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With the U.S. Department of Agriculture food stamp program poised to be boosted by a historic $20 billion in federal stimulus money, government experts predict that 2 percent of the total, or $400 million, will be lost to fraud. But in Pennsylvania, which has some of the toughest eligibility requirements for food stamps, only 1/10 1 percent of the state's $1.4 billion total is lost to fraud, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

Yet, anti-hunger advocates told the newspaper Pennsylvania's procedures to receive food stamps are so onerous that thousands of struggling single mothers, students, elderly and other legitimate recipients are dissuaded from seeking help.

"It's easier to get a driver's license than food stamps", said Joel Berg, a USDA official in President Bill Clinton's administration. "You can do a lot of damage with a driver's license. To my knowledge, no one has died in a food stamps-fraud accident."

State officials told the newspaper they continue looking for ways to prevent fraud, while food stamp advocates caution against making the application process even stricter, penalizing lawful recipients.

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