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CalFresh EBT card fraud - benefits stolen while card still in my possession. How to report + get location info?
I'm freaking out right now! Just checked my EBT balance and ALL my CalFresh benefits from yesterday's deposit are GONE. The weird thing is, I've had my card with me the whole time—it never left my wallet. How could someone steal the benefits without having my physical card? I need to report this ASAP but I have some questions: 1. Can I go directly to my county office to fill out a fraud form in person? (The phone system is a nightmare and I've been hung up on twice already) 2. How do I get the exact store location where my benefits were used? I need this for the police report 3. Will they give me emergency replacement benefits while they investigate? My kids and I have literally nothing to eat right now Has anyone dealt with EBT fraud before? This is $975 that disappeared overnight and I'm scared the county won't believe me since I still have my card. The transaction history just shows "GROCERY PURCHASE" with no store name.
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Will CalFresh still have COVID emergency allotments in 2025? Any updates?
Hi everyone, I've been hearing mixed things about the extra CalFresh benefits for COVID. My neighbor said they got approved again for this month, but I didn't see anything added to my EBT card yet. Has anyone heard if California approved the emergency allotments for April 2025? I'm really counting on that extra amount to feed my kids since groceries are so expensive now. I tried calling the county but got stuck on hold for 2 hours before giving up. Any info would be super helpful!
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Thanks everyone for clearing this up. I feel kinda dumb now for believing my neighbor, but she was so convincing! I'll definitely look into getting my benefits recalculated with my current expenses. Really appreciate all the help and information.
Don't feel bad! CalFresh rules are complicated and there's a lot of misinformation out there. Focus on getting all your current expenses documented at your next SAR7 or recertification. That's your best path to maximizing your regular benefits now that the emergency allotments are gone.
My cousin works for the county and said they get calls about this ALL THE TIME still. People are really struggling without those extra benefits. I remember getting almost double my regular amount during COVID. Now food prices are even higher but we're back to the old benefit levels. It's rough out there.
Will CalFresh 3.0 emergency allotment cards be loaded again or was it only twice?
I just got my second CalFresh 3.0 emergency allotment loaded on my EBT card last month (was super helpful for my family of 4!). The CalFresh worker I talked to when I applied mentioned something about these being temporary, but wasn't clear about how many times we'd get them. Does anyone know if the 3.0 cards get loaded again in the future? Or was it just supposed to be those two payments? My regular CalFresh benefits barely cover 2 weeks of groceries with these insane 2025 prices, so I'm really hoping there's more emergency help coming. Thanks!
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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.
This is incredibly helpful - thank you! I didn't realize I could report expense increases outside of recertification. I'm going to gather my new rent agreement and childcare receipts and submit them this week. Do you happen to know what the current gross monthly income limit is for a family of 4? Just want to make sure we're still eligible with my husband's recent raise.
For a household of 4 in 2025, the gross monthly income limit for CalFresh is approximately $3,950. Your IRT (Income Reporting Threshold) would be 150% of that figure, so around $5,925. As long as your household's total gross monthly income stays below the income limit, you should remain eligible, though the benefit amount may adjust based on the exact income. When reporting your husband's raise, make sure to provide documentation like a pay stub or employer letter to verify the new income amount.
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
Great question - CalFresh benefits (including emergency allotments) do NOT count as income or resources for Medi-Cal eligibility. The emergency allotments were considered the same type of benefit as regular CalFresh, just supplemental. You don't need to report them as income for your Medi-Cal redetermination.
BenefitsCal app issues in Shasta County & checking P-EBT status
Has anyone else in Shasta County been struggling with the BenefitsCal app lately? Mine keeps crashing whenever I try to upload verification documents for my CalFresh recertification. I've tried uninstalling and reinstalling but it still freezes up. Also, is there any way to check if my kids are getting P-EBT for 2025? I haven't received anything in the mail about it yet, but I heard some families already got notified. My kids qualify for free lunch at school so I think they should be eligible but I'm not sure how to verify that. The Shasta County office hasn't been answering phones all week!
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i just go to the office in person now cause the app AND the website are both trash lol easier to just hand them papers directly
Yeah but some of us dont have cars or time off work to sit there all day!! The whole point of the app is supposed to be that we dont have to do that!!! 🤬
Update on your specific issues: For the BenefitsCal app in Shasta County, there's a known issue affecting users trying to upload verification documents. The county is aware of it and working on a fix. In the meantime, you can email documents to shastaESS@co.shasta.ca.us with your case number in the subject line, or use the website version which is more stable. For P-EBT status, Shasta County's distribution is scheduled for late March 2025, so you likely won't receive notification until early March. The P-EBT cards are mailed to the address the school district has on file, so make sure your address is current with your children's school.
Thank you so much for the email address! I'll send my documents there right away. Really appreciate the specific info about P-EBT timeline for Shasta too - that helps me stop worrying about whether I missed something. You've been super helpful!
PEBT amount confusion - $202 for only 1 week of COVID absence seems high?
My high schooler got a Pandemic EBT card in the mail yesterday with $202 on it (initials IR on the card). She only missed 5 days of school back in January due to COVID, so I'm confused about the amount. This seems really high for just one week of absence? She's in 9th grade at Lincoln High. Is this amount correct or did they make a mistake? I don't want to spend it and then have to pay it back if they issued too much. Has anyone else received PEBT recently with similar amounts? I thought these benefits ended ages ago!
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My niece got like $350 for missing 2 days!!! The amounts are crazy and make no sense. not that I'm complaining lol
That's unlikely for just 2 days of absence. The $350 likely included other factors - perhaps retroactive payments from previous months that weren't processed, or your niece might attend a school with higher reimbursement rates. There's also a possibility the parent/guardian misunderstood what period the payment covered. PEBT calculations follow specific formulas based on the school's meal rates, days missed, and whether the child qualifies for free/reduced lunch.
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!
glad u got it figured out! the extra money always helps with groceries these days
Chloe Robinson
be carful when u go 2 the county offce, they might try 2 say u commited fraud yourself. my neighbor had her benafits stolenn and they acused her of selling her card. bring as much proof as u can that u had ur card the whole time!
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LunarLegend
While it's good to bring documentation, this type of accusation is actually quite rare with skimming cases. The counties are well aware of the widespread EBT theft problem. As long as you promptly report the theft and have your physical card with you, there's little reason they would accuse you of fraud. The electronic signatures from skimming look very different from legitimate card sales in their system.
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Malik Jackson
Has anyone tried the new CalFresh Watchdog app? My worker told me about it when I was reporting my theft. Supposedly it sends you instant alerts whenever your EBT card is used so you know right away if there's fraud happening. I haven't tried it yet but I'm thinking about it after all this skimming stuff.
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Omar Zaki
The official app is called "EBT Alert" (not CalFresh Watchdog) and it's a legitimate service offered through the state. It sends real-time transaction alerts and allows you to temporarily freeze/unfreeze your card. However, it's currently only available in 28 counties in California as of March 2025. I recommend using it if it's available in your county, but also check if your specific county has additional fraud prevention tools they offer locally.
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