What's new at MLS

It is with great sadness we report that in just the past few days, Massachusetts has lost two amazing and beloved anti-hunger advocates: Jeanne Dever of Dorchester, was a lifelong anti-poverty activist in Boston passed away on May 27, 2012. Jeanne was active in the Boston Tenant's Task Force, the…

The National Voter Registration Act requires DTA to allow SNAP and cash assistance recipients to register to vote at DTA offices or by mail.  DTA field guidance on voter registration protocol is contained in the following DTA Operations Memo:…

The invitation below is from SNAP Coalition partner Lauren Arms Ledwith and her UMass colleagues, announcing four separate information sessions around Massachusetts starting April 23th through April 30th.  These sessions are designed for community groups to learn about the federal funds…

Thanks to so many of you who attended last Thursday’s Basic Benefits Training on Immigrants and Benefits. We had close to 150 participants, just underscoring how critical this basic immigrant/benefits eligibility information continue to be for local community groups. MLRI has great resources…

The federal Department of Health and Human Services announced a cost of living adjustment (COLA) in the federal poverty level on January 26th. https://aspe.hhs.gov/2012-hhs-poverty-guidelines This COLA directly affects the SNAP 200% gross income test - the income test which applies to families…

At the recent Coalition meeting we discussed some SNAP application verifications. Members reported at the meeting, and in emails to MLRI, that "verification checklists" sometimes asking the SNAP applicants for documents that are not required at all, where the information can be…

You may recently have seen or heard about a DTA policy memo instructing staff to close benefits of SNAP households that have a long pattern (more than 90 days) of use of their EBT card for out-of-state food purchases and cannot verify their MA residence. Here's a link to the recent DTA…

We've received a number of inquiries about how to calculate SNAP benefits for households that contain a foster child or person who is being cared for under the Adult Foster Care program.**  There are special federal and state SNAP rules that allow households to EXCLUDE the foster child or foster…

USDA has released some very useful demographic information for your advocacy work, a cautionary alert about SNAP scammer,  and two upcoming Webinars for Spanish speakers.  Check it out!  1) SNAP Demographics by Congressional Districts: Using SNAP program data and information…

TO:  Food SNAP Coalition Members FR:  Pat Baker Happy Veterans Day and Happy 11-11-11.  We wanted to be sure you saw today's Globe editorial exhorting local cities and towns to reach out to local veterans and their families in financial need and help them access…