State Auditor Nicole Galloway will announce results of an examination of the state’s delivery of the federal program that used to be known as food stamps.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is managed by the state’s Department of Social Services. Galloway announced the audit more than a year ago to examine safeguards and investigate fraudulent or suspicious activity in the program. She said then that the review would be conducted by the newly-formed Data Analytics Technical Audit unit.
According to Galloway’s comment, the target of the SNAP audit appeared to be fraudulent use of the low-income food program that’s distributed to residents on electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards that can be used to purchase groceries. Federal tax dollars pay for SNAP benefits while the state shares the cost of administering the program with the federal government. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, more than 800,000 Missourians received SNAP benefits in the 2016 fiscal year. Republican lawmakers have moved unsuccessfully to place work requirements and restrictions on SNAP recipients.
