Schaefer Promotes Lone Star Card Reform

TYLER — Tyler’s state representative is getting busy with Lone Star Card reform. The Texas Lone Star Card program is designed to help needy East Texas families buy food through cash benefits, but Matt Schaefer says some are abusing this privilege. According to KETK, Schaefer said he and his staff found millions of dollars in fraud after comparing the Texas program to other states. “In the state of Texas, our Lone Star Card does not have the name or the picture on there. There’s no personally identifiable information at all,” said the District 6 Republican.

Schaefer says he and his team realized this after finding the food stamp cards in Massachusetts had names and pictures added to prevent fraud. Since researching further, Schaefer said they uncovered multiple cases of unlawful spending here in Texas. “We discovered almost $107 million over the last two years spent outside of Texas. And over 60 percent of that are in states that don’t border Texas,” said Schaefer. “They’re selling these cards for cash, which is an illegal use of the card.”

He took the opportunity to share his reform plans at a Grassroots America – We the People meeting. “We want to do what Massachusetts did and put the person’s name and photo on the card, which will discourage people from selling their cards on the street,” said Schaefer. He also plans to have the state investigate further and use its tools to prevent more fraud in the future. Schaefer said since bringing this to the attention of East Texas officials, the Office of Inspector General has formed a Public Benefits Integrity Task Force.