Just checking back - were you able to get to your county office for an emergency replacement card? If you're still waiting, remember most counties are required to expedite replacement cards when there's a food security issue involved, especially for households with children. Make sure you specifically mention when you call that you have children and limited food in the house.

Yes! Thank you for checking back. I went to the county office yesterday after calling them first. I had to wait about 2 hours, but they were able to print a temporary card for me that will work until the permanent one arrives. So relieved! For anyone else reading this with the same problem - definitely go in person if you can, it's much faster than waiting for mail!

To clarify what everyone is saying: The CalFresh 3.0 emergency allotment was a specialized program that provided two supplemental payments in March and April 2025. This is different from the pandemic emergency allotments that ran monthly from 2020-2022. If your benefits aren't sufficient, here are some actionable steps: 1. Report any increase in expenses (rent, utilities, childcare, medical) immediately using a SAR 7 or by contacting your county office 2. Make sure all eligible household members are included in your case 3. Verify all deductions are being properly applied (many households don't receive all deductions they qualify for) 4. Check if you qualify for expedited services if your situation becomes more severe The income reporting threshold (IRT) for CalFresh is now 150% of your household's gross monthly income limit. Be sure to report any income changes over this threshold within 10 days.

btw does anyone know if the emergency allotments count towards the resource limit test for medi-cal? i got both payments but am worried about my medi-cal redetermination coming up

My niece got like $350 for missing 2 days!!! The amounts are crazy and make no sense. not that I'm complaining lol

UPDATE: So I called the number on the back of the PEBT card and finally got through to someone. They confirmed the amount is correct! The $202 covers the 5 days she missed, plus there was a small supplemental amount for January's benefits that got added retroactively because of some policy change. They said I should definitely use it and not worry about having to pay it back. Thanks everyone for your help!

As someone who's helped several clients with this issue, I want to clarify some information: 1. Yes, California now has a limited EBT theft reimbursement program as of October 2024 2. You must report the theft within 10 days of discovery 3. You need to submit form CF 303 along with a police report 4. The county can replace benefits stolen via skimming/electronic theft (not PIN-based transactions) 5. There's a maximum of two months of replacements per federal fiscal year 6. Processing time is typically 15-30 days The most critical factor is documenting everything and following up persistently. Many county workers aren't fully trained on the new replacement program yet, so you might need to specifically mention "Administrative Notice 24-12 regarding EBT benefit theft replacement" to get to the right person. Also, request a PIN change and new card immediately to prevent further theft.

Update on this issue: The state recently announced additional EBT security measures rolling out in 2025. They're finally adding chip technology to new cards and implementing transaction alerts via text message. But that doesn't help right now, unfortunately. One thing I didn't see mentioned - if you're approved for replacement benefits, make sure you request a new card with a different card number before those replacement benefits are loaded. Otherwise, if your card information was compromised through skimming, thieves could potentially access the replacement benefits too.

Just to clarify some information in this thread: 1. The program changed names from P-EBT (pandemic-related) to Summer EBT (federal name) to Summer Food Benefits (California's implementation name) 2. Each county follows the same state distribution schedule, but some counties may be processing faster than others 3. Children in the same household may receive cards on different days even with the same last name - this is normal 4. The benefit amount is $43.50 per child per month (June, July, August) totaling $130.50 per child for summer 2025 5. Once activated, benefits remain available for 274 days If you're having trouble reaching someone, you can also check status at calfresh.dss.ca.gov/summer or text SUMMEREBT to 877-877.

It's a completely separate white card that looks different from your regular Golden State Advantage EBT card. It will come in a white envelope addressed to your child (not to you), which is why these sometimes get overlooked in the mail. The card itself will say "California Summer Food Benefits" on it.