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News
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Emergency
Food
Program for Disaster Areas Announced
Posted 26 August 2010
Federal officials
have cleared the way for the Iowa Department of Human Services to offer
emergency food assistance to Iowans struggling to recover from summer
storms and flooding.
People who have experienced storm-related expenses—such as job
disruptions, uninsured losses, cleanup, or replacement of ruined
food—may be eligible for disaster food assistance even if they do not
qualify for the regular food stamp program. Unlike the regular food
assistance program, formerly known as food stamps, the emergency
program provides a single benefit that is not renewable. Benefits are
determined by household size. The benefit for a family of four is $668,
for example. For a two-member household, the emergency benefit is $367.
“I encourage people to take advantage of this one-time assistance,”
Culver said. “For people trying to recover from a disaster, this
benefit is definitely worth having. Iowans are sometimes too proud to
accept assistance but more than 35,000 Iowans took advantage of this
program during the 2008 floods. The application process is simple. If
you qualify, the benefits are almost immediate.”
Benefits are available only for residents in the 32 counties declared
presidential disaster areas for individual assistance. They are Black
Hawk, Cherokee, Clayton, Decatur, Delaware, Dubuque, Fayette, Franklin,
Hamilton, Howard, Humboldt, Ida, Jackson, Jasper, Jones, Kossuth, Lee,
Lucas, Lyon, Mahaska, Marion, O’Brien, Osceola, Polk, Ringgold, Sioux,
Story, Taylor, Union, Warren, Webster, and Wright.
Applications will be accepted tomorrow (Wednesday) through Aug. 30 at:
Any county DHS office that is normally open full time. Regular office
hours apply. Applicants may apply at offices outside their county of
residence.
DHS part-time county offices. Monitor local media for schedules.
Federal disaster recovery centers. The only announced center so far is
the Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa, 1740 Garfield Ave., Des
Moines. The office will be open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through
Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.
Of those who used the program in 2008, 80 percent of them had not
received food assistance before and most were not eligible for regular
benefits. Like regular food assistance, disaster food stamp benefits
are 100 percent federal funds. The states and federal governments share
administrative expenses equally.
Regular rules regarding verification, income, and resources are relaxed
for the emergency benefits. The eligibility calculation considers a
household’s short-term disaster-related expenses. Benefits are
distributed via a debit-like swipe card that may be used for food
purchases. Unlike the regular food assistance program, most emergency
benefits are provided immediately upon application. People currently
receiving food assistance may be eligible for additional help.
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