D.C. Hunger Solutions Announces Increase to Minimum Monthly SNAP Benefit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sara McGovern, smcgovern@frac.org, 202-640-1089

WASHINGTON – Jan. 19, 2016 – A recent major change to the District’s SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), formerly known as food stamps will benefit more than 12,000 households in all eight wards, according to D.C. Hunger Solutions. The D.C. Department of Human Services (DHS) retroactively implemented the SNAP Expansion Act of 2014, which increased the minimum monthly SNAP benefit from $16 to $30 using local funding.

“This increase in SNAP benefits is among the first in the nation of its kind and will help many low-income households in D.C., including many seniors, purchase the nutritious food they need,” said D.C. Hunger Solutions Director Beverley Wheeler. “The benefit will also have an important economic benefit in the District as every $1 of SNAP benefits generates nearly double that amount in local economic activity. I applaud DHS for making this critical investment in fighting hunger in our nation’s capital.”

Clients who received less than $30 a month in benefits from 10/1/14 through 9/30/15 will receive a one-time retroactive supplement that will bring them to $30 a month for fiscal year 2015. Moving forward, DHS will issue extra benefits every three months to bring the minimum benefit up to $30 a month until it is able to increase the benefits in regular monthly issuance. Households who are repaying an overpayment are not eligible for the increase.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), one in seven D.C. households face a constant struggle against hunger, and many rely on SNAP to put food on the table. SNAP provides low-income residents in the District and throughout the country with healthy food and helps keep or lift millions out of poverty each year.

Households with questions about the extra benefits can call ESA Customer Service at 202-724-5506, and clients can request a fair hearing if they do not agree with the amount of extra benefits received.

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