The monthly cost for the feds to pay for food stamps is sickening. We re at an all time high for people receiving help with SNAP. You might think it s because there are so many people who need it..WRONG! It has become a debit card for some to just buy whatever they want with it. Yes, it s not just for cheese and milk anymore. You can buy fast food and so many other things with your government issued debit card. This is NOT good news for the hardworking Americans out there who pay for this fraud, waste and abuse. The abuse is bad enough but what if I told you major corporations partner with the feds to PROMOTE food stamp use? Three powerful industry sectors benefit from SNAP: 1) major food manufacturers such as Coca-Cola, Kraft, and Mars; 2) leading food retailers such as Walmart and Kroger; and 3) large banks, such as J.P. Morgan Chase, which contract with states to help administer SNAP benefits. The number of individuals receiving benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, otherwise known as food stamps, has exceeded 45 million for 53 straight months, according to data released by the Department of Agriculture.THE EBT RAP GLAMORIZES USING THE EBT: There were 45,415,445 beneficiaries of the food stamp program in September 2015, the latest month for which data is available. The number declined by 48,988 from August to September.The USDA has been tracking data on participation in the program since fiscal year 1969, at which time average participation stood at about 2,800,000. This means that since then, participation in the program has increased by roughly 16-fold.Maura Corrigan, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, says that despite improvements in the economy, the program remains large and too few adults who benefit from the program are working. As a former state human services director who administered more than 70 federal means-tested welfare programs, I believe that one track is especially important for reforming welfare programs  she said.  Our nation s simple three-word mantra should be:  Better Off Working.  Social safety-net programs, including SNAP, should expect and encourage work and the dignity and responsibility that accompany it from those who are able to do so. Additionally, she says that the program promotes adding beneficiaries to its rolls.  Rather than promoting self-sufficiency, SNAP s predominant track record over the past decade has been to add participants to its rolls. Also, its eligibility definitions are in many cases vague, allowing it to deny fraud, waste, and abuse in the program, despite the reports of such behavior from citizens and caseworkers. The number of food stamp recipients first exceeded 45 million in May 2011. Since then, the number has consistently exceeded 45 million, hitting a record high of about 47,790,000 in December 2012.Households on food stamps received an average benefit of $255.51 in September 2015, and total benefits for the month cost taxpayers $5.72 billion.Read more: WFB