SNAP Benefits 2022 Update: Texas Facing Massive Backlog for July Payments, Staff Shortage Blamed

The SNAP benefits 2022 for some families in Texas have been delayed, with some trying to renew their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since May.

This was the case of one Texas resident, Kihayla Soloye, who has been trying to get answers over the phone. According to KXAN, Soloye said it was usually a one-day process, and "they process it and get me some help right away." But in this case, she was told to wait 30 to 45 days and thought she heard it wrong.

Soloye said she has a three-year-old son, and gas has been almost $5. The Texas mother noted that she has been "DoorDashing" to get food for her son and gas money.

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) manages the distribution of SNAP benefits to state residents. An assistant press officer with the agency, Tiffany Young, told the outlet that there were an estimated 258,000 applications pending processing as of June 26.

Young said the department is taking action on the cases as quickly as possible to ensure timely access to important benefits. The press officer added that an increase in applications and staffing shortages have been challenging.

Young said the workforce and workload challenges throughout the pandemic had increased in the last few months when certain federal flexibilities ended, which led to an increase in processing times.

The HHSC has held job fairs to address the staff shortage and help with recruitment.

SNAP Benefits Texas

The SNAP benefits in Texas have been extended for the month of July, as announced by Governor Greg Abbott's office on Friday.

In his office's press release, Abbott said HHSC is providing more than $300 billion in food benefits for the month of June, WFAA News reported.

The added allotments are seen to help more than 1.4 million households, according to the governor's office.

Abbott then expressed his gratitude to HHSC, saying that every family in the Lone Star State will have access to nutritious meals.

All SNAP households are set to receive a minimum of $95 in emergency allotments, which will show in recipients' accounts by July 31. The state has provided more than $7.2 billion since April 2020.

Texas HHS Access and Eligibility Services Deputy Executive Commissioner Wayne Salter said in a press release that they were proud to support Texans in providing healthy, nutritious meals for their families.

SNAP Benefits July

Aside from Texas, some states will also continue to provide additional payments worth at least $95 this July, such as Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Oregon.

MARCA reported that Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, and Wisconsin are also expected to release additional SNAP benefits this month.

The additional funds will be credited to the recipient's electronic benefits transfer card, which is used like a debit card but has the added condition of only working at authorized stores.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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