
Waiting for midnight, spike in hungry families on food stamps at Walmart (2011) - edward
http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/2011/11/28/9069519-waiting-for-midnight-hungry-families-on-food-stamps-give-walmart-enormous-spike
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edmccard
The article describes events in Idaho, which is one of only 7 states (Alaska,
Idaho, Nevada, New Hampshire, North & South Dakota, and Vermont) that
distributes food stamps on the 1st of the month.

In the other 43 states, different people will have different issuance dates
depending on last name/SSN/case number.

On the one hand, using the same day for eyeryone gives stores the opportunity
to make sure they are fully-stocked before the "surge"; on the other, and from
personal experience, having the days spread out usually means you don't have
to choose between lining up at midnight, or waiting a few days for the shelves
to be restocked.

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michaelmior
I don't understand the logic in stores preparing for the "surge." If food
stamps are evenly distributed, there's no surge to prepare for. It would just
result in more customers throughout the month which should be easier to plan
for.

