Albany, NY – Governor David A. Paterson today announced a historic collaboration with George Soros and the Open Society Institute (OSI) that will provide one-time, $200 grants to more than 800,000 children in low-income families across New York State to help purchase school supplies as they prepare to return to class in September. Families who receive public assistance or food stamps can access this one-time Back-To-School Supplement of $200 per school-aged child (ages 3 through 17) starting today. The Governor was joined by Mr. Soros and other elected officials at P.S. 208 in New York City today to make the announcement.
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“This first-of-its-kind partnership in New York is an example of how the public and private sectors can work together to foster a brighter future for the low-income families of our State,” Governor Paterson said. “These $200 grants will provide thousands of families with a much needed financial boost so that they can better meet the needs of their children as they prepare to go back to school. This partnership is a continuation of my commitment to aggressively identifying opportunities to use economic stimulus funds to help our neediest New Yorkers and to bolster our State’s economy.”
Mr. Soros said: “Even in the toughest of economic times, getting ready for school is important. When I was a student right after World War II, I had no money. I received cash from charities and I remember how important that was to my education. Since then, I have been very fortunate, so I am happy I’ve been given the opportunity today to help others. I hope these funds will relieve some of the financial burden on New York’s families so their children can start the school year off with a measure of optimism and hope for the future.”
Starting today, the $175 million sum is providing eligible families of school children, ages 3-17, with a one-time payment of $200 per child. The funds are available through the Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card system, which is used to access public assistance and food stamp benefits. Recipients can use their EBT card to withdraw the funds through an ATM, or to pay for items at retail locations where the cards are accepted.The supplements will be placed in accounts for each eligible family that can be accessed with their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card, which are normally used to access public assistance and food stamp benefits. Two-thirds of the eligible recipients of the back-to-school supplements are in food stamp-only households, and the majority of these households are low-income working families or families receiving unemployment benefits.
Families can use the money to buy their children books, pencils, pens, notebooks, calculators, backpacks, shoes, tutoring, school uniforms and other clothing and essential school items. Families should look to take advantage of discounts offered by retailers in the coming weeks before school starts. The $175 million in Back-To-School Supplements will provide an economic boost to communities throughout the State as families purchase supplies, bolstering back-to-school retail sales.
Families should also check the New York State Consumer Protection Board’s “Stretch Your Dollar” tips at www.consumer.state.ny.us/syde_page.htm, to get ideas on how to make the back-to-school funds buy more while spending less to help their children. Recipients’ eligibility for public assistance, food stamps, child support and medical assistance will not be affected by receiving these one-time Back-To-School Supplements.
According to the NYC welfare office the funds are available for withdrawal up to 90 days from today.
Attention: no need to rush to the bank, the money will be available like regular FS benefits.
It just doesn’t pay to work. It’s very similar to communism.
Only Hashem
Hope it goes to books and not to beer. he should have just sent the school supplies – once it goes through the system the kids wont get the full benefit.
What about the single moms who dont make enough to get by, but not enough to recieve food stamps?
Nice bonus to the welfare bums don’t expect to see any increase of sales for school supplies
WHH
Who are the Open Society Institute?
It hurts that middle class working are left out, but according to current law and budget those who are on the F.S. or welfare program are eligible for those funds.
A lot of the people who get food stamps do work
Is philly going to get this too??
What does Soros have to do with this? Is he giving the money?
I actually qualify for this.. and im glad.. because it will help but i have to agree that i am sure a lot of people will miss use the money he should have come up with a better plan.. i really hope parents use it for their kids!!
What happened to new jersey? What our state doesn’t have kids in needy familys? We deserve too
B”H az der Eibishter has always given me my parnoso through “normal” channels and not through our medina shel chesed. When I do pay for food using plastic, the plastic says Visa or Master not EBT. Hodu lashem ki tov ki le’olam chasdo. Ich fargin di aleh vus krigen $200. Der Eibishter zul mir veiter helfen.
Why are they adding the money to food stamp cards??? I have a checking account where I can deposit checks…. Why don’t we deserve some extra cash?!?!?!?
Send me a check or transfer the money to my checking account. But please don’t forget about us! We can also use the extra money!
Is this only for those that have food stamps or those with medicaid and no food stamps?
I work hard every single day to put food on the table, clothes on my daughter and my back, hustle to pay the bills on time and no one says hey here’s a free gallon of milk let alone school supply money instead some bills get shuffled around for school supplies. The people that sit on teir butts and watch soap operas all day long and get free food, free money, free rent, and now free bonus for school supplies…. when I heard of this I just cried…. this is so unfair its times like this that I lose my enthusiastic patriotic spirit because most times being an american is more of a burden and today I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face and placed in a corner with a dunce cap for working so hard when it pays more to sit home and get fat and watch tv
Great…new outfits for Rosh Hashanah
What happened to new jersey? What our state doesn’t have kids in needy familys? We deserve too
what about coats, gloves, hats, new outfits for Rosh Hashana? How about paying tuition etc…… The more important things in life????? If you really need new outfits how about the outlet stores where I pay less than $2.00 for the same pants that everyone else’s kids are wearing and less than $1.00 for those vests that Childrens place sells year after year, go to the outlets you can get plenty of brand new clothes the same ones your next door neighbor’s kids are wearing for next to nothing, I’d rather see a roof over my head.
This is why grants are so hard to come by we all nit pick let’s give thanks where thanks is due those that don’t qualify should feel lucky that are not in a matzav that I’m in. we all have bills to pay and we all have to make a living. Let’s stop blaming and nitpicking and say a big thank you to Hashem and to the country that we live in. Your fellow Jews are benefiting from this as well as the goy buying beer. Ps. don’t we also buy plenty of beer? Kiddush on shabbos isn’t free!
I think we should write appreciation letters, let the government know that we the Jewish population are thankful for all that they do, after all the kvetching and laundering that goes on at least this will prevent some crime in our community how else are people going to pay tuitioin this year? Anybody know where to write a letter to? Thanks.
who says it’s only for people that stay at home? I go to work and get benefits because my paycheck doesn’t cover my basic needs, my husband works as well, not everyone makes a 3 figure salary. People that work also get benefits. Stop bashing the people that get benefits, we need these benefits to feed our families, if you need help get some, I waited like everyone else at the food stamp center 5 hours of waiting to make sure my family got the help it needed. Don’t ever be afraid to ask for help and use the resources to get it. It’s better than waiting and waiting and wondering how to pay the bills.
Yes, this benefit is nice, but really, it’s coming to the point where it’s just not worth it to work. I am speaking from first hand experience. I know someone who receives govt. assistance, and he sat down and calculated how much he would make if he worked, and how much he is receiving from all the programs he is on. It is not worth it for him to work. He comes out ahead being on the programs..And he is willing and able to work. They system has a major flaw in it. They need to work on encouraging people to get off the programs, and make it worth their while to get a job. with so many programs available, food stamps, medicaid, voucheers, HUD, wic, etc, it becomes very hard for people to go off the security of the programs, and get a job. The system needs a major overhaul!
stop kvetching, if you would be eligible meaning not making enough money you would also get the benefits if you don’t get them you don’t need them, if you do need them, go wait on line like everyone else and get the benefits, i didn’t wait for permission to get them from anyone nobody knows i am on benefits i did what I needed to do to help my family do the same don’t wait for money to fall in your lap it doesn’t work that way do your hishtadlus the rest will follow. I wish everyone hatzlocho, but please stop complaining, say tehilim instead.
can you put the foodstamps card in any atm machine? how will it recognize it
please tell me how to do it.
I would have to think that you would have to take the cash from the EBT card and use it in the stores that don’t accept EBT. Now the bigger question: How is NYS going to account that this money actually was spent as intended?
what’s with new jersey? have rachmonis on us yeshevaleit! please
So is it from George soros, or from the government?
Taxpayers stop complaining. The money for this extra benefit was donated by Mr. Soros. A great act of chessed.
all I can say is that this takes away from the incentive to work and be honest. you guys getting food stamps and working off the books shame on u. u will have to answer to this when u make a din vechesbon in 120 years
I’m glad that they gave money to help those in need but New York isn’t the only state that needs help. All of america can use help because of the recession. Working class,middle class. Welfare class and everybody can use help.
What Happen to Florida State, we could use the help too….
Well, I think the people that have food stamps deserve this “Bonus”. After all they worked hard doing nothing. And doing nothing is not such an easy job, think about it
Yes, I agree Florida needs it too, and for those ignorant posters not every food stamp recipient is taking advantage of the assistance, some of us actually need it ever heard of the saying “give to the needy and not to the greedy”. Have you taken a look at school supply list lately, it is not only pens and pencils..they want hand sanitizer.. soap, paper towels, ziploc bags and the list goes on and on it is difficult to comply on a fixed income/budget. We are trying to recover from a recession/depression..Our children is our future..this is our bonus with a worthy cause unlike the CEOS that are stealing from their companies and wasting it on extravagant trips and parties like I said evaluate the difference between Greed and Need!!!
Congrats.
Now there is no reason to work.
Welfare will pay your rent.
Welfare will pay your utilities.
Welfare will buy you food.
Welfare will give you cash to buy toilet paper and soap.
Now welfare will give you money that is SUPPOSE to buy your kid school supplies (yeah who wants to bed thats where the money is going).
Why work AT ALL when welfare will pay for it all?
I love that the taxpayers go to work and bust their butts, only to see their money handed over to people sitting at home collectecting welfare.
The kids of taxpayers deserve the money for school supplies just as much as the one who’s parents collect welfare.
my daughters starting pre school in september i was happy when my friend called me and said that we where getting $200 dollars for are kids because i was talking to my friend about not sending my daughter to school because i don’t want her to look poor with old shoes on and no book bag it would of been great to recieve the money but my daughter turns 3 a lil after sept so she will have to wait till next year i wish and prayed but atleast other peoples kids can get the help they need
I don’t think its fair that my daughter doesn’t get 200 dollars for school just because of her age my daughters starting pre school in sept at 2 and i would of been happy with recieving the clothing and shoes and not the money!!! Its not fair that kids on welfare or low income families get picked on for not having new stuff now they can and people want it to be the same as it always was kids pick out the kids on welfare whom get called scum bags just because they dont have new shoes or clothes and bullys lead to bad kids who commit crimes so i think that this helped alot of kids
Wake up! Soros is buying votes for the left with this shoichad!
what about those of us who lost our jobs.. are we lazy bums too? I am a single mother who lost her job earlier this year, I just started receiving government assistants and I look for work every single day, I not home watching soaps. not everyone who collects money from the government is lazy.. some us have a reason.. so don’t be quick to judge.. u never know when it will happen to you and you will need the governments help.. will you be considered lazy too??
i think they should of looked into all schools in ny and helped all low income familys of all ages not just between 3 and 17 even people tryen to make it in college or small aged kids who start school before 3
#44 u r right! its not easy doing nothing. my husband lost his job & u gotta believe its hard doing nothing!!
Listen screw everyone that thinks that this is not a good idea theres a lot of people that need this money,,and will help a lot of children with there school supplies..who gives the right to anybody that criticise there helpful gesture…yes i hope the parents do use this money to there children,,,,but theres a lot of great parents that prefer there kids before there own needs…
should have stricter rules so the kids get supplies not parents buying whatever
I think it is wrong to use hard working tax payers money to supply school supplies especially when you have veterans that work hard and can’t even recieve state tap for there college children and pay plenty of taxes. There is no system to show that they will use this money for what it is intended to be used for. They already don’t want to work and recieve earned income, housing,food and now this. We should all quit and go on welfare that is were you can make ends meet.
dont forget to give maaser of the $200
Why is it that if your on any social sevice programs you are always sterotyped as some kind of lazy,druggie who spends their benifits on beer. My husband(” not my babies daddy”) of 16 yrs and the father of all 4 of my children work. Sometimes 15 hrs a day so he can provide for us. Yes,, we do get foodstamps. And I do worl part-time (sept- june). Does that make us any different then any other family…This money means so much to my family..Means my kids might get new clothes and not from the salvation army…Means the money my son made over the summer doing odd jobs can go into the bank for his future and not to school supplies….
I will say at least their Gov, cares for the poor,California Gov,cares for the rich,and his self, so Amen,to their Gov.
My family gets food stamps. I was glad to see this charitible deed was done for needy people. I spent every last dollar of that money on school clothes for my children. Without this money, they would be going to school in last years far too small outfits. My husband is a veteran of the Iraqi War, so to all of you people that are posting such mean BS, he has defended your right to be jackasses. My husband is currently in college and even while I work, we STILL qualify for food stamps because that’s how ridiculous today’s economy is. Before some of you judge other people who actually DO need a bit of help, some of us have ALREADY given to the US Government in many ways, including risking their lives.We don’t LIKE depending partly on the government and when college is done, we won’t HAVE to , but right now this is a very generous motion for needy people. Please think before you speak, not EVERYONE is a welfare bum.
I know there are people out there that take advantage of programs …. hmmmm like my best friend…but then there are people like me who are often times put into positions where loss of income occurs and the ability to work isn’t possible….i am pregnant and do need assistance since my job wont let me work, i do collect food stamps and wic…that doesnt mean im lazy…..10 to 1 the people who are mad at benefit collectors make more than 50k a year….because low income doesnt mean jobless….