Will my Virgina Food Stamps work in any state?
The food stamp program is a federally funded program, and even though the cards are issued state by state, they are transferred electronically interoperably through what is called a Quest network. This is what it says in Wikipedia: All states have systems that use magnetic stripe cards and “on-line” authorization of transactions. When paying for groceries, the food stamp customer’s card is run through an electronic reader or a point of sale terminal (POS), and the recipient enters the secret PIN to access the food stamp account. Then, electronically, the processor verifies the PIN and the account balance, and sends an authorization or denial back to the retailer. The recipient’s account is then debited for the amount of the purchase, and the retailer’s account is credited. No money and no Food Stamps change hands. Payment is made to the retailer through a settlement process at t
