients of food stamps applicants to claim benefits, without having to fill out filling out a 28-page paper form.
The system is linked to MyAlaska The sign-on system Alaska residents can use to gain access to items like fishing and hunting licenses as well as Permanent Fund Dividend applications.
The online application for food assistance form cuts down on time, Etheridge said. It’s also simpler: the first 260 online applicants who filled the form were able to complete the application in around 20 minutes, as opposed to about an hour for a paper-based application, Etheridge said.
This will also reduce the time required to complete an application, Etheridge stated. An application that contains all the necessary information usually requires less than an hour to complete, but with a 28-page application it’s not difficult for applicants to commit mistakes that could delay the application for days according to her.
The online form highlights mistakes in advance, Etheridge said.
“For instance when they state that they’re employed but do not submit any income verifications or income verification, and then go onto the following screen they’ll be able to continue moving through the application. However, they’ll receive an alert that asks, ‘Didn’t you want to do that?” Etheridge said.
Meehan from Meehan, who works for the Food Bank of Alaska, said it’s a great step.
“I believe it’s an incredible experience,” he said. “It gives another means for those who need assistance with food to have access to this application. Prior to this we were among the two states that didn’t provide an online form.”
Meehan told me that his group is keeping its sights on a major change they’re hoping to see a change that’s known as “broad-based categorical eligibility.” This would basically remove a rule that, generally speaking, states that food stamp recipients must possess less than $2,750 worth of assets.
“We recognize that assets, and in particular ones that are complicated and time-consuming to prove as well as by permitting people to save they can assist families be able to escape poverty, and eventually get off the welfare program,” he said.
Etheridge director of public assistance, Etheridge Public Assistance director, said the state is currently working on ways to implement this change, but she added that outdated computers make it a difficult task. Etheridge stated that she’s working together with the Federal agency responsible for SNAP to determine if the broad-based eligibility standards is feasible while the state is working to upgrade their information technology.
Two bills that the State House as well as the Senate that were introduced at the close of the legislative session last year could require the change and increase the income limit to double the Federal poverty level. It’s $75,000 for a household of four.
As officials’ efforts to tackle the issue continue, Vanessa Budge, the chief of staff in Ketchikan still has to wait.
“I simply would like to find out when will be able receive my food stamps, to go grocery shopping as my children require foods,” she said.
The state is hoping to get rid of the backlog before mid-March, According to Sakaye. The department is currently hiring around two dozen eligibility specialists to handle applications. the department’s top officials are charged with handling emergencies, she explained.
In the meantime, Etheridge encouraged people who require emergency help to come by the neighborhood Division of Public Assistance office or contact 1-800-478-7778. Anyone who is in need of assistance can locate a local food pantry on the Food Bank of Alaska’s website by pressing the button that says “Find the Food.”
