FNS Documents & Resources

USDA is committed to providing nutrition assistance to hard-hit families across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. In support of President Biden’s call to action on hunger, USDA announced that it is increasing the Pandemic EBT benefit by approximately 15 percent, providing more money for low-income families and millions of children missing meals due to school and child care closures.

USDA has issued guidance to states in implementing Families First Coronavirus Response Act of 2020 which provides for the issuance of emergency allotments (supplements) based on a public health emergency declaration by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under the Public Health Service Act related to an outbreak of COVID-19 when a state has also issued an emergency or disaster declaration.

The SNAP Employment and Training (E&T) Plan Handbook provides guidance to state agencies administering and operating the SNAP E&T program on how to prepare and submit their annual plan to FNS for approval.

Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) is an electronic system that allows a SNAP participant to pay for food using SNAP benefits. When a participant shops at a SNAP authorized retail store, their SNAP EBT account is debited to reimburse the store for food that was purchased. EBT is in use in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam.

FNS is targeting the areas of program operation listed, for state SNAP Agency Management Evaluations for the upcoming fiscal year. State SNAP agencies are required to conduct MEs for the target areas in the upcoming fiscal year.  

These are reports of state activity in the Supplemental Food Assistance Program (SNAP).  The data they contain is state reported data or calculated from state reported data.

The purpose of this Toolkit is to provide state agencies with guidance and resources to plan and implement Employment and Training (E&T) Programs under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly called the Food Stamp Program). 

In response to the President’s Executive Order on Economic Relief Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic issued on Jan. 22, 2021, which directed all federal agencies to consider administrative actions to better address the current economic crisis resulting from the pandemic, USDA reviewed and updated the SNAP EA guidance.