Low-income Mississippi residents in six counties may be eligible for assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) due to severe storms, straight-line winds and tornadoes that occurred starting on March 24, according to a press release.
“D-SNAP provides vital essential food assistance to Mississippi residents struggling with the aftermath of severe storms and tornadoes,” Tom Vilsack, USDA secretary, said. “USDA recognizes that the crisis doesn’t end when the wind dies down. For many families in these stricken areas, it’s just beginning.”
Approximately 29,000 households that do not normally qualify for regular Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) may be eligible for D-SNAP if they meet specific criteria, including disaster income limits and qualifying disaster-related expenses.
According to the USDA website, to be eligible for D-SNAP, a household must either live or work in an identified disaster area, have been affected by the disaster and meet certain eligibility criteria. Eligible households will receive one month of benefits – equal to the maximum monthly amount for a SNAP household of their size – that they can use to purchase groceries at SNAP-authorized stores or from select retailers online to meet their temporary food needs as they recover from the disaster. Mississippi will implement D-SNAP in two phases.
In phase one, Montgomery County will accept applications at designated locations for five days beginning April 17 through April 21. Carroll, Humphreys and Sharkey Counties will accept applications beginning April 18 through April 22.
In phase two, Monroe and Panola Counties will accept applications for five days beginning April 26 through April 30.
Additional information about designated site locations will be shared as the program progresses.
To help cope with the impact of the storms, the USDA has also approved waivers for SNAP participates to purchase hot food, to receive replacement of benefits due to power outages and receive replacement of food that was lost due to power outages.
