Texas to temporarily extend enrollment period

Workload issues led to change

Starting in June, Texas will temporarily extend the food stamp enrollment period from six to 12 months for hundreds of thousands of families already in the program.

In December, state officials plan to go back to having families renew every six months.

The Health and Human Services Commission has been struggling to hire and retain workers who enroll Texans in public assistance, which has led to application backlogs.

"We felt like we needed something to relieve the workload temporarily to catch our breath," agency spokeswoman Stephanie Goodman said.

There are about 930,000 Texas families on food stamps, and the change applies to the 69 percent of them who have a six-month enrollment period. Families who get the extension must report any change of income to the state.

There will be no change for elderly people or people with disabilities who already have a 12-month enrollment period, or childless adults who have a three-month period. New families who join the program will have to renew after six months.

Goodman said there has been "a dramatic reduction in turnover" since the state announced higher salaries earlier this year but that "it takes awhile to get new staff up and trained."

Barbara Best, Texas executive director of the Children's Defense Fund, said it would be more efficient to make the change to 12 months permanent.

"Having families reapply twice as much creates twice as much paperwork," she said.

cmaclaggan@statesman.com; 445-3548