The Nutrition Assistance Program in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico provides a monthly benefit for food to low-income households that includes both cash and noncash portions. Three-fourths (75 percent) of the benefit must be redeemed for eligible food items through electronic benefit transfer (EBT) at certified retailers. The remaining 25 percent may be redeemed in cash. The entire benefit (both the noncash and cash portions) is to be used only for the purchase of eligible food items.
FNS has received several inquiries regarding the eligibility of participants in the Department of Homeland Security's new Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program for SNAP benefits.
The evaluation examined the impact of a $30 per child per month benefit on reducing child, adult and household hunger relative to a $60 monthly benefit. It found that the $30 benefit was as effective in reducing the most severe category of hunger among children during the summer as the $60 benefit.
The 2010 Agriculture Appropriations Act authorized and provided funding for USDA to implement and rigorously evaluate the Summer Food for Children Demonstration, one component of which is the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children.
The Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children conducted its initial proof-of-concept during the summer of 2011. The SEBTC demonstration aims to mitigate summer child food insecurity by leveraging existing EBT technologies used by the WIC and SNAP programs.
Final Congressional Status Report on the 2012 Summer Food Service Program Enhancement Demonstrations
The purpose of this memorandum is to transmit guidance regarding the sale of, or intent to sell, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children foods, benefits and/or EBT cards verbally, in print or online through websites such as Craigslist, Facebook, Twitter, eBay, etc.