I'm new to this community but wanted to share my recent experience that might help! I had to get an EBT card replacement at the Fresno DSS office just last month. Everything everyone has said is accurate - definitely go in person! One additional tip: if you're bringing your kids and worried about them getting restless, there are actually some coloring books and crayons available at the front desk that you can ask for. The staff keeps them specifically for families with children who have to wait. Also, I noticed they have a "fast track" option for certain emergency situations - when you check in, mention that your card was stolen and you have kids at home with no food. Sometimes they can expedite these cases. The morning really is the best time to go - I was there at 8:15am and out by 9:45am. You've got this! Your quick thinking to reach out to this community and plan to go in person shows you're handling this crisis exactly right.

I'm so sorry this happened to you! As someone who just went through this exact situation in Fresno about two weeks ago, I can confirm everything everyone is saying - definitely go in person to the DSS office tomorrow morning! I got there at 7:45am and was out by 10:15am with my new card in hand. Just wanted to add a couple things that helped me: bring a phone charger or portable battery pack since you might be there for a while, and if you have any documentation about reporting the theft (like a police report number or the EBT customer service case number from when you called), bring that too - it can help speed up the process. The staff was really understanding about my situation and even gave me some resource pamphlets about identity theft protection. Your balance will definitely transfer immediately and you can use the card right away. Hang in there - you're doing everything right and your kids will have food soon! This community has been amazing with all the detailed advice. 💙

I'm new to CalFresh and this thread is really helpful - I had no idea weekend delays were a thing! My benefits are supposed to load on the 15th this month which falls on a Saturday. Based on what everyone's saying here, should I expect it to actually come on Monday the 17th instead? I'm trying to plan my grocery shopping and don't want to end up in the same stressful situation. Also, is there any way to find out ahead of time if your county tends to have these weekend delays, or do you just have to learn from experience?

This is such a common issue and it's really frustrating that CalFresh doesn't clearly communicate the weekend delay pattern. I've been receiving benefits for about a year now and have noticed that Saturday deposits almost always get pushed to Monday, despite what the official policy says. What really helped me was starting to track my deposit dates and patterns in a simple notebook - after a few months I could predict when delays would happen. For anyone dealing with this regularly, I also recommend checking if your local food banks have weekend hours or emergency food programs. Many offer Saturday distributions specifically because they know about these EBT delays. It shouldn't be necessary, but having that backup option has been a lifesaver when my kids needed meals and the benefits were delayed. The system definitely needs to be more transparent about these delays instead of leaving families scrambling!

I'm going through my first CalFresh application and this thread has been a lifesaver! I'm in almost the exact same situation - my aunt watches my 2-year-old daughter while I work, and I pay her $600/month in cash. My interview is next week and I was getting really anxious about the verification process. Reading everyone's experiences with signed statements makes me feel so much more prepared. It's amazing how many people have successfully used this approach for family childcare arrangements. I'm going to create a simple agreement with my aunt that includes all the details you all mentioned - her contact info, my daughter's info, care schedule, payment amount, and both our signatures. One question though - for those who submitted statements, did you include anything about WHY you chose cash payments? Like explaining it's more convenient for family arrangements? Or did you just state that payments are made in cash without additional explanation? Also, I noticed some people mentioned including the childcare provider's willingness to take phone calls from the county. Is this something I should proactively mention in the statement, or just be prepared for if they ask? Thanks to everyone for sharing such detailed experiences - this community is incredibly helpful for newcomers like me navigating the CalFresh system!

I just went through this exact verification process last month and wanted to share what worked for me! My babysitter (who's also my neighbor) watches my 18-month-old while I work, and I pay her $500/month in cash. When my CalFresh worker asked for childcare verification, I created a simple statement that included: - Her full name, phone number, and address - My baby's name and birthdate - Care schedule (Mon-Wed-Fri, 8am-3pm) - Monthly payment amount ($500, paid weekly) - Both our signatures and date I was nervous about submitting it, but the worker accepted it right away and said informal arrangements are totally normal. The childcare deduction helped increase my benefits by about $60/month, which really makes a difference. Since you already told them $650 in your interview, just make sure your statement matches that exact amount. They're looking for consistency more than anything else. Don't stress too much - from what I've learned, they just need to verify it's a real expense, not that you have fancy receipts!

Hey is anyone still having trouble withdrawing cash from the ATMs or is it just me only?

I'm so glad I found this thread! I was freaking out yesterday when my card wouldn't work at the ATM. I'm pretty new to using CalFresh benefits and didn't know these system-wide outages could happen. The suggestion about getting cash back at grocery stores was really helpful - I was able to get some money that way. Does anyone know if there's like a newsletter or website where they post about planned maintenance so we can prepare ahead of time? It would be so much better than finding out when you're standing at an ATM with bills due!

This thread is such a perfect example of why I love this community! As someone who moved from Nevada to California just six months ago and had to navigate CalFresh for the first time, I wish I had found a resource like this back then. The learning curve for understanding how different California's system is from other states was pretty steep for me. Anastasia, you're handling this move so much better than I did - I made the mistake of assuming California worked like Nevada and just updated my address online without understanding the county transfer process. Ended up with a two-week gap in benefits while they sorted everything out. The checklist Sean shared is incredibly thorough and I'm definitely saving it for future reference. One small thing I'd add based on my experience as someone new to California - if you're coming from out of state like I was, make sure you also have your California ID/driver's license updated relatively quickly after your move. Some counties want to see that you're establishing residency, and having current California documentation makes everything smoother. Welcome to California and LA! The adjustment period can be overwhelming but this community has been such a lifesaver for navigating all the state-specific processes. You're definitely in good hands here!

Hey Anastasia! As someone who also recently moved to California from out of state (came from Texas about a year ago), I totally understand how overwhelming all these different processes can feel when you're trying to get established in a new place. Just wanted to add one more practical tip that helped me when I had to deal with county offices - if you're calling during your lunch break from your new job and the hold times are really long, you can sometimes request a callback instead of staying on hold. Not all counties offer this, but Orange County actually does have a callback system for some of their departments. You give them your number and they call you back when it's your turn in the queue. Super helpful when you're trying to handle this stuff while starting a new job! Also, congrats on landing a job in LA so quickly after your move! That's awesome. The fact that you're being so proactive about handling the CalFresh transfer shows you've got your head on straight. You're going to do great here. This thread has been such a great resource - everyone's advice is spot on and that checklist from Sean is definitely worth printing out and following step by step. Best of luck with everything, and don't hesitate to update us on how the transfer process goes!