Mary Wood has been waiting for food stamps since submitting the renewal application in August. She cares for three grandsons on a regular basis and was able to claim more than $800 per monthly in food stamp benefits.
“Around Christmas, it was awful,” she said. “I informed my landlord that I don’t have money to pay you. I’m unable to even buy the kids gifts.”
Now, she claims that her fridge and freezer are almost empty. She as well as her grandsons consume things such as oatmeal as well as peanut jelly and butter sandwiches, and emergency food rations dehydrated that she had purchased in the event in the event of a natural disaster. “It’s an emergency food source,” she said, and said she often adds vegetables or meat to it whenever she is able to.
Wood has borrowed funds from the daughter of their son in order to cover the cost of expenses for a couple of months. She says she’s in debt again due to rent because she spent her money on food. She feels fortunate that her landlord hasn’t thrown her out. Instead, she gets moose meat to share with her, and also gives her a quarter for the washing machine.
She claimed she’s been to and contacted at the Division of Public Assistance multiple times and they have told her that her application is on the system, so she must wait. She says the situation makes her feel unimportant. “It’s extremely difficult,” she said.
She’s among the thousands of Alaskans who have waited months to receive food stamps because of the extreme delays within the Division of Public Assistance. The state claims to have completed thousands of backlogs of applications however, thousands of Alaskans are still waiting for food benefits.
The team is working on a 18,000-person backlog
The state’s own report states that as of 2023 the Division of Public Assistance has completed fewer than a third of food stamp renewals in time in the current fiscal year. However, division director Deb Etheridge has said that the situation has seen a turnaround in the last few months.
“I’m extremely optimistic,” she said. “We’ve made some significant changes to our personnel structure, to ensure that we not only manage this backlog but ensure that it doesn’t get any bigger.”
The state has pledged to cut its 10,000-person waitlist of new applicants for food stamp applications by close of October as the result of an suit brought by a class that was filed in May. Etheridge claimed that the backlog was down to 8,794 at the time of writing. If the state does not meet the deadline, the lawsuit will be a continuation, however Etheridge claimed that they’re in the right direction. The staff is split into groups: Some are working on the backlog, while others work on the incoming requests of food stamps. Another team is responsible for Medicaid renewals.
Then Etheridge has been celebrating her part of a victory: The department completed all recertification requests that were in the backlog. The backlog was more than 8,800 applications in the past year, she noted.
The state has poured millions of dollars to address the issue since spring which includes $6.8 million in federal and state funds to personnel for the Division of Public Assistance. Etheridge has said she’s employed 46 eligibility specialists and has posted 19 positions. 20 more hirings are in the pipeline.
“We are incredibly aggressively seeking for hires,” she said. “We do not have enough employees in order to stay current.”
In the month of April the median decision time for SNAP benefits in the current fiscal year was more than 60 days, which is more than double the Federal limit.
“It’s getting better. It’s getting hopeful.”
An employee of the eligibility department who voiced his concerns about issues with staffing and systemic inefficiencies within the Division of Public Assistance in the beginning stages of the backlog claimed that things have changed in the last month of April. Eligibility workers handle forms to claim state benefits. The Beacon has not used their name as they fear they may lose their jobs because of their opinions.
“It’s improving, and it’s becoming optimistic,” they said.
The eligibility worker explained that they and their coworkers are now processing cases and helping people get benefits from food stamps instead of being tangled up in a phone call with grieving families. This is due in part to the state’s hiring contract employees for handling the phone system.
However, the worker for eligibility stated that a stress factor was gone as well. From the month of October to April of this year the eligibility workers were not allowed to handle cases over the phone. According to the new management, they made changes to the policy.
“This director as well as the commissioner has been focused on completing the task and bringing us having cases that work,” They said. “We’re capable of helping people in ways that we weren’t before.”
The worker who is in charge of eligibility said Mary Woods’ nine-month wait is not unusual. It’s the result when an application has been submitted to this system and is not recorded in the database. The worker claimed they had seen several other cases in August over the past few weeks, and that other eligibility specialists have seen the same thing, too.
They’re also thrilled about changes to the policy division, which will reduce the burden of paperwork for staff and their families. Alaskans were required the requirement to renew food stamp application every 6 months, but this will now be extended to an annual basis. Beginning in December the state will offer an online application process for food stamps just like in other parts of the United States.
“I’m happy for our administration, union and the workers who have done this job,” they said. “It’s the right time.”
This article was originally published in Alaska Beacon and is republished here with permission.
