More People Expected to Apply for Food StampsCHARLOTTE, NC - This month, North Carolina is doing something it has never done before. New income requirements are making food stamps available to residents who wouldn’t have qualified a few weeks ago. Because of record unemployment and underemployment, the state has opted to take federal money to ease the income requirements for food assistance.
A family of four can now earn up to $44,100 to qualify for food stamps. Under the old requirements, a family that size would have to earn less than $28,665 to qualify.
“People are really searching hard for ways to stretch their dollars, and this is a way of putting resources directly into the pockets of the residents so they can stretch their funds and pay for rent or mortgage or utilities,” said Mary Wilson, Director of the Department of Social Services in Mecklenburg County.
Mecklenburg County DSS expects to see an 18% increase in people applying for food stamps under the new requirements. That’s around 1,000 more people a month.
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