DaytonDailyNews.com

LEBANON, Warren County — A family with a net worth more than $400,000 should not be eligible for food stamps, Warren County commissioners said.

The commissioners are considering pulling the county out of the program because of guidelines they say allow people with substantial wealth to be eligible for assistance.

They were made aware on Friday of several situations of county residents receiving food stamps while also collecting interest on their bank accounts.

In July, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services released an expansion of "categorical eligibility" for food stamps, which said, "individuals determined eligible for certain other programs are considered eligible for food stamps."

"The policy is stupid," said Commissioner Dave Young. He believes the system needs to take into account a person's assets in addition to income.

Administrator Dave Gully cited two examples to the commission, including one family with a net worth of more than $400,000 in assets and savings that is eligible for food stamps because they receive unemployment and disability through Social Security.

On Tuesday, March 17, the commissioners asked Gully to express their concern to ODJFS in writing that the county is mulling setting its own guidelines or stopping the program.

Brian Harter, of ODJFS, said the food stamp program is a federal one and he wasn't sure if the county's proposal is legal.

Harter said the people benefiting from the policy loophole are a small percentage of the 1.1 million Ohioans receiving food stamps.

Ann Stevens, spokeswoman for the Montgomery County Department of Job and Family Services, said there is absolutely no interest locally in withdrawing from the food stamp program.

She also questioned whether a county could even do so.

Montgomery County food stamp rolls increased to 70,498 individuals in February, compared to 61,423 in February 2008, reflecting the economic hardship many families are facing, Stevens said.

There is no "assets" test for the program, she said, but individuals must meet strict federal requirements, including income limits.

A laid-off worker who receives an $80,000 buyout from GM isn't penalized for having that money in the bank because he or she will need it to live, Stevens said.

There may be isolated examples of abuse, but "the majority of the people who get food stamps are in need," she said.

Greene County officials could not be reached for comment.

Staff Writer Lynn Hulsey and The Associated Press contributed to this report.