Michigan lawmakers consider photo, signature requirements on food assistance cards to curb fraud
Electronic theft of benefits and unauthorized use of food assistance cards is costing Michiganders millions if not billions of dollars in fraud, supporters of legislation to require a photo and a signature on Michigan Bridge cards said during a Thursday meeting of the state House Government Operations Committee.
Rep. Jason Woolford (R-Howell), sponsor of House Bill 4515, told lawmakers Thursday that Michigan has seen instances of organized crime stealing people's Electronic Benefits Transfer, or EBT, data to drain people's SNAP, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, benefits which are informally known as food stamps.
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A May statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture said SNAP benefit fraud efforts have 'dramatically' increased in recent years through card skimming and cloning efforts. And as President Donald Trump's administration has zeroed in on cracking down on bad actors stealing food assistance dollars from those who need them, Judicial Officer of the United States Department of Agriculture John Walk said these crimes hurt Americans on multiple levels.
'These are truly sick and depraved individuals who are stealing food from low-income Americans for their own profit,' Walk said in May. 'It is especially disturbing when international criminal organizations siphon tax dollars away from SNAP beneficiaries to fund their own illicit activities.'
Woolford's bill would require those using Michigan's food assistance card, known as the Bridge Card, to have their photograph and signature appear on the card.
The bill isn't meant to inconvenience anyone in need of food assistance in Michigan more than the inconvenience many Michiganders face when getting a photo for a driver's license, passport, or a Costco membership card, Woolford said. And although the nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency places estimates of implementing photo and signature requirements at between $1.5 million to $4.5 million annually, based on other states that have done so, Woolford said the change could save taxpayers billions in fraud.
'That's my concern, that the amount of money we're losing here, money that quite honestly could go to other people that are being denied benefits or that we don't have the money to take care of because of the waste, fraud and abuse,' Woolford said.
In the House Fiscal Agency's analysis of the bill, savings to Michigan as a result of reduced fraud are indeterminate and likely negligible. Regardless of whose image would appear on a card, in order for whole families to benefit from food assistance, federal rules mandate that states can't hinder members of a household from permitted purchases, so anyone with the pin number can make a purchase regardless of the image on the card, the analysis said.
On Thursday, Rep. Mike Harris (R-Waterford Township) said during his law enforcement career prior to joining the Legislature, he saw frequent fraudulent use of food assistance cards. At the same time, when considering concerns that having to get a photo taken would place an undue burden on recipients, Harris said he'd be interested in seeing if the bill could be further fleshed out to allow images already in the Michigan Department of State's database for state IDs to be used for Bridge Cards.
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