Advocacy tips, Summer EBT, HIP action alert
Thank you to all for a robust and meaningful Coalition meeting this morning. For the rest of 2024 our schedule is:
-
Post-election meeting for community partners on Friday, November 8 from 10-11 AM (Zoom for that meeting here - note it is a different Zoom link from the normal Coalition meeting link!).
-
Our final regular meeting of the year will be Tuesday, December 3 from 10-11:30 (Zoom for that meeting here).
We will return to our normal 4th Tuesday of the month meetings in 2025.
Advocacy tips: Maximizing SNAP, right to appeal, in-person rights
We wanted to share a few follow up resources on the heels of today’s conversation.
-
Maximizing SNAP benefits: Here are slides from MLRI with suggestions on how to tackle evaluating if a household is getting all of the SNAP they are eligible for.
-
Right to file an appeal for a fair hearing: Anyone denied or terminated from SNAP or if their SNAP is reduced has the right to file an appeal (generally within 90 days of the date of the notice). Here is DTA information about how to appeal. This includes applicants who contacted DTA for their interview, but who could not get through the Assistance Line and were denied for not having the interview!
-
Right to in-person help at DTA offices: Anyone seeking help from DTA should be able to get it in the way that works best and is most helpful and efficient for them. For most that means not going to an office. For some, that may be in-person at an office. And, for those who struggle to get through the Assistance Line, in-person access may be critical. Some in-person rights to be aware of:
-
Under federal law, anyone who needs an interview has a right to have a “face to face” interview in-person at a DTA office. DTA must tell people they can have an in-person interview.
-
Under federal law, everyone has the right to file an application in-person at DTA on the same day they go to the office (if they go during business hours). And, DTA must assess if the person applying at the office is eligible for expedited SNAP when they are at the office applying.
-
Contact Vicky at MLRI if you have clients who were denied because they could not reach DTA for the interview, or if they went to a DTA office during business hours and were turned away from having their interview that day.
Important HIP update and action item - call the Gov’s office & legislative leaders this week!
DTA announced to farmers last Thursday (10/17) that the agency is lowering the HIP monthly benefit amount for all households with SNAP benefits to $20 per month, regardless of household size, starting December 1, 2024 so the program can run all year long. This change is due to the only $15 million in funding the program received in the fiscal year 2025 budget, when it needs $25 million to run all year. HIP has been a success since it began in 2017, and Massachusetts is a national leader in supporting this type of program.
|
Household Size |
OLD HIP Monthly Cap |
NEW HIP Monthly Cap |
|
1-2 persons |
$40 |
$20 |
|
3-5 persons |
$60 |
$20 |
|
6+ persons |
$80 |
$20 |
The Massachusetts Food System Collaborative's Campaign for HIP Funding has released a call to action to ask advocates to call the Governor's office and legislative leadership (Speaker of the House Ron Mariano, HWM Chair Aaron Michlewitz, Senate President Karen Spilka, and SWM Chair Michael Rodrigues), THIS WEEK to ask them to urgently dedicate $10 million in supplemental funding for HIP and to stop the cut If this cut goes into effect, families will face increased food insecurity right before the winter holidays. Please share this widely with your networks! Email Rebecca Miller, Policy Director at the Massachusetts Food System Collaborative, at rebecca@mafoodsystem.org with any questions about this advocacy alert.
Summer EBT outreach - 11/24 expungement deadline - need to connect about 78,000 families to Summer EBT cards!
About 60% of Summer EBT families were issued Summer EBT on Summer EBT cards (meaning they were not on SNAP in July). Under federal rules advocates have urged USDA to adjust, Summer EBT is removed from the account (expunged) 122 days after it is issued - even if the family never got the Summer EBT card, had trouble PINing it, etc.
DTA shared at Coalition that about 78,000 households have not activated (PINed) their Summer EBT card - approximately 30% of all families mailed Summer EBT cards. These families will lose all of their Summer EBT - $120 per child! - if they do not get a card, PIN it, and use the benefit by Nov. 24, 2024. Below is more helpful data from DTA.
DTA has texted and is sending notices to the group at risk of expungement. Please alert local schools and families about this! If families were told they are eligible - meaning they got notices and/or texts from DTA about Summer EBT - but they never got a card, or they need a new card, they should contact DTA as soon as possible. Here is more information from DTA.
Let MLRI know if you have Summer EBT issues or questions.