Connecticut residents who have been kicked off of food stamps since last December thanks to new federal work requirements can now apply for a one-time $300 state benefit to help them pay for groceries. This aid is part of an $8.5 million state-funded program to support low-income residents who have lost their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
Program Details
The program, announced by Gov. Ned Lamont and state Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner Andrea Barton Reeves, will provide a one-time $300 benefit to eligible recipients. The benefit can be used at grocery stores, farmers markets, or anywhere else that accepts SNAP. Eligible recipients must apply for this new state aid through their area’s Community Action Agency.
Barton Reeves estimated that 30,000 Connecticut residents will be pushed off of SNAP because of new federal work requirements. The state has helped 5,000 people who were at risk of losing their SNAP benefits maintain their food aid by filling out all of the relevant new paperwork.
The average monthly SNAP benefit is around $180. This $300 state-funded food aid, meanwhile, is one time, as opposed to monthly. Multiple people in a single family can be eligible to receive these $300 benefits, however, as they are available for any individual who lost SNAP since last December because they did not meet the new federal work requirements.
Original reporting: New Haven Independent — read the source article.
