Help The Local Economy — Apply For Food Stamps

It is often said that for every dollar the State of New York sends to the federal government in taxes, the state receives only 80 to 85 cents in return. That is about to change:

More than 500,000 New Yorkers are passing up food stamps that could add nearly $1 billion a year to the city’s economy, City Council members and advocates for the poor said.

In a new initiative begun last week, Council Speaker Christine Quinn vowed to sign up at least 350,000 additional eligible recipients by December 2009.

And she’s recruiting her fellow councilmembers to go into targeted communities at least once a month to help get the job done by her self-imposed deadline.

. . .

Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens) said the city is passing up tens of millions of dollars of federal funds that would be spent in local grocery stores, supermarkets, bodegas, greenmarkets and other food retailers.

Many of those eligible don’t know they qualify or consider the application process too difficult. Still others may feel there’s a stigma to receiving food stamps, officials said.