Louisiana recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits who are not already receiving the maximum amount for their household size will receive supplements in August to bring them up to the max.
The Louisiana Department of Children and Family services says that this is the sixth consecutive month Louisiana SNAP recipients have been approved for added benefits as part of federal COVID-19 relief. Supplements for the first five months totaled more than $211 million.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) approved the emergency supplemental benefits for August this week, along with several other waiver requests from the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services to streamline the application and re-certification processes due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.
As dictated by federal law, households already receiving the maximum SNAP allotment for their household size will not receive supplemental benefits.
The additional benefits are scheduled to be loaded onto current SNAP recipient's EBT cards on Aug. 21. New applicants approved for August benefits will receive their supplements on a rolling weekly basis after their cases are certified as eligible.
he maximum monthly SNAP allotments by household size are:
Household Size Maximum
1 $194
2 $355
3 $509
4 $646
5 $768
6 $921
7 $1,018
8 $1,164
Each additional member
$146
Under other FNS-approved waivers, SNAP cases for clients whose annual re-certifications or simplified reports were due in August 2020 have been automatically extended until February 2021. Initial interviews for SNAP applicants have also been waived during the month of August.
Clients who previously received notices requiring them to reapply for benefits by August 15 will receive a new notice in the coming months with an updated deadline. There is no need to call or reapply until then.
Additionally, the federal rule that limited Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents (ABAWDs) to three months of SNAP benefits unless they met federal work requirements has been temporarily suspended through August 31, 2021, or until other new standards come into effect.
For more information about SNAP, including step-by-step instructions for how to apply for benefits, visit www.dcfs.la.gov/getSNAP or text GETSNAP (no spaces) to 898-211.
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