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Social Security: Need for Better Coordination of Food Stamp Services for Social Security Clients

HRD-92-92 Published: Sep 25, 1992. Publicly Released: Sep 25, 1992.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO determined whether: (1) taking food stamp applications for certain supplemental security income applicants at Social Security Administration (SSA) offices is working adequately; (2) Social Security program clients are being adequately informed of the availability of food stamps; (3) taking food stamp applications at SSA offices should be expanded to all Social Security program clients; and (4) developing a joint Supplemental Security Income and Food Stamp application form is feasible.

Recommendations

Matter for Congressional Consideration

Matter Status Comments
Congress should require the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Agriculture to jointly develop, within a prescribed time frame, a plan for improving the coordination of food stamp services for SSA program clients. The plan should include implementation time frames and consideration of legislative changes and should be furnished to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees, Senate Committee on Finance, House Committee on Ways and Means, and the Senate Special Committee on Aging. In developing the plan, the Secretaries should solicit input from states and client advocates, and consider: (1) addressing problems at the application-taking levels, including the possible need to better orient staff and hold them accountable for adhering to coordination requirements; (2) exploring options to the current joint application process, including eliminating the 1-working-day requirement for SSA field staff to complete the food stamp application; (3) developing a simple food stamp application for national use by SSA field office staff; (4) taking additional steps to ensure that applicants and recipients of SSA programs are adequately informed of food stamp availability; (5) strengthening the process for referring SSA clients to state offices to apply for food stamps; and (6) developing methods to monitor how well SSA and states carry out their responsibilities.
Closed – Not Implemented
There is no indication that Congress will act on this recommendation in the foreseeable future.

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Topics

Administrative costsFederal formsFederal social security programsstate relationsIncome maintenance programsPublic assistance programsSupplemental security incomeFood relief programsFood assistance programsNutrition