CalFresh benefits not deposited on regular 3rd of month date - anyone else affected?

same here!! mine comes on the 3rd too and nothin today. i checked twice and even restarted my phone thinking it was glitching or somethin. my case is active too and i just did my SAR7 last month

Thank god it's not just me! Have you called anyone yet? I'm trying to decide if I should keep waiting or drive all the way to the county office tomorrow.

This happened in my county last year around this time - it was a system-wide delay that affected people with deposit dates on the 3rd and 4th. Benefits were delayed by 1-2 days but eventually showed up. According to state regulations, benefits must be available no later than the 10th calendar day of the month, though they typically adhere to the regular distribution schedule. I'd recommend waiting until tomorrow before panicking, as system delays do occasionally happen.

Thanks for this info! So there's no way to speed it up? My kids are expecting dinner tonight and my grocery budget depends on these benefits.

Unfortunately, there's not much you can do to speed up a system delay. If you're in an emergency situation, you might want to contact local food pantries for tonight. You can also call your county worker tomorrow if the benefits haven't appeared by then, but same-day resolution is unlikely. Document the delay if it causes significant hardship as you may be able to file a complaint.

This iz EXACTLY why I hate the stupid EBT system!! No1 EVER TELLS U anything when theres problems!!1! I had this happen 2 me 3 TIMES last year and even when I waited 4 HOURS 2 talk to someone they just said \

I know, right?? I just wish they'd send a text or something if there's going to be a delay. My kids don't understand why there's no food when I promised them dinner tonight.

I've been getting CalFresh for about 5 years now, and I've noticed that occasionally these system delays happen. What I've learned to do is always keep at least a few days' worth of shelf-stable foods (rice, beans, canned goods) as a backup when these kinds of issues happen. It's frustrating, but the benefits almost always show up within 1-3 days when there are delays like this. If it goes beyond that, then it might be something specific to your case rather than a system-wide issue.

that's good advice but some of us cant afford to buy extra food to just have sitting around. when ur stretching every dollar already it's impossible

If you need to reach someone urgently, I discovered this service called Claimyr that helps you skip the hold times when calling the county CalFresh office. It basically waits on hold for you and calls you back when a real person is on the line. Saved me hours last month when my recertification wasn't processed correctly. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8. Much better than waiting on hold for hours or driving to the office.

Omg this sounds amazing. Does it actually work? I hate waiting on hold forever just to talk to someone.

Yes! It saved me literally 3 hours of hold time. You still pay for the call like normal, but they handle the waiting part. I was skeptical too but when they called me back with an actual worker on the line I was shocked.

I work in social services (not for CalFresh directly), and I can confirm we've been getting reports of a delay in the benefits issuance system today. From what I understand, it's affecting multiple counties, primarily impacting those with issuance dates on the 3rd and possibly the 4th. The technical team is aware and working on it, but there's unfortunately no immediate fix. Benefits should start appearing overnight or by tomorrow morning at the latest. If you're in a true emergency situation, you can request an expedited replacement, but that requires going in person to your county office with identification.

Thank you for this information! Do you know if there will be any official announcement about this? It's so stressful not knowing what's happening.

Unfortunately, the notification system isn't great for these types of technical delays. Some counties may post updates on their websites or social media, but many don't. If this continues beyond tomorrow, I'd suggest calling your county office directly, as they should have more specific information by then.

Have you checked if your EBT card expired? I didn't realize mine was going to expire and suddenly couldn't access my benefits. They're supposed to mail a new one automatically but mine never came.

Just checked and my card is good until 2029, so that's not it. Thanks for the suggestion though!

update: just checked again at 11pm and my benefits finally showed up!! check ur accounts again everyone!!!

THANK YOU FOR LETTING US KNOW! Just checked and mine are there too!! What a relief, now I can go shopping first thing in the morning. This has been such a stressful day. Why can't they just tell us when there are delays??

Glad to hear everyone's benefits are showing up now! For future reference, this type of system delay happens a couple times a year, especially around holidays or the beginning of fiscal quarters. It's good practice to keep track of these patterns. Also, for anyone who experienced significant hardship because of this delay (like having to borrow money or not being able to feed your family), you can file a formal complaint with your county. If enough people document these issues, it can lead to system improvements.

Thanks for this advice. I'm definitely going to file a complaint. My kids had to eat ramen tonight because that's all I had left. They should at least send out a text alert when there are delays.

I'm so glad to see everyone's benefits finally came through! This whole situation really highlights how much we depend on these systems working properly. As a fellow parent, I totally understand the stress of not knowing if you'll be able to feed your kids tonight. For anyone dealing with similar delays in the future, I've found that some local churches and community centers keep emergency food boxes for exactly these situations - no paperwork required, just show up. It's not a long-term solution but can help bridge the gap when these system glitches happen. Also, filing those complaints James mentioned is super important - if we don't document these issues, nothing will change about their communication practices.