California CalFresh
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Can't reach California CalFresh? Claimyr calls for you, so you don't have to wait on hold.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the DSS
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the DSS drops your call
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
When does Summer EBT (Sun Bucks) program distribute new cards? My school opted out!
I've been waiting for my son's Summer EBT card (those 'Sun Bucks' they're calling them now) but nothing's arrived yet. Are they being sent out in batches by last name? We're Letter G and haven't seen anything. UPDATE: Just found out my son's school completely opted out of the Summer EBT program! Why would they do that?? Now I need to figure out if we qualify through Medi-Cal instead. The problem is I make too much for CalFresh benefits, so I'm worried we won't qualify this way either. Does anyone know the income limits for Sun Bucks through the Medi-Cal pathway? What bracket do you have to fall under to qualify if your school opted out?
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CalFresh caseworker impossible to reach at Coachella Valley office - need supervisor contact!
So frustrated!!! I've been trying to contact my CalFresh caseworker at the Coachella Valley office for THREE WEEKS now. Every single time I call, it goes straight to voicemail, and I can't even leave a message because the mailbox is completely full! I have questions about my recent redetermination and some income verification they requested, but there's literally no way to communicate with them. My benefits might get cut off soon if I can't resolve this.\n\nDoes anyone else here deal with the Coachella Valley office? Has anyone successfully gotten through to an actual human being there? I'm desperate for a supervisor's direct number or some kind of trick to bypass this nightmare phone system. My family really depends on these benefits and I'm starting to panic.
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Glad to hear you got through! For anyone else facing this issue, remember that under California regulations, the county office must provide \
CalFresh EBT card fraud wiped out my entire balance - how to protect and get benefits back?
Just got my CalFresh benefits this morning - all $642 for me and my two kids - and by afternoon it was ALL GONE!! Someone cleared out the entire card without me even using it once. Called the EBT customer service and they said it was used at stores in San Diego (I live in Sacramento!). I haven't lost my card, it's right here in my wallet. Why doesn't CalFresh use chip technology like regular debit cards? The rep told me to file a fraud claim but said it could take 90+ days to investigate and I might not get my benefits back. How am I supposed to feed my kids for 3 months?? Has anyone dealt with this and actually gotten their benefits restored? Any advice on how to prevent this from happening again? I'm desperate and angry that the government doesn't seem to care about protecting our benefits.
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anybody else notice how the rich ppl banks got chip cards like 8yrs ago but somehow its "too hard" to protect our benfits?? Makes me so mad!! They said identity theft is a "high priority" but we still waiting YEARS for basic protection??
EXACTLY!!! They don't care cuz its not their money being stolen!!! They just make us wait months for "investigations" while our kids go hungry. RIDICULOUS
I'm still tracking your case - any updates? Were you able to reach your county worker or get emergency benefits issued? The fraud investigation will still take time, but you should be able to get at least partial replacement benefits while waiting.
After 3 days and countless calls, I finally got through to a supervisor using that Claimyr service someone recommended. They're issuing me emergency replacement benefits for half the amount (better than nothing) while they investigate the fraud claim. They're also sending my new EBT card expedited, should arrive tomorrow. Still frustrated about the whole situation but at least we'll have some food money. Thanks everyone for the advice!
P-EBT 2025 eligibility confusion - only for virtual students in California?
Hey CalFresh community! I'm really confused about the latest P-EBT benefits in California for 2025. Someone told me it's ONLY being given to kids who were attending school virtually? That doesn't sound right to me. My daughter is in 3rd grade attending in-person classes, and I thought she'd qualify based on our household income (we're already on CalFresh). Did they change the eligibility requirements? Has anyone received P-EBT recently or know what the current criteria is? I'd appreciate any info because our food budget is really tight this month.
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Update: I called my county office this morning and finally got through! The representative confirmed that my daughter IS eligible for P-EBT since we're already on CalFresh. They're sending cards for our county starting next week, and we should receive it within 10-15 business days. Thanks everyone for your help clearing up my confusion!
lucky! i tried calling 3 times today and kept getting disconnected after 40+ minutes on hold. did they say anything about payment amounts for 2025? is it still $120 per kid per month?
Just to give everyone the most current information: The 2025 P-EBT benefit amount in California is $138 per eligible child per month. This is slightly higher than last year due to inflation adjustments. The benefits are typically loaded retroactively, so when you receive your card, you may get several months' worth of benefits at once. The distribution schedule by county is available on the CDSS website, though they don't provide exact mailing dates. If your card doesn't arrive within the expected timeframe for your county, you can request a replacement through the P-EBT helpline at 877-328-9677, but be prepared for long wait times.
Thank you for the specific amount info! $138 per month will be a huge help for our grocery budget. I'll check the CDSS website to see the distribution schedule for our county.
CalFresh P-EBT cards for kids with last names R & N not received yet - Riverside County delay?
Has anyone in Riverside County received their P-EBT cards (Summer Nutrition EBT) for kids with last names starting with R or N? The county office told me they're sending them out alphabetically and we should have gotten ours by now. My three kids qualify through the school lunch program, but we're still waiting while my sister's kids (last name starts with D) got theirs three weeks ago. I've tried calling the P-EBT hotline but can't get through to a real person. Getting worried since school starts back in a few weeks and we were counting on those food benefits. Anyone else still waiting or know when they're supposed to finish distribution?
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my kids r in riverside and we got ours last week names start with T if that helps
That's interesting - seems like they really might be going in reverse alphabetical order like someone mentioned above. Thanks for sharing!
Update: I asked my sister who works for the school district, and she said the real issue is that they had a problem with the student database for certain schools in Riverside County. They had to manually verify some of the eligibility data, which affected certain last name ranges including R and N. She said all cards should be out by August 10th at the latest, and they're processing about 5,000 cards per day now to catch up.
Oh that makes so much more sense! Thank you for checking with your sister. That's actually reassuring to know there was a specific issue rather than just general delays. I'll wait a bit longer before panicking.
Faith Kingston
I just went through this whole process because our school opted out too. So frustrating! If your child has Medi-Cal, you should get it automatically, but there have been system matching issues. I had to call FOUR TIMES before getting through to a person who could help me. The cards are definitely going out in batches, but they're behind schedule. The income limits depend on household size - for a family of 4 it's about $59,000 annual income. If you're close to the threshold, apply anyway! Sometimes they don't count certain income or there are deductions that help you qualify. Also, check if your child gets any other benefits that might qualify them automatically. Even certain reduced fee programs through the county can sometimes help establish eligibility.
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Arjun Kurti
AuthorFour calls? That's discouraging. Did you have to provide additional documentation to prove eligibility through Medi-Cal? And thanks for the tip about other county programs - my son is in a reduced fee after-school program, so maybe that will help.
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Raúl Mora
did u call the sun bucks number yet? i had to call 3 times before gettin anyone but they fixed it right away when i finally got thru
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Arjun Kurti
AuthorNot yet, I'm going to try calling tomorrow. Did they tell you why your card was delayed when you finally reached someone?
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