Additional SNAP benefits coming to 105,000 CT households

The Connecticut Department of Social Services will provide $16.2 million in Emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) benefits to nearly half of Connecticut”™s SNAP participants tomorrow.

The benefits come in addition to the $119.6 million in emergency benefits disbursed from April through September.

Authorized by the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act of 2020, the extra food benefits will go to approximately 105,000 households not currently receiving the maximum benefits allowed for their household size.

As a result, all households enrolled in SNAP will receive the maximum food benefit allowable for their household size, even if they are not usually eligible for the maximum benefit.

Specifically:

• The Department of Social Services reports that approximately 105,000 of 216,073 SNAP-participating households statewide will receive the emergency benefits in October.
• With the additional $16.2 million allocation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture”™s Food and Nutrition Service, emergency benefits are totaling over $135.8 million in additional SNAP assistance statewide during April-October, with commensurate spending in the food economy.
• The average emergency benefit amount a household will see on its electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card on October 16 is $150.
• All participating households also received their normal SNAP benefits on the first three days of each month they normally do, according to last name.
• If a household is granted regular SNAP benefits after October 16 and is also eligible for the emergency supplemental benefits, the latter benefits will be added to the EBT card on a Friday, depending on the date of granting.

Emergency benefits allow the household”™s SNAP benefit to increase to the maximum allotment for a household of that size as follows:

For each additional person, add $153. For example, if a household of two normally received $274 of SNAP benefits in October, $100 would bring that household up to the maximum benefit for its size. Such a household would receive a $100 emergency benefit on Oct. 16.

For additional information about SNAP, visit www.ct.gov/snap.