SNAP Benefits Update – New payment of up to $1,800 in food stamps coming this week

Food stamps are an essential part of the budgets of many families across the country. They are provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), it is officially stated Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and these services are essential for many households in the United States, making the difference between food and starvation. They are especially important for families with children, although there are other programs to combat hunger and malnutrition among children.

Since benefits are paid out once a month, many recipients expect to receive their money soon as August comes to a close. But there is good news for recipients, as this week certain people will begin receiving their money on their cards.

Distribution plans for SNAP vary widely depending on where you live because, although the program is federally funded, it is administered by the states to ensure that benefits are distributed in a way that makes sense for each individual state and no recipient falls through the cracks. Alaskans, for example, can use their benefits to buy fishing equipment, but since grocery stores are so few and far between (and food is so expensive because it has to be flown in), it makes sense to help Alaskans provide themselves with food rather than forcing them to spend even more money and time getting to a grocery store, especially during the winter months when the snow is impenetrable.

This separation of funding and administration means that each state deposits the money into Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards on different dates and according to a system it has created. These EBT cards work like debit or credit cards that you can use to pay at participating stores. The money is automatically deducted from your account and refilled as soon as new funds are available.

It also takes into account that each state has different restrictions on what they can spend their benefits on, and that there are temporary local restrictions or exemptions. For example, after the devastation caused by the storms in Texas, recipients in affected counties were temporarily allowed to spend their SNAP benefits on hot meals, something the program doesn’t normally allow.

The states scheduled to issue SNAP payments this week are:

The amount and timing of SNAP payments are also not the same for all families. They are calculated by the federal government based on factors such as household income and size, as well as the age of the recipients. Payments can range from $291 for an individual to $1,751 for a family of eight, with larger families adding to the original $291 per person. A family of six will receive a maximum payment of $1,386, although the average payment for such families is $1,386, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), as not every family is entitled to the maximum payments.