Illinois Senate committee advances safety changes to SNAP after CBS 2 exposes fraud
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Important safety changes are on the way to the federally-funded SNAP after the CBS 2 Investigators exposed benefit fraud.
CBS 2 Investigator Dorothy Tucker reported in November on the problem with identity theft in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
SNAP recipients tried to buy groceries – only to find their funds were gone thanks to hackers who apparently used skimming devices.
A new bill in Springfield would collect data from SNAP cards to better track skimming and fraud.
"This bill addresses the need for more accountability and transparency in our state's anti-fraud measures," sponsor state Sen. Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) said in a news release. "By tracking and collecting data on how often SNAP fraud occurs in Illinois, we can develop more effective policies to combat this issue and prevent it from happening in the future."
The measure passed the state Senate Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday, and now moves to the full state Senate.