I'm brand new to CalFresh and this whole thread has been absolutely eye-opening and honestly terrifying! Like so many others have mentioned, there was ZERO disclosure about location tracking during my application process - I feel like this is crucial information they're deliberately withholding from applicants. What you experienced sounds completely inappropriate and frankly like harassment. Shopping near your workplace is literally the most normal, practical thing anyone would do! The fact that they can just call you in for these mystery "appointments" without explanation and then interrogate you about perfectly normal grocery shopping patterns is absolutely unacceptable. I've been shopping at different stores across multiple cities in my first few weeks, just trying to find the best deals and freshest produce to stretch my limited benefits as far as possible. Now I'm genuinely worried I might get flagged for "suspicious activity" when I'm literally just trying to be a smart shopper with my benefits! It's so discriminatory that people needing food assistance have to worry about this kind of surveillance while people with regular income can shop wherever they want without a second thought. The whole system seems designed to make us feel guilty and ashamed for needing help. You absolutely did nothing wrong, and I really hope you follow through with filing that complaint against this worker. They clearly need serious training on what actual fraud looks like versus normal life activities. Thanks for sharing your experience - it's awful you had to go through this, but it's really valuable information for newcomers like me to understand what we might face. Don't let them intimidate you into feeling guilty for living your normal life!

I'm brand new to both CalFresh and this community, and reading your experience has left me absolutely stunned! Like literally everyone else here, I had NO idea they were tracking where we shop - this was never mentioned once during my entire application process. It feels like they're deliberately hiding this information from us. What that worker put you through sounds completely unacceptable and honestly like intimidation tactics. Shopping near your workplace is the most logical, normal thing anyone would do! The fact that they can just summon you for these mystery "appointments" without any explanation and then grill you about perfectly reasonable grocery shopping patterns is really disturbing. I've been shopping at different stores across several cities in my first month, just trying to find the best deals and freshest produce to make my limited benefits stretch as far as possible. Now I'm genuinely scared I might get flagged for "suspicious activity" when I'm literally just trying to be a responsible, smart shopper! It's so wrong that people needing food assistance have to live in fear of this kind of surveillance and questioning while people with regular income can shop wherever they want without a care in the world. The whole system seems designed to make us feel guilty for needing help in the first place. You absolutely did nothing wrong, and I really hope you file that complaint against this worker. They clearly need serious training on what actual fraud looks like versus normal life activities. Thanks for sharing this experience - it's awful you had to go through it, but it's really important for newcomers like me to know what we might face. Don't let them make you feel bad for just living your life normally!

Isaac, I'm so sorry you're dealing with this stress - I know exactly how terrifying it is to get one of those overpayment notices when you're already stretched thin! I went through something very similar about a year ago with an $1,400 overpayment from unreported seasonal work income. Everyone here has given you fantastic advice, but I wanted to add one more tip that really helped me: when you call tomorrow, ask if they can do a "payment suspension" for the first month while you get your finances organized. Some counties will give you 30-60 days before your first payment is due, which can be a lifesaver when you're already dealing with tight cash flow. I also discovered that if you're receiving any other county services (like childcare assistance or utility help), mentioning those programs can sometimes help your case for a lower payment plan since it shows you're already receiving the minimum level of support. The most important thing is staying calm during the call and being completely honest about your situation. I was upfront about being a single parent barely making ends meet, and the caseworker was actually really understanding. I ended up with a $25/month payment plan that didn't affect my benefits at all. You're handling this exactly right by being proactive and seeking advice. Your kids are lucky to have a dad who faces problems head-on instead of ignoring them. You've got this - this community has shown there are definitely workable solutions available!

Isaac, I'm so sorry you're going through this - I can totally relate to that panic when you get an overpayment notice! I went through something similar about 6 months ago with a $1,100 overpayment from unreported income changes when I picked up extra shifts at my second job. Reading through all these amazing responses, I can see you've gotten incredible advice! I just wanted to add one small thing that helped me: when you call tomorrow morning, ask about their "Income Averaging" policy. Some counties will look at your average income over the entire benefit period rather than month-by-month, which can sometimes reduce the overpayment amount if your overtime was truly sporadic. In my case, even though I had a few high-income months from overtime, my average monthly income was still within the eligibility range, so they reduced my overpayment by about $200. It's worth asking about! Also, I see several people mentioned calling right at 8 AM - this is so true! I finally got through on my third try by calling at exactly 8:00 AM and asking immediately for "Overpayment Collections." The whole conversation took about 25 minutes, and I walked away with a $30/month payment plan that I could actually afford. You've got such a solid plan now thanks to everyone's advice here. The fact that you're being proactive instead of ignoring this puts you in such a better position. Your kids are lucky to have a dad who tackles problems head-on like this. You're going to get through this!

I'm a newcomer to this community but wanted to reach out after reading your story - I'm so sorry you had to go through that nightmare! 5 hours on hold is absolutely ridiculous, and as a parent myself, I can only imagine how stressful it must have been with your kids asking for lunch and not knowing what was wrong. After reading through all these comments, it sounds like you made the right call hanging up once you learned about the statewide system issue affecting people processed between the 25th-30th. It's such a relief that it's not something you did wrong! The fact that thousands of people are dealing with this same problem really shows how broken the communication is - they should have automated messages letting people know about widespread issues instead of letting us all panic. I hope when you check the ebtEDGE app tomorrow morning your benefits will finally be there! And definitely don't feel guilty about using food banks in the meantime - you've paid into these systems and that's exactly what those resources are for. This community seems amazing for getting real answers when the official system fails us. Fingers crossed this gets resolved quickly for you! 🤞

I'm so sorry you had to go through that ordeal! As someone who's been navigating the CalFresh system for a while, those 5+ hour wait times are unfortunately becoming the norm, but they're absolutely unacceptable when you have kids who need to eat. Reading through this thread, it sounds like you discovered it's a statewide system glitch affecting people whose cases were processed between the 25th-30th, which is both frustrating and relieving - at least you know it's not something you did wrong! I'm glad you made the smart decision to hang up once you learned it's a technical issue they can't manually fix. Definitely keep checking the ebtEDGE app over the next day or two, and please don't hesitate to use local food resources while this gets sorted out. You've paid into these systems through your taxes and shouldn't have to choose between feeding your family and missing work because their infrastructure is broken. What really gets me is that they could easily prevent so much stress and wasted time with a simple automated message about widespread system issues, but instead they let thousands of us panic thinking we messed up somehow. Thank goodness for communities like this where we can get real answers and support from people who actually understand what we're going through! Really hoping your benefits show up tomorrow - keep us posted! 🙏

I'm so sorry you're going through this stress - the uncertainty of not knowing when your benefits will come through while trying to feed your kids is absolutely heartbreaking. I went through something very similar about 8 months ago and it took nearly 6 weeks total from submission to approval. What finally broke the logjam for me was doing three things simultaneously: I used Claimyr to get through to an actual worker (it really does work - got connected in under 10 minutes after weeks of busy signals), filed a formal complaint with the California Department of Social Services online for processing delays exceeding 30 days, and contacted my assemblymember's office with a signed release form. The assemblymember's office was honestly the game-changer - within 48 hours of their inquiry, my case was suddenly "urgent" and processed immediately. Apparently the county offices really respond when elected officials start asking questions about delays. In the meantime, definitely call 211 for emergency food resources and check if your kids' schools have weekend backpack programs. Some churches also have "blessing boxes" or little free pantries that can help bridge the gap while you're waiting. You're doing everything right - this system is broken, not you. Your kids shouldn't have to go without because of administrative failures. Keep fighting for your family!

I'm dealing with almost the exact same situation! My renewal has been "processing" for 3.5 weeks now and I'm getting really frustrated with the lack of clear communication from the county office. My 8-year-old keeps asking why we can't have his usual after-school snacks and it's breaking my heart. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful though - I had no idea about the difference between "pulling" and "processing" or that I could contact my state representative for help. The Claimyr service sounds like it's worth trying since so many people have had success getting through the phone lines with it. What really bothers me is that this seems to be a widespread systemic problem rather than isolated cases. It's unacceptable that so many families are going weeks without benefits because of administrative delays that should only take a few days. We shouldn't have to become experts at navigating broken bureaucracy just to feed our children. I'm going to try the multi-pronged approach that Maya suggested - Claimyr to get through the phones, filing a complaint with the state for delays over 30 days, and contacting my assemblymember's office. Hopefully one of those will finally get my case moving. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences and advice - it helps to know we're not alone in this struggle!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so grateful to have found this thread! I just started receiving CalFresh benefits last month and had this exact same scary experience yesterday. When I called the EBT line and heard nothing about future deposits, I immediately thought I'd somehow messed up my application or missed some important step. The panic was real - especially since I'm still figuring out how all these systems work! Reading through everyone's experiences here, particularly @ce65d8d68218's explanation about the system updates and seeing @513d690470b8's journey from worry to relief, has been incredibly reassuring. I had no idea about BenefitsCal.com as an alternative way to check status - just logged in and my benefits are showing as pending there too! It's amazing how a simple technical glitch can cause so much stress when you're new to navigating these systems. Thank you all for being so helpful and supportive - this community is exactly what I needed to feel less alone in learning how to manage my benefits. Your shared knowledge has turned what could have been days of anxiety into a valuable learning experience!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so relieved I found this thread! I just experienced this exact same issue last week - called the EBT line and heard absolutely nothing about future deposits, which sent me into complete panic mode. I'm only about a month into receiving CalFresh benefits and immediately assumed I'd somehow messed up my case or missed some critical paperwork. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been incredibly reassuring, especially @ce65d8d68218's professional explanation about system updates and watching @513d690470b8's journey from worry to relief. I had no idea BenefitsCal.com existed as an alternative way to check! Just logged in and sure enough, my benefits are showing as "pending issuance" there too. It's amazing how much anxiety a simple technical glitch can cause when you're still learning how all these systems work and don't know what's normal versus what's actually concerning. This community is exactly what I was hoping to find - people who genuinely understand the stress of depending on these benefits and actually have helpful solutions to share. Thank you all for being so welcoming and supportive to newcomers like me!