Bills Targeting Public Benefits Fraud Draw Criticism At Hearing

At a public hearing on Tuesday, critics of legislation that targets public benefits spoke out against the bills, which — according to their authors — are designed to crack down on fraud.

One bill would require photo ID for those using Wisconsin’s FoodShare program. Opponents of the plan — including churches, legal groups for the poor, grocers and food groups — say it would be costly and have a chilling effect on users, especially elderly people already resistant to using the program.

Matt Stienstra with the Hunger Task Force testified at the hearing.

“We want to see a bill that would not waste taxpayer dollars, increase bureaucracies and stigmatize those shopping for groceries with FoodShare,” said Stienstra.

The bill’s author, Rep. Jesse Kremer, said photo ID provides another layer of security against fraud. He wants the Department of Health Services to apply for a federal waiver so the state can require photographs on debit cards used by FoodShare recipients.

“Even though the federal government says, “No, no, no,’ on a lot of these issues, we still have rights as states. And I’m going to push back,” said Kremer.

It’s estimated changing the program to include photos would cost more than $7 million in startup costs. with ongoing costs amounting to $2 million annually.

Another bill would temporarily cut off jobless benefits for those who deliberately defraud the system more than once. Rep. Samantha Kerkman proposed the measure, which imposes a seven-year ban on unemployment benefits for those caught intentionally trying to rip off the system.

“I would have liked to have done a lifetime ban, but I felt seven years was enough. I tried to pick something that was reasonable, that was a deterrent,” said Kerkman.

But critics say government forms are complicated, and there’s a fine line between intentional fraud and mistakes. Kevin Magee with Legal Action of Wisconsin said he’s currently helping a low-income client with a reading disability who misunderstood a complex question on the unemployment forms .

“It is going to punish people severely who have done nothing more than misunderstand a very, very bad question,” said Magee.

Kerkman said a state audit indicated $86 million was lost to fraud over a three-year period.