USDA, Texas Launch Immediate Plans to Feed Hurricane-Stricken Areas

Long-term solution includes D-SNAP to provide streamlined and expanded nutrition assistance in the wake of a disaster.

September 05, 2017

WASHINGTON – The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) announced immediate actions as well as long-term plans for ensuring Texans affected by Hurricane Harvey have access to food through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP).

“USDA and Texas have the same goal here, to first and foremost, help those in need,” said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue. “We are working closely with Texas every step of the way to determine the most effective, efficient means of responding to Harvey, and the steps we’ve announced today help pave a path for immediate and longer term assistance.”

Effective immediately, the plan involves short-term solutions including issuing replacement benefits to SNAP households that lost food in the disaster and waivers simplifying state administration of the program. These complement already-existing options, such as the multiple congregate feeding sites offering hot meals prepared using USDA Foods, to ensure those affected by the disaster have access to food in the short-term.

FNS and Texas are simultaneously preparing for longer-term solutions including D-SNAP, which will be implemented once the commercial channels of food distribution have been restored and families are back in their homes. D-SNAP provides streamlined and expanded nutrition assistance after a disaster.

"This is an unprecedented disaster. We’re doing everything we can for Texans and members of our own HHSC family who were affected by this terrible storm. We’re working fast to roll benefits out to people in need,” said Texas Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Charles Smith. “Texans dealing with the aftermath of Harvey need access to food benefits to replace what they lost in the storm, and we’re planning ahead for longer-term needs.”

Texas has issued all September benefits, rather than staggering them through the first 15 days of the month, to help meet the immediate needs of current SNAP clients.

“USDA offers states many types of assistance following natural disasters from rescue to recovery and all points in between,” Perdue emphasized. “While D-SNAP is an important step in the recovery process, it is not the first step. We need to do everything we can to help people in need, but we’ve got to do it right.”

USDA has taken action to help those affected by the storm, including SNAP waivers. For more information about Texas SNAP, visit YourTexasBenefits.com. For more information on FNS assistance during times of disaster, visit www.fns.usda.gov/disaster.

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