HB 1394 -- PUBLIC ASSISTANCE BENEFITS

SPONSOR:  Brandom

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on General
Laws by a vote of 9 to 1.

This bill specifies that no temporary assistance for needy
families (TANF), food stamps, or other public assistance benefits
can be used by a recipient for the purchase of any liquor or
tobacco products.  The Department of Social Services must
implement the necessary measures to ensure that these provisions
are complied with by recipients.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Net Effect on General Revenue Fund of an
income of $0 to a cost of Unknown in FY 2013, FY 2014, and FY
2015.  No impact on Other State Funds in FY 2013, FY 2014, and FY
2015.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the benefits a person receives
from the state should only be used for legitimate purposes and
not to purchase alcohol and tobacco products.  The bill prohibits
a TANF debit card from being used to buy these items.  All the
major credit card issuers have the ability to prevent these
products from being purchased using a TANF debit card so this
will be easy to implement.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Brandom; Missouri
Hospital Association; and Missouri Family Network.

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

Missouri House of Representatives
Last Updated April 17, 2012 at 2:59 pm