Idaho cracks down on food stamp fraud

BOISE (AP) - State officials hope a tweak an Idaho law will help them better crack down on people who defraud the food stamp program, which is helping 220,000 residents buy groceries.

Steve Bellomy heads the state Department of Health and Welfare's investigations bureau and told lawmakers Tuesday that complaints over welfare fraud are on the rise this year.

Bellomy says some courts have refused to prosecute cases of suspected food stamp fraud because of the way Idaho law makes reference to the unauthorized use of "food stamps."

Bellomy says technically, "food stamps" no longer exist because the assistance is now distributed electronically.

A bill introduced Tuesday would update Idaho law to include the term "food stamp benefits."