Des Moines, Iowa — Members of the public have debated a proposal to require more frequent income checks and a new asset test for Iowans receiving food stamps or health care coverage through Medicaid.
The bill, SF 494, requires the Department of Health and Human Services to check a large variety of sources to verify identities, incomes, and current assistance being received by applicants. It makes no changes to the income eligibility threshold for SNAP benefits at it’s current rate, 160% of the federal poverty rate.
Andres Reyes, the senior pastor of the First Baptist Church, spoke in favor of the bill during a public hearing at the Iowa Capitol.
Valerie Petersen, associate executive director of the Foodbank of Siouxland in Sioux City, says these changes will push vulnerable Iowans farther into poverty.
Darla Chappell of St. Donatus, a small town near the Illinois border, says she used to work in a bank and saw people getting government assistance from more than one state.
Carlyn Crowe of the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council says many Iowans with disabilities will lose Medicaid coverage because of the asset test for the entire household.
The bill passed the Senate two weeks ago. It cleared a House Committee last week and is eligible for debate in the full House.
