The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is an important federally funded social program that ensures that low-income families have the resources to purchase food. It is one of the government’s cornerstone programs for preventing childhood poverty and hunger as well as keeping individuals from destitution. The program is administered at the state level. What this means is that your payment date will differ across the nation depending on which state you live in.
How SNAP payments work
Because the program is specifically aimed at targeting low-income families, to be eligible for SNAP, you have to meet certain eligibility requirements. When you apply for SNAP benefits, you must apply through the state you reside in. The most important eligibility criteria you must take note of as a potential beneficiary are the income limits. These are constantly updated every year.
“If your state agency determines that you are eligible to receive SNAP benefits, you will receive benefits back to the date you submitted your application,” describes the US Department of Agriculture website.
To be eligible to receive SNAP benefits, it depends on your income as well as family size as follows:
- Household of one: net monthly income limit of $1,255
- Household of two: net monthly income limit of $1,704
- Household of three: net monthly income limit of $2,152
- Household of four: net monthly income limit of $2,600
- Household of five: net monthly income limit of $3,049
- Household of six: net monthly income limit of $3,497
- Household of seven: net monthly income limit of $3,945
- Household of eight: net monthly income limit of $4,394
- Every additional member: +$449
There are also strict guidelines regarding the value of the resources and assets you may have to receive SNAP benefits:
“Currently, households may have $3,000 in countable resources (such as cash or money in a bank account) or $4,500 in countable resources if at least one member of the household is age 60 or older, or is disabled. These amounts are updated annually,” states the US Department of Agriculture website.
Maximum payment of $1,756 for these SNAP beneficiaries
SNAP calculates your benefits based on your income by using the knowledge and assumption that families spend 30% of their net income on food. Benefits are then distributed according to the fact that families with no net income will receive the maximum benefit possible, while everyone else receives their benefit based on 30% of their net income. Based on this logic, families with a net income limit of $5,853 can receive a SNAP benefit of up to $1,756.
If you are eligible to receive SNAP benefits according to the USDA Food and Nutrition Service criteria, the products you can buy with the benefits include fruits, vegetables, bread, cereals, meat, poultry, dairy products, and non-alcoholic drinks. You are also allowed to purchase plants and seeds. However, alcohol, tobacco, household goods, prepared foods, pet food, and medications are among the items that SNAP beneficiaries cannot purchase.
Upcoming SNAP payment dates for May
Because SNAP payments are distributed according to state, your payment date will differ from other beneficiaries according to the area you live in. Beneficiaries can refer to their state agency to confirm what dates they can expect to receive their SNAP benefits. Most states distribute within the first 10 days of the new month, while others distribute their payments between the first and the twentieth.
Recently, SNAP has also been under scrutiny from the federal government regarding its funding. SNAP benefit funding may be cut by 20% as part of a new budget proposal from the Trump Administration. These funding cuts also apply to other federal support programs such as Medicaid and USAID. Approximately 41 million families receive SNAP benefits, and a cut such as this could have disastrous effects on these families who are already in a vulnerable position when it comes to food..
