Increased emergency SNAP benefits end in March
SALEM, Ore. — The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) has announced that February is the last month that the federal government will allow Oregon to issue pandemic emergency food benefits. Beginning in March, most people on SNAP will receive only their regular SNAP food benefits.
The federal government has approved emergency allotments every month since April 2020. The 2023 federal spending bill ended funding for emergency allotments. Due to this change, the federal government will no longer allow Oregon to issue emergency food benefits after February 2023.
Most SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) recipients have received the additional emergency food benefits since April 2020.
Oregonians who receive SNAP are encouraged to prepare for this change in the food benefits they receive.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic we have had the opportunity to provide these emergency food benefits to most SNAP households in Oregon,” said ODHS Director Fariborz Pakseresht. “We know that many rely on these additional emergency food benefits to get enough healthy food for themselves and their families. As Oregon continues to be impacted by COVID-19, we know that without these emergency food benefits some in Oregon may experience hardship and hunger. We encourage them to contact our partners at 211, Oregon Food Bank and their local Community Action Agency for support during this difficult time.”
You can check how much your regular benefits are by accessing your EBT account online at www.ebtEDGE.com or by logging into your ONE account at Benefits.oregon.gov.
Questions about your SNAP benefits can also be directed to the ONE Customer Service Center at 1-800-699-9075. The ONE Customer Service Center is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific Time.
ODHS encourages recipients to tells ODHS if their income has decreased or if the number of people in their household have increased; these changes may increase their regular SNAP food benefits.
To report changes in income or household:
- Online at: Benefits.oregon.gov
- By mail at: ONE Customer Service Center, PO Box 14015, Salem, OR 97309
- By fax at: 503-378-5628
- By phone at: 1-800-699-9075 or TTY 711, Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific Time.
ODHS says that SNAP has undergone other permanent changes since April 2020:
On October 1, 2021, regular SNAP food benefits were permanently increased by an average of about $36 per person, per month.
In January 2022, Oregon increased the income eligibility limit for SNAP up to 200% of the federal poverty level. This means that an individual with up to $2,265 in income per month, or a family of three with up to $3,838 in income per month, are eligible to receive SNAP food benefits.
