Madera County, CA – The government shutdown will start to have a direct impact on Madera County families who receive CalFresh benefits. CalFresh is a federally funded program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The November CalFresh benefits distributed monthly to 16,621 households or 33,832 people in Madera County will be delayed. It’s unclear how soon the benefits will be restored to EBT cards once the government reopens. CalFresh benefits are issued through EBT cards during the first 10 days of each month based on the last digit of the client’s card. October benefits were issued, and clients are urged to use any remaining funds available on their EBT account. CalFresh clients should continue to complete their semi-annual reporting responsibilities and applications will continue to be processed.

The Madera County Director of Social Services, Deborah Martinez released this statement, “The impact of delayed CalFresh benefits to our small community is significant, affecting clients directly and our local business as a by-product. The vast majority of CalFresh benefits are for children and seniors who will experience increased hunger. While we stand ready to help and serve, the strain of the unknown is detrimental to the livelihoods on all our families.”

The amount of CalFresh benefits issued each month in Madera County is roughly $6.3 million. It’s important to note CalWORKs clients will receive their November cash assistance benefits on their EBT as usual. Currently, there is no impact to Medi-Cal and to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants and Children or (WIC). To apply for assistance, Madera County residents can call, (559) 675-2300 or go to benefitscal.com.

VIDEO TOOLKIT

Alexan Balekian
Director of Communications
County Administration
Alexan.Balekian@maderacounty.com
(559) 675-7703