The New York State Senate approved legislation designed to stop people from using public assistance to buy tobacco, alcohol or lottery tickets. Southern Tier Senators Tom O’Mara and Tom Libous co-sponsored the bill. It prohibits Welfare recipients from using Electronic Benefit Transfer Debit Cards to buy cigarettes and booze. It also bans using the card to withdraw cash from ATM’s at places like liquor stores, casinos and adult entertainment stores. The EBT card is designed to help people on public assistance pay for necessities they can’t get with food stamps.
