The Conservative Cave
Current Events => General Discussion => Topic started by: NHSparky on June 25, 2010, 11:08:58 AM
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Gov. Schwarzenegger halts use of welfare debit cards at casinos
LINK (http://www.mydesert.com/article/20100625/NEWS06/6250328/Gov-Schwarzenegger-halts-use-of-welfare-debit-cards-at-casinos)
The Desert Sun, Palm Springs, CA
25 June 2010
(excerpt)
Spurred by a newspaper's report that California's welfare debit cards can be used to withdraw cash in more than half the casinos in the state, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday issued an immediate ban on state-provided cash assistance at ATMs in gambling establishments.
The Los Angeles Times disclosed that Electronic Benefit Transfer cards work in automated teller machines at 32 of 58 tribal casinos and 47 of 90 state-licensed poker rooms. The report also found the state Department of Social Services published a list of useable ATMs where the EBT cards that work like debit cards could be cashed.
That list included the addresses of two Coachella Valley casinos — Spotlight 29 Casino, 46-200 Harrison St., Coachella, and Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, 49-500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon.
“I will use every available power I have to protect taxpayers from waste, fraud and abuse in government,'' Schwarzenegger said.
Spotlight 29 Casino spokeswoman Lisa Herman said the casino would not comment.
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Every single person who used an EBT card in a casino should be cut off. IMMEDIATELY.
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Why are they even allowed to get cash from the cards at any ATM? They should be strictly used at grocery stores, for food only.
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Why are they even allowed to get cash from the cards at any ATM? They should be strictly used at grocery stores, for food only.
I'd argue that to some extent. They should be allowed at Goodwill stores and maybe some clothing stores, (mainly WalMart) and to pay necessity bills (gas, electric, rent). I don't know what all they're issued for but they shouldn't be used for frivolous spending.
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I'd argue that to some extent. They should be allowed at Goodwill stores and maybe some clothing stores, (mainly WalMart) and to pay necessity bills (gas, electric, rent). I don't know what all they're issued for but they shouldn't be used for frivolous spending.
Okay, I can agree with those things, but being able to draw cash on the cards is just asking for fraud and abuse of the system.
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Okay, I can agree with those things, but being able to draw cash on the cards is just asking for fraud and abuse of the system.
Agreed. You can use a credit card or a debit card at Goodwill. I know from personal experience. No cash. No way.
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Agreed. You can use a credit card or a debit card at Goodwill. I know from personal experience. No cash. No way.
SNICKER... Like most folks on welfare have a bank account or credit cards?
Oh wait..............
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SNICKER... Like most folks on welfare have a bank account or credit cards?
Oh wait..............
Well, yeah, but what I meant was that an EBT card can be used at a Goodwill, because it rings up like a credit/debit card. So, that reason wouldn't fly for them needing to get cash from the card.
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Sorry, but I can't think of a single reason a welfare recipient needs cash. An idea--someone with more banking experience, please evaluate and tell me where I'm right/wrong:
Why don't these cards get coded with a prefix number or group of numbers (for example, AMEX uses "3" as first number, Visa uses "4", etc.) that WILL NOT ALLOW cash advances? Any purchases such as food, gas, etc., can still be made, but no cash advances.
Just a thought.
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Sorry, but I can't think of a single reason a welfare recipient needs cash. An idea--someone with more banking experience, please evaluate and tell me where I'm right/wrong:
Why don't these cards get coded with a prefix number or group of numbers (for example, AMEX uses "3" as first number, Visa uses "4", etc.) that WILL NOT ALLOW cash advances? Any purchases such as food, gas, etc., can still be made, but no cash advances.
Just a thought.
I agree with you. They can also have MCC coding, meaning you can only use the cards at certain merchants, for certain items. Company Credit Cards are set up like that. My previous employer had them set to where you could only use them for lodging, food, and rental cars. Sometimes our repair crews would be out of town for weeks on end, and would want to just go to the grocery store to get food to keep in the fridge. The cards would not work. We also had cash advance blocked, so yeah, it can be done.
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I agree with you. They can also have MCC coding, meaning you can only use the cards at certain merchants, for certain items. Company Credit Cards are set up like that. My previous employer had them set to where you could only use them for lodging, food, and rental cars. Sometimes our repair crews would be out of town for weeks on end, and would want to just go to the grocery store to get food to keep in the fridge. The cards would not work. We also had cash advance blocked, so yeah, it can be done.
Ah the good old days, yup, I remember when food stamps were sent in a booklet to be torn out at the grocery store to buy food only. The cashier would ring up food items first take the food stamp and give change if needed. Then they rang up non food items and expected cash for them.
It really surprised me to find the number of Military dependents using food stamps at the commissary.
I fell into the whole deal when I was asked to buy food stamps from a coworker that worked 2 jobs with 3 children , hubby gone to the hills, she told me she would send her kids to the local store restrooms to steal toilet paper. Her kids would go in with bottles they filled up with soap in the washroom and bring home a bucket of hand paper towels. She washed the clothing in the tub in the way wine was made along time ago, fill the tub with hot water pour in vinegar [ a food item ] and have the kids stomp them clean.
What she needed was money to buy dish soap, shampoo, deodorant and diapers for the baby. One cannot use cloth diapers on a baby that has been boiled in vinegar, OUCH.
She was not military so she could not take her kids to a free hospital when they ran a fever or a bad cold, she needed money for over the counter drugs.
She and the kids were really over weight because on food stamps she could not afford fresh vegetables, dried beans and rice was about as close as they got to real veggies.
I went to her house at dinner time one day and she and the kids were filling their belly's with those Boxed Kraft Macaroni and cheese, she showed me how to add a cooked box of elbow macaroni to the dish and supersize it to feed 6 people. Then for meat she cooked hot dogs put them in a slice of day old bread and slathered on Mayo.
So some of us got together at work and chipped in a few bucks each week to buy her mouth wash, toilet paper soap and tooth paste--and brushes. We got my EX to deliver the bag to the house as she and kids had never met him he was just a man that left this bag for them.
At no time would we give her money just the basics she and children needed outside of food.
She and kids somehow over came the odds, the State sent her to school and all 3 kids did well in their schools. I am not sure about this but I believe in later life she found a partner of some sex --last I heard she way finally happy.
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Okay, I can agree with those things, but being able to draw cash on the cards is just asking for fraud and abuse of the system.
Welfare Queens & Kings have been getting cash benefits for years. It used to be in check form & they often had to pay to cash the checks. (no bank accounts)
Now the money is loaded on a card every month, which does save on the expense of printing & mailing the checks.
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Welfare Queens & Kings have been getting cash benefits for years. It used to be in check form & they often had to pay to cash the checks. (no bank accounts)
Now the money is loaded on a card every month, which does save on the expense of printing & mailing the checks.
But does nothing to lessen the abuse.
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I used to see people all the time when I worked at a retail store how people would come in and buy their beer and cigaretts with their EBT card and be talking on a I Phone or Blackberry would piss me off to no end to see that.
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But does nothing to lessen the abuse.
Of course not.
These folks are handed free money every month, do you actually think they have strict budgets that eliminate things like drugs, drinking & gambling?
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I used to see people all the time when I worked at a retail store how people would come in and buy their beer and cigaretts with their EBT card and be talking on a I Phone or Blackberry would piss me off to no end to see that.
You mean like this?
(http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/03/05/Michelle%20Obama%20at%20soup%20kitchen.jpg)