Eligible recipients will receive their Disaster SNAP, or D-SNAP, benefits on an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card that only can be used for the purchase of grocery food items.
“D-SNAP is a federal safety-net subsidy available only to people who are at risk for hunger because their disaster-recovery expenses have left them without enough money to buy food,” said Department of Human Services Commissioner Jennifer Velez. “Residents should review carefully the areas eligible for D-SNAP and the program criteria so that they can be sure they meet the requirements before they apply.”
New Jersey launched D-SNAP on Monday for residents in 16 counties and by zip-code in two other counties. It will be offered in Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren counties as well as in the following zip codes of Burlington and Cumberland counties: 08224, 08010, 08016, 08515, 08075, 08511, 08562, 08068, 08041, 08088, 08215, 08046, 08562, 08323, 08320, 08311, 08345, 08321, 08315, 08349, 08348, 08324, 08314, 08327, 08329, 08316. D-SNAP locations can be found online at www.njsnap.org.
Under the rules, applicants in the designated counties or zip codes must provide:
- Identification and proof of residency – a driver’s license, for example, would serve as both.
- Pay stubs and bank statements (cash, checking and savings) for the 30 days from October 28th through November 26th. Below is a chart that shows D-SNAP income limits and benefits by family size.
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Household Size
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Disaster Income Limit
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Allotment Amount
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1
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$2,268
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$200
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2
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$2,965
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$367
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3
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$3,416
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$526
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4
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$4,034
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$668
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5
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$4,452
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$793
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Each Additional Member
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+ $384
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+ $150
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- Receipts that show more than $100 spent on disaster-related expenses between October 28 and November 26. The cost of replacing food cannot be included in the $100.
Related expenses may include:
Ø Restaurant purchases
- Temporary shelter in a motel
Ø Home/business repairs
Ø Evacuation expenses
Ø Disaster clean up
Ø Disaster related vehicle repairs
Ø Gasoline for a generator
Ø Replacement of personal items, such as clothing or household items, such as appliances, tools, educational materials.
If any of the purchases were charged to a credit card, the resident must be able to document that they paid the credit card bill for these items by November 26th.
Current SNAP recipients from the 16 counties listed above should not apply for this program because they already received a 30 percent October replacement allocation on their EBT card and will receive a supplemental benefit by December 7, 2012.
Residents of Camden, Gloucester and Salem – counties that were not as severely affected by Hurricane Sandy - are not eligible for D-SNAP at this time.
Disaster SNAP, called D-SNAP, is administered by the US Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Services through the Department of Human Services (DHS) and the counties’ Boards of Social Services.