ATLANTA — Frustration continues for Georgia families who are trying to get answers on when critical SNAP benefits will arrive, and now thieves are preying on that desperation.
A spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Human Services confirmed a new scam is making the rounds, trying to solicit personal info from beneficiaries of the program.
11Alive's Liza Lucas also spotted Facebook posts from suspected scammers who are promising faster support to individuals who've not received their monthly benefits or are struggling to reach a caseworker.
RELATED: SNAP delays in Georgia | How the state and federal government are working to resolve issues
"We are aware of a new phishing scheme in which scammers have created a fake live chat to trick customers into revealing personal information," a statement from the department said. "Customers seeking assistance from DHS should do so using the contact information and methods available on dhs.ga.gov. Our office is also working with law enforcement to help them go after these bad actors."
The scam warning comes ahead of a Friday meeting between state and federal regulators to address the current backlog of SNAP cases.
As of June 13, more than 52,000 cases were overdue, or over standard of promptness (OSOP), according to data provided by DHS. The state has not responded to 11Alive's question asking for updated numbers as of this week, though confirmed the "team is working as quickly as possible to process customers’ benefits."
Meanwhile, families tell 11Alive they are struggling to pay their bills and keep food on the table while they wait for their monthly food assistance.
"I'm no longer able to pay my bills at the beginning of the month, like I've always done," Clotious Doctor, a DeKalb resident, explained. Instead, the mom of four is now forced to choose which bills can wait so she can use those funds to purchase food for her kids.
"I told myself it'd be better next month. They'd get it together next month," she added, speaking of the struggles to reach her caseworker and fix paperwork that would keep her case active. "Now I'm at month three, about to be month four at July."
She ended up submitting a new application on May 15, in hopes of getting her benefits. But a letter she received this week only acknowledged that processing that application, too, is delayed. Cases are supposed to be processed within 30 days.
While the agency has not provided a timeline as to when the backlog will be resolved, Georgia DHS confirms it's an "all hands on deck" situation. DHS has been dealing with a staffing shortage of caseworkers, though the agency says it has hired 693 new economic support specialists since July of last year, "with more continuing through the onboarding process."
A spokesperson confirmed employees can get compensatory time for voluntarily working over 40 hours/week. Schedule benefits and stipends for non-casework staff who help with the workload is also available. Georgia DHS continues to reiterate the need for flexibilities from federal regulators via waivers the agency said would help process applications faster. According to the state, such waivers include:
- Using attended bots (i.e., bots operated by a human user) to automate processes without caseworker interaction;
- Approval for ex-parte renewals (a term that describes an automatic renewal without any input from the SNAP recipient) when "necessary information is already known and sufficient";
- And review of standard medical deduction information for potential updates to support customers and case processing.
USDA Food and Nutrition Services previously approved three waivers for the state to assist with staffing challenges and a separate backlog of stemming from renewals last October.
The agency denied a technology waiver on June 2 of this year, which would have allowed Georgia DHS to use Google Artificial Intelligence (AI) to assist households with SNAP interviews.
"The State’s technology waiver request did not require the SNAP Interview to be conducted by State Merit Staff," a USDA representative said of the denial. "The waiver was denied because merit personnel remain a critical part of the SNAP certification and recertification process, including the SNAP interview."
11Alive has put in multiple requests for an interview with DHS Commissioner Candice Broce to discuss ongoing issues with SNAP benefit delays. To date, that request has not been granted.