Texas Border Business
AUSTIN – Texas Health and Human Services announced it will roll out disaster food relief for victims of Hurricane Harvey to residents in 12 additional counties: Austin, Bastrop, Bee, Chambers, Colorado, Fayette, Fort Bend, Goliad, Hardin, Lee and Walker, starting Monday, Sept. 25, and San Jacinto starting Wednesday, Sept. 27.
Texas has been offering D-SNAP benefits to counties in a phased approach that began Sept. 13. Texas has had active D-SNAP programs in the majority of the 39 eligible counties. Texas is working with local officials to roll out additional sites in Jefferson, Victoria, Montgomery, Galveston and other counties in the coming days.
With Monday’s rollout, D-SNAP will have been offered in 31 of the 39 eligible counties so far. The Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as D-SNAP, provides short-term food benefits for eligible families recovering from a disaster.
For information on all currently approved D-SNAP sites, go to www.hhs.texas.gov/d-snap to find days and hours of operation. Generally, sites are open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. with certain exceptions.
New locations and dates are as follows:
Austin County Residents
HHS Office
800 E. Wendt St.
Bellville
Bastrop County Residents
HHS Office
3809 TX-150 Loop
Bastrop
Bee County and Goliad County Residents
HHS Office
1800 S Washington St.
Beeville
Chambers County Residents
Don McLeod Recreation Center
10717 Langston Drive
Mont Belvieu
Colorado County Residents
HHS Office
1220 Bowie St.
Columbus
Fayette County Residents
HHS Office
228 N. Main St.
La Grange
Fort Bend County Residents
County Annex
4520 Reading Road
Rosenberg
On Sept. 29, hours will be noon to 7 p.m.
Hardin County Residents
Lumberton Performing Arts Center (Lumberton High School)
103 S. LHS Drive
Lumberton
Lee County Residents
HHS Office
2020 N. Main St.
Giddings
San Jacinto County Residents
San Jacinto County Elections Building
51 E. Pine Ave.
Coldspring
Walker County Residents
Walker County Storm Shelter
455 SH 75 N.
Huntsville
Alphabetical Rollout Details
Applications are being taken based on a rolling alphabetical order. People will need to apply on certain days depending on the first letter of their last name. For detailed instructions, hours and updates, go to www.hhs.texas.gov/d-snap.
For Austin, Bastrop, Bee, Chambers, Colorado, Fayette, Fort Bend, Goliad, Hardin, Lee, and Walker, opening Sept. 25:
Date Last name
Sept. 25 A – C
Sept. 26 D – H
Sept. 27 I – M
Sept. 28 N – R
Sept. 29 S – Z
Sept. 30, Oct. 1 Anyone
For San Jacinto, opening Sept. 27:
Date Last name
Sept. 27 A – C
Sept. 28 D – H
Sept. 29 I – M
Sept. 30 N – R
Oct. 1 S – Z
Oct. 2 – 3 Anyone
D-SNAP is available to eligible people who are residents of one of the counties with a federal disaster declaration and weren’t receiving benefits through regular SNAP at the time of the disaster. Recipients will be given a Lone Star Card that will be loaded within three days with funds to purchase food from most grocery stores.
Residents of the affected counties may be eligible if they suffered damage to their home or business, loss of income or disaster-related expenses. Disaster-related expenses can include home repairs, temporary shelter or evacuation expenses.
Households must bring identification when applying for D-SNAP. Common types of verification include a driver’s license or other government-issued photo identification.
Eligible households will receive two months of benefits when their cards load. The benefit amount is equivalent to the maximum amount normally issued to a SNAP household of their size, within three days of applying.
If families have been displaced from one of the counties receiving D-SNAP and cannot travel back to their home county, they can go to any local HHS benefits office across the state to apply for D-SNAP during the dates designated for their counties.
Texas has been closely tracking eligibility and approvals for D-SNAP as benefits are delivered. Texas is administering D-SNAP based on federal guidelines and income parameters. Texas has controls in place to ensure benefits are provided to people who meet the requirements outlined by the federal program.
People who purposely provide wrong information to receive disaster benefits may be denied benefits, and legal action may be taken against them.
More Information
People with questions about D-SNAP, including those who have special needs, should dial 2-1-1 and select option 6. For other storm-related services, including shelters, dial 2-1-1 and select option 5. For questions about TANF, Medicaid or CHIP, dial 2-1-1 and select option 2.
To check benefit amounts, recipients can visit YourTexasBenefits.com or call the Lone Star Help Desk at 800-777-7EBT (800-777-7328).
Twitter: @TexasHHSC
