Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) received federal approval allowing recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to apply for replacement benefits for food lost or destroyed in last week’s storms.

Governor Greg Abbott announced Thursday that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) is providing more than $344.1 million in emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits for the month of January. The allotments are expected to help about 1.6 million Texas households.

Since the week ending March 14, just shy of 2.1 million Texans have filed for unemployment benefits, more than in all of 2019. Food policy advocates are still pushing for the state to remove asset restrictions that disqualify most families who own a car valued at more than $15,000 from getting SNAP, Cooper said. Pandemic-EBT benefits were paid out through Lone Star Cards — the card SNAP families use for groceries — to hasten distribution. SNAP families with eligible children were automatically enrolled in the program and should have all gotten their benefits as of Thursday, Cooper said. Families that don’t have SNAP benefits can apply for Pandemic-EBT in June, Cooper said.

AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Health and Human Services will provide more than $168 million in emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program food benefits to help people in the state during the COVID-19 response, Gov. HHS got federal approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide the maximum allowable number of SNAP benefits to recipients based on family size, according to a news release. Anyone receiving SNAP benefits is included. “SNAP, commonly referred to as the food stamp program, supplements the budget of the working poor. "The additional food subsidy announced today by Governor Abbott, although still supplemental, will help fill a portion of the financial gap created by the economic crisis resulting from this pandemic.