• bluegiraffe@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    View: “if you aren’t actively gaming the system” in my post.

    People here intentionally adopt or have children, stay with their spouse for 20+ years while never married, all with the intention of getting multi-thousand dollar tax returns and keeping EBT. The wife doesn’t need to work, her husband makes enough to support them. So she has three or more children. Then she’s a single mother with no income, as far as the state is concerned, so she gets EBT/Medical Cards, etc.

    I know individuals who make between 50k-80k who draw between 700-1300 in food stamps a month because of these arrangements. It’s everywhere.

    • Cleverdawny@lemm.eeOP
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      1 year ago

      That’s idiotic, because it means he can’t claim those kids as dependents and is paying far more in taxes every year than they would filing jointly. I could see people doing that for the medicaid, I guess, which is why we need to eliminate income bars for that program and just universalize it, then allow people to buy private health insurance to supplement.

      • bluegiraffe@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Yeah, he pays more in taxes than he would if they jointly filed. But the money his wife gets back + 700-1000/mo in EBT more than makes up for it. That’s basically an extra 20 grand not taxed per year.

          • bluegiraffe@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Idk how all states do it but in my state if you’re “single” with children you can draw anywhere from 600-1200 depending on what you make.