Emergency Food Supplements | DSHS – Washington

Revised May 3, 2021

Note: Pandemic EBT benefits ended as of 9/30/2020.

This section lists emergency rules related to food assistance programs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

NOTE: Emergency Food Supplements were issuedin the months of March 2020 to May 2021. Ongoing supplements aresubject to federal approval.

Supplemental Issuance

Example:Tuyen was approved in April 2021 for the maximum food allotment of $234. They will receive an emergency supplement of $95, for a total of $329 on their EBT card.

Example:Leo was approved in April 2021 for a food allotment of $196. They are normally eligible for an emergency supplement of $38. Since this is less than $95, they will receive an emergency supplement of $95, for a total of $291 on their EBT card.

Example: Tomas applied for benefits on April 16, 2021 and completed an interview the same day. The worker processes and approves the case with prorated benefits in April 2021of $97 and full allotment of $234 in May 2021. Tomas receives combined issuance of $331 on his EBT card the next day. After the system delivers the mass issuance, an additional $137 emergency supplement will appear on Tomass EBT to ensure he receives the maximum food amount of $234 for April 2021. Tomas may be eligible for a $95 minimum emergency supplement for May 2021 if FNS approves emergency supplements.

Example:Heather was approved in April 2021 for the maximum food allotment of $234, but due to an overpayment, $23 is recouped each month. Heather receives $211 per month in regular food allotment. She will be eligible for a minimum $95 emergency supplement based on her original amount of $234.

Automatic Issuance:

An automatic mass supplement was issued for Marchand/or April 2020 benefits toall householdson the evening of April3, 2020.

After April 16, 2020, the ACES system automatically determined the emergency supplement amount owed to therecipient afterapproving an application or reinstatement in overnight batch.

Example: Jon and his partner were certified from January 2021 to December 2021 to receive $200 per month in food assistance due to household income. Their issuance date is the 11th of each month. As the maximum allotment for a two-person household is $430 per month, Jon and his partner will receive $230 emergency supplement each month FNS approves of the emergency supplements.

Example: Phoebe applies for food assistance on April 5, 2021 after she lost her job. The worker interviews her on April 17, 2021, determines her eligible and approves the prorated benefit amount of $168 from the date of application. The system will automatically issue emergency supplements in overnight batch for a minimum $95 emergency supplement.She would normally receive a $66 emergency supplement to bring her to the maximum $234 standard for a one person household in April 2021.

The worker reinstates Peter for April 2021 and he is still eligible for $154 per month in food assistance. The system will automatically issue an emergency supplement in overnight batch for a minimum emergency supplement of $95 for April 2021,available the following day.

Manual BEGS

Staff can confirm the automatic benefits by reviewing Benefit Issuance history in Aces.Online. The emergency supplements for the month will display as FS/EBT Supplemental Issuance (863).

Emergency supplements issuance dates vary from month to month. We require FNS approval on a month to month basis and the issuance dates may vary depending on approval and system availability.

After April 16, 2020, households finalized or reinstated will receive the emergency supplement in overnight batch. Advise the household that if they qualify for an emergency supplement, it will be available the following day.

Note: If the household is a SNAP/FAP mixed household, each month will display a FS/EBT Supplemental Issuance (863) for a SNAP supplement and a FAP supplement.

AfterApril 16, 2020, staff are no longer required to process a manual BEG unless they are adding a person(s) to the AU. Follow the ACES Manual - How do I add a person to an existing Assistance Unit (AU)?

Once you verify theManual BEG is needed and correct, press F4 to pass the soft edit.

Note: Pandemic EBT ended as of September 30, 2020.

Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) Benefits are benefits for households with school age children participating in a Free or Reduced Lunch Program in lieu of meals they would eat at school if not for closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic. P-EBT benefits cover school closures effective March 13, 2020 to the end of the academic school year (June 19, 2020). The reimbursement rate is $5.70 per school day (Monday Friday) per eligible child in the household.

Note: When processing an application for food assistance, make the household aware of the P-EBT program and use the OSPI Search tool to determine eligibility for P-EBT benefits.

Example: Robert is receiving food assistance with his 1st grader Donna (6). The household is certified for Basic Food January 1st to December 30th. As he and Donna are active on food from March to June, the P-EBT benefits issued are for March June 2020.

Example: Donna lost her job due to COVID-19 layoffs and applied for Basic Food for herself and 3 children in May.The household is eligible for Basic Food benefits. A Barcode tickle is created for staff to review P-EBT eligibility for her3 school age childrenin March and April. Staff review the OSPI P-EBT Search site to verify the children's eligibility forfree or reduce-priced meals in the months of March and April. The children are not found on the search site in the months of March and April. The P-EBT benefits issued are for the months of May and June.

FS AU Ends In

P-EBT Benefit Available

Availability Date

1

1 day after mass issuance

June 28

2

2 days after mass issuance

June 29

3

3 days after mass issuance

June 30

4

4 days after mass issuance

July 1

5

5 days after mass issuance

July 2

6

6 days after mass issuance

July 3

7

7 days after mass issuance

July 4

8

8 days after mass issuance

July 5

9

9 days after mass issuance

July 6

0

10 days after mass issuance

July 7

P-EBT Benefit Amounts:

Month

Days of School

Dollars per child

March 2020

12

$68.40

April 2020

22

$125.40

May 2020

21

$119.70

June 2020

15

$85.50

Example: Tim and his three children, Betsy (15), Stan (15) and Nancy (19) applied for and started receiving Basic Food in April 2020. Tim and Nancy are not in school. ACES issues P-EBT of $661.20 for Betsy and Stan. Barcode will generate a tickle. Staff will determine if the children qualify for P-EBT benefits for March by using the OSPI P-EBT Search site to verify eligibility for free or reduced meals at school.

Note: Pandemic EBT ended on September 30, 2020.

Manual BEG:

Starting June 29, 2020, staffmay need to use a new BEG type School Supplement - SS to issue P-EBT benefits manually for newly approved Basic Food households in the following two situations:

If the child isnotfound on the OSPI Search Site, then create a manual SS BEG based on Basic Food begin date using the newly approved Basic Food AU.

The worker will create a manual SS BEG for the month of June to provide the household the P-EBT benefit.

The worker will create a manual SS BEG for the month of June using the newly approved Basic Food AU AND create a separate FS AU for P-EBT only approval for March, April, and May, which will process in overnight batch.

NOTE: If an application is being reconsidered,carefully review theBasic Food begin date. If the application goes back to the month of May, an SS BEGshould be reviewed forMay and June.

Letters:

Letters will not generate when the BEG School Supplement SS is released.

EBT Card:

Staff will review Barcode EBT transactions to verify the household has an EBT card and they have used it within the past 60 days.

Children under the age of 5 may be eligible for P-EBT benefits if they attended a early learning facility operating as part of a public school district that participates in the National School Lunch Program. These eligible children are included in the OSPI Search Site.

Application deadline:

Staff will determine eligibility for P-EBT applications:

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Emergency Food Supplements | DSHS - Washington