Arkansans recovering from severe storms may receive food assistance. Am I eligible?

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansans recovering from severe storms may be eligible for food assistance from the government.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that more than 11,100 households in 14 Arkansas counties are estimated to be eligible for relief to help with grocery expenses through USDA’s Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP).

D-SNAP applications will go through July 14 through July 20.

USDA officials said people who may not be eligible for SNAP in normal circumstances can participate if they meet specific criteria, including disaster income limits and qualifying disaster-related expenses.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible for D-SNAP, a household member must either live or work in a disaster area, have been affected by the disaster and meet certain D-SNAP eligibility criteria.

Eligible counties include Clark, Craighead, Crittenden, Greene, Hot Spring, Independence, Jackson, Lawrence, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, Sharp, Stone and White.

Officials said although current SNAP households in the identified areas are not eligible for D-SNAP, they may request to raise their allotment.

Benefits

Eligible households will receive one month of benefits that they can use to purchase groceries at stores that accept SNAP. Officials said the benefits are equal to the maximum monthly amount for a SNAP household of their size.

For more information on D-SNAP, residents may call 211.

To learn more about SNAP, visit HumanServices.Arkansas.gov.