Food stamp system crashes in 17 states

The electronic system retailers use to process food stamps shut down Saturday, affecting shoppers in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and 15 other states.

Officials at Xerox, which runs the Electronic Benefits Transfer system, said it crashed during a routine test Saturday morning. The system lets retailers process Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women, Infants and Children benefits from customers.

The shutdown potentially affected hundreds of thousands of families across the region who buy food with EBT cards. More than 250,000 women and children receive WIC benefits in Pennsylvania, and nearly 170,000 in New Jersey.

The system was down for about an hour at the Acme Market at 10th and Race Streets. Dozens of shoppers left empty-handed. The cards are "their only way to feed themselves and their children," said Jillian Hartley, a store employee.

As she spoke, three or four carts loaded with food sat abandoned near the cash registers.

The system was still experiencing "connectivity issues" into the evening, Xerox said. But retailers could activate an emergency voucher system that provides cardholders with up to $50 in benefits, company spokesman Kevin Lightfoot said.

The company said it expected the system to be restored "soon" but could not say when.