All Households With SNAP Will Receive Maximum Level Of Food Benefits For October
Supplemental Food Benefits Expected To Continue Through February
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that all New Yorkers enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will receive the maximum allowable level of food benefits by October. All households participating in SNAP, including those already at the maximum benefit level, will receive an additional allocation this month, resulting in an injection of approximately $234 million in federal funds into the New York State economy.
«These emergency fringe benefits have been vital to our efforts to combat food insecurity by helping struggling New Yorkers feed themselves and their families,» Governor Hochul said. «No New Yorker should have to struggle to make ends meet and put food on the table, and the additional $234 million in SNAP funding will provide much-needed relief and support to our most vulnerable communities.»
The emergency assistance supplement will be provided to all households, including those normally receiving the maximum benefit allowed per month, who receive SNAP, a federally funded program overseen by the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). . Households already near or at the maximum benefit level ($939 for a household of four) will receive a supplemental payment of at least $95.
SNAP households in all counties outside of New York City should see these additional benefits posted today, October 21. SNAP households in the New York City five-borough region should see their benefits posted between Monday, October 24 and Friday, October 28.
OTDA began issuing emergency supplemental benefits in April 2020 to those SNAP households receiving less than the maximum monthly benefit amount. When New York State’s emergency declaration expired in June 2021, the agency successfully worked with the federal government to secure the maximum allocation for all SNAP households through the expiration of the federal public health emergency declaration, which was extended through January. and will allow OTDA to continue issuing these benefits through February.
New Yorkers continued to rely heavily on SNAP this summer, with more than 1.6 million households, including more than 2.8 million New Yorkers, statewide enrolled in the program in August. While SNAP recipients statewide were relatively flat compared to July, they were up 3.5 percent from August 2021, highlighting continued demand for these critical benefits.
New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner Daniel W. Tietz said, «We recognize that many New Yorkers continue to face challenges and that it is especially difficult for those who have already struggled to feed themselves and their families. This additional assistance is providing much-needed relief and helping hundreds of thousands of individuals and families put healthy, nutritious food on the table.»
SNAP plays an important role in New York’s ongoing economic recovery and has pumped more than $2 billion into the state’s economy since January. Every federal dollar spent by SNAP generates up to $1.54 in economic activity, according to a federal study that quantifies the impact of SNAP on the US economy.
These supplemental benefits are also vital for New Yorkers in need, as approximately 14 percent of the state’s population relied on SNAP benefits last year, according to a recent study. More than half of beneficiary households were families with children, and about 48 percent included an adult over the age of 55 or a person with a disability.
As in previous months, payments will be sent directly to beneficiaries’ existing Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) accounts and can be accessed with their existing EBT cards. Just like regular SNAP benefits, supplemental benefits can be used to buy food at authorized retail food stores. Any unused SNAP benefits will automatically roll over to the next month.
Find more information about emergency SNAP supplemental benefits, including answers to frequently asked questions, here. New Yorkers interested in signing up can check their SNAP eligibility, as well as apply online, by visiting mybenefits.ny.gov.