SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KCBS) - The City of San Francisco is reaching into cyberspace to find needy residents who are eligible for food stamps.
"Slightly over half of the people who are eligible for food stamps are actually participating," explained Dennis Stewart, the regional director of the federal Food Stamps program. He recently joined San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom to show off a new, online food stamp application process. That means no more trips to the welfare office, no more waiting in long lines, no more need to suffer the public embarrassment of asking for help.
"You can do this in the privacy of your home," declared Newsom. "You can do this at a library. You can do this with confidentiality and confidence."
KCBS' Barbara Taylor reports
Trent Roher, director of San Francisco's Human Services department, said that as the economy worsens it's clearly not just the chronically poor who need help. "We anticipate thousands of applications, providing more economic stability for families who are struggling, but it's a huge, huge economic multiplier."
The website now handles food stamps and MediCal applications, and more government benefits programs are expected to be added at a later date.
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