California Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Incident: Camp, Hill, and Woolsey Fires (November 2018)

FNS Disaster Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program (SNAP)

• On November 16, 2018, FNS approved California’s request to allow  hot foods to be purchased at SNAP authorized retailers through December 17, 2018.  The waiver applies to the counties of Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Plumas, Tehama, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Sutter, Yuba, and Ventura.
  • Retailers may need 24-36 hours to make changes that will allow for the sale of hot foods.
• On November 16, 2018, FNS approved California’s request to waive timely reporting of food loss to households in the counties of Butte, Ventura and Los Angeles.   This waiver approval will allow households in these affected counties to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through December 10, 2018. 

Incident: Wildfire (October 14, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On October 24, 2018, FNS approved California’s request to issue mass replacements of SNAP benefits for residents that suffered food losses resulting from power outages, which occured when power was proactively shut down due to extreme fire conditions. This approval applies to the following impacted zip codes:
  • Amador County: 95601, 95666, 95689, 95665, and 95629;
  • Butte County: 95914;
  • Calaveras County: 95257, 95255, 95232, and 95248;
  • El Dorado County: 95636, 95634, 95726, 95684, 95633, 95720, 95635, and 95667;
  • Lake County: 95426, 95461, 95467, and 95423;
  • Napa County: 94508, 94567, 94576, and 94515;
  • Placer County: 95631, 95714, 95717, and 95701;
  • and Yuba County: 95962, 95935, and 95919.

California intends to issue replacement benefits as early as October 25th, 2018.

Incident: Carr Wildfire (Began July 23, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On July 28, FNS approved California’s request for timely household reporting of food loss for Shasta County. This waiver approval allowed households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through Aug. 21, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the Carr Fire.
• On August 8, FNS approved California's request for timely household reporting of food loss for Trinity County. This waiver approval will allow households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through Sept. 5, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits will allow households to replace food lost as a result of the Carr Fire.
• On August 10, 2018, FNS approved the California request for automatic mass replacements in Shasta County.  This waiver approval will allow households to receive replacement benefits without having to appear at a local SNAP office to sign an affidavit attesting to food loss, and will allow local DSS offices to operate the program in a more efficient and effective manner. This waiver applies to the following zip codes: 96033, 96047 and 96087.
• On August 15, 2018, FNS approved the California Department of Social Services’ request to operate D-SNAP in Shasta County due to the impacts of the ongoing Carr Fire.  The State agency accepted D-SNAP applications from August 22 through August 25, 2018, and will continue to accept application from August 27 through August 29, 2018.  FNS also approved automatic supplements for ongoing SNAP households in zip codes 96001, 96003, 96019, 96079, 96089, 96033, 96087, 96047, and 96095.
• On August 16, 2018 FNS approved California’s request to allow for hot foods to be purchased at SNAP authorized retailers. Due to the power outages, displacement from homes and structure loss caused by the Carr Fire, FNS has approved a waiver so that affected SNAP households in Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama and Trinity counties are able to buy hot foods and hot food products with their SNAP benefits through September 16, 2018.

​State agencies are responsible for requesting and operating the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP).  For more information, visit the State’s website or call the State’s SNAP hotline at 1-877-847-3663.  For questions related to your Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card, call  877-328-9677.

Child Nutrition Programs

• On September 28, FNS approved a waiver extension request from the California Department of Education for one school impacted by the Carr Fire: Shasta Elementary may continue to provide school meals to students and claim all meals at the free rate through January 1, 2019.
• On August 10, FNS approved California’s request for disaster waivers to assist schools impacted by the Carr Fire. These waivers apply to schools that operate the school lunch and school breakfast programs in Shasta County.
     -- Schools in Shasta County may serve and claim all school lunch and school breakfast meals at the Free Reimbursement Rate, effective Aug. 13 through Sept. 30, 2018. 
     -- Schools in Shasta County may serve school lunch and school breakfast meals that do not meet the menu planning or meal pattern requirements, effective Aug. 13 through Sept. 30, 2018.
• California also has the discretion to execute the following flexibilities in Shasta County: Flexibility to allow organizations with current agreements to operate the Summer Food Service Program to open emergency feeding sites, Flexibility to allow Summer Food Service Program sites to be located at school sites during school closure, and Flexibility to designate any appropriate facility as an emergency shelter and waive Child and Adult Care Food Program application requirements.

 

Incident: Cranston Fire (Began July 25, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On August 6, FNS approved California's request for timely household reporting of food loss for Riverside County. This waiver approval allowed households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through Aug. 23, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the Cranston Fire.
• On August 13, 2018, FNS approved California’s request to issue mass replacements for certain zip codes in Riverside County.  This waiver approval will allow the California Department of Social Services to automatically replace 30 percent of the July 2018 SNAP benefit for households affected by the Cranston Fire in the following zip codes:  92536, 92539 and 92561. 

 

Incident: Mendocino Complex Wildfire (Began July 27, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On July 31, FNS approved California’s request for timely household reporting of food loss for Mendocino and Lake Counties. This waiver approval allowed households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through Aug. 26, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the River and Ranch Fires.
• On August 10, 2018, FNS approved the California request for automatic mass replacements in Lake and Mendocino Counties. This waiver approval will allow households to receive replacement benefits without having to appear at a local SNAP office to sign an affidavit attesting to food loss, and will allow local DSS offices to operate the program in a more efficient and effective manner. This waiver applies to the following zip codes:
• Lake County: 95458, 95464, 95485, and 95493; 
• Mendocino County: 95410, 95415, 95420, 95427, 95432, 95437, 95456, 95459, 95460, 95463, 95466, 95469, 95470, 95482, 95488, 95490, and 95494.
• On August 20, 2018, FNS approved the California Department of Social Services’ request to operate D-SNAP in Lake County.  The State agency accepted D-SNAP applications from August 22 through August 25, 2018, and will continue to accept applications from August 27 through August 29, 2018.  FNS also approved automatic supplements for ongoing SNAP households in zip codes: 95458, 95464, 95485, 95493, 95453, 95423, 95451, 95443, and 95435.
• On August 20, 2018, FNS approved an amended hot foods waiver so that affected SNAP households in Colusa, Lake,  Mendocino, Napa, Sonoma, and Yolo counties are able to buy hot foods and hot food products with their SNAP benefits through September 16, 2018.

Incident: Ferguson Wildfire (Began July 13, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On July 25, 2018, FNS approved California’s request for timely household reporting of food loss for Mariposa County.  This waiver approval allowed households to request replacement of SNAP benefits through Aug. 13, 2018.  These replacement SNAP benefits allow households to replace food lost as a result of the Ferguson Fire.

Incident: Klamathon Wildfire (Began July 5, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On July 13, FNS approved  California's request for timely household reporting of food loss for Siskiyou County, California. This waiver approval allowed households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through Aug. 6, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the Klamathon Fire.

Incident: Pawnee Wildfire (Began June 23, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On June 29, 2018, FNS approved California’s request for timely household reporting of food loss for Lake County, California. This waiver approval allowed households to make a request for replacement of SNAP benefits through July 23, 2018. These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the Pawnee Fire.

 

Incident: Wildfires (Began Dec. 4, 2017) and Mudslides (Began Jan. 9, 2018)

FNS Disaster Nutrition Assistance

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

• On Feb. 8, 2018, FNS approved the California Department of Social Services' (CDSS) request to operate a D-SNAP in 11 zip codes within Los Angeles and San Diego counties due to the impact of multiple wildfires in December 2017. The approved zip codes were: 91342, 91040, 91042, 91355, 91381, 91384, and 90077 (Los Angeles County) and 92028, 92003, 92084, and 92057 (San Diego County). CDSS accepted D-SNAP applications in Los Angeles County for 7 non-consecutive days, beginning Feb. 13 through Feb. 16, 2018, then resumed on Feb. 20, and ended on Feb. 22, 2018. CDSS accepted D-SNAP applications in San Diego County for 5 days, beginning Feb. 12, through Feb. 16, 2018. The State agency may have automatically issued a 1-month disaster supplement to all ongoing SNAP households in the 11 approved zip codes. Ongoing households that lived or worked outside of these 11 zip codes may have requested disaster supplements on an individual basis via a signed affidavit attesting to their disaster losses. Ongoing SNAP households already receiving the maximum monthly SNAP allotment for  their household size were not eligible for disaster supplements. No household may receive more than the maximum monthly allotment for their household size.
• On Feb. 1, 2018, FNS approved a waiver so that affected SNAP recipients in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties were able to buy hot foods and hot food products with their SNAP benefits through Feb. 28, 2018.
• On Feb. 1, 2018, FNS approved the California Department of Social Services' (CDSS) request to operate a Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties due to the combined impact of multiple wildfires in December 2017 and mudslides in January 2018. CDSS accepted D-SNAP applications in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties for 7 non-consecutive days, beginning Feb. 6 through Feb. 9, then resumed on Feb. 12, and ended on Feb. 14, 2018. CDSS acceptws applications at 7 CDSS offices in the approved counties. The State agency may have automatically issued a 1-month disaster supplement to all ongoing SNAP households in the following 20 zip codes that experienced either a power outage of more than 4 hours, mandatory evacuations, or both: 
       Santa Barbara: 93102, 93105, 93108, 93110, 93111, 93067, 93103, 93117
       Ventura: 93001, 93003, 93004, 93012, 93013, 93015, 93022, 93023, 93033, 93035, 93041, 93060
• Because ongoing households may have been impacted in December, January, or both months, the State determined the amount of the supplement based on the household's size and composition in the earliest month it was affected.  Ongoing households that lived or worked outside of these zip codes may have requested disaster supplements on an individual basis via a signed affidavit attesting to their disaster losses. Ongoing SNAP households already receiving the maximum monthly SNAP allotment for their household size were not eligible for disaster supplements. No household may receive more than the maximum monthly allotment for their household size.
• On Dec. 21, 2017, FNS approved California’s request to issue SNAP mass replacement benefits for certain zip codes in Ventura County.  This waiver approval allowed the California Department of Social Services to automatically replace 60 percent of the December 2017 SNAP benefit for households affected by the wildfires in the following zip codes in Ventura County:  93001, 93004, 93012, 93022, 93033, 93035, and 93041. These replacement benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the fires.  On Dec. 22, 2017, FNS approved an amendment to California’s request for mass replacement of SNAP benefits at 60 percent, in San Diego County, for the following zip codes:  91905, 91916, 91963, 91980, 92036, 92066, 92070, 92086. 
• On Dec. 10 and 13, 2017, respectively, FNS approved the California Department of Social Services' (DSS) requests to waive the 10-day reporting requirement under SNAP regulations at 7 CFR 274.6(a) for replacement of food purchased with SNAP benefits that was destroyed due to power outages or structural damage/loss of homes resulting from the California Wildfires that began on Dec. 4, 2017. The waiver applied to all of Ventura County and the impacted zip codes in Santa Barbara County: 93013, 93067, 93101, 93105, 93106, 93108, 93109, 93110, 93111, 93117, and 93436; Los Angeles County: 90077, 91020, 91040, 91046, 91202, 91203 , 91205, 91206, 91208, 91209, 91214,91221, 91331, 91342, 91355, 91392, and 91393; and San Diego County: 91901, 91905, 91906, 91916, 91917, 91931, 91934, 91935, 91948, 91962, 91963, 91980, 92003, 92026, 92027, 92028, 92036, 92054, 92056, 92057, 92058, 92059, 92060, 92061, 92065, 92066, 92069, 92070, 92082, 92083, 92084, and 92086. The waiver extended the time period for reporting loss of food until Jan. 4, 2018.  These replacement SNAP benefits allowed households to replace food lost as a result of the fires.

California Department of Social Service's CalFresh Website:

• http://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/calfresh

If you think you may be eligible for disaster food assistance in your State, please contact your local State office.

 

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