CalFresh taking money from both my EBT card AND my paychecks for overpayment - is this legal?

That doesn't sound right at all! When I had a CalFresh overpayment last year ($1200), they only reduced my food benefits by 10% each month. They should NOT be touching your paycheck or CalWORKs for a CALFRESH overpayment. Those are completely different programs with different rules. I think they're mixing up your case with something else, like maybe you have a CalWORKs overpayment too?

I work as an eligibility specialist, and there's definitely something wrong with how your overpayment is being collected. For CalFresh (food stamps) overpayments, they can only recoup by reducing your future CalFresh benefits (typically by 10% unless you agree to more). They CANNOT garnish your wages or reduce your CalWORKs for a CalFresh-only overpayment. However, if you had separate overpayments in multiple programs (CalFresh AND CalWORKs), then each program would collect their own overpayment separately. You should immediately request a breakdown of each alleged overpayment by program and request a fair hearing if you disagree. The deadline to request a hearing is 90 days from when you received each notice.

This happened to my cousin!!! Turns out she actually had TWO separate overpayments - one for CalFresh and one for CalWORKs. But the county never clearly explained that to her so she thought it was all one thing. Definitely ask for itemized notices for each program!

You should immediately request a fair hearing! They are 100% not allowed to collect a CalFresh overpayment from your CalWORKs or wages. I had the exact same situation in 2023 and I requested a hearing, and the judge immediately stopped the collections from my CalWORKs while my appeal was pending. In the end, it turned out I actually had BOTH a CalFresh overpayment AND a CalWORKs overpayment, but they never clearly explained that to me. Be sure to specifically ask for a "Statement of Facts" for EACH program overpayment, and check each notice's heading to see which program it's actually for. Often the county sends confusing notices that don't clearly state which benefit the overpayment applies to. Don't wait on this - request that hearing ASAP!

Also, I learned my lesson about trying to call the county office about complex issues like overpayments. You'll never get through or get a straight answer. Try using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to skip the hold times. It basically calls the county for you and connects you when a real person answers. Saved me hours of frustration when dealing with my overpayment situation. There's a video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8

The whole system is BROKEN!!! They do this ALL THE TIME. They "accidentally" take from multiple sources and hope people don't know their rights!!! I had them take from both my CalFresh and CalWORKS and when I finally got through to a supervisor they claimed it was a "system error" and fixed it. BUT THEY NEVER GAVE ME BACK THE MONEY THEY WRONGLY TOOK!!! DON'T TRUST WHAT THE REGULAR WORKERS TELL YOU! Ask for a supervisor IMMEDIATELY and say you want to file for a fair hearing. Use those exact words and they suddenly start treating you differently!!!

i had an overpayment but they only took from my foodstamps not the other stuff. sounds like maybe u have two different overpayments? check all ur notices carefully and see if any mention calworks specifically

To directly answer your question: No, they cannot collect a CalFresh overpayment from your wages or CalWORKs. Each program has separate overpayment rules: 1. CalFresh overpayments: Can only be collected by reducing future CalFresh benefits (usually by 10%) or through voluntary repayment 2. CalWORKs overpayments: Can be collected through reduced CalWORKs benefits, wage garnishment, tax intercepts, or voluntary repayment Here's what you should do immediately: 1. Request a detailed breakdown of each overpayment by program 2. Ask for copies of all overpayment notices if you don't have them 3. Request a fair hearing within 90 days of each notice 4. Request that collections be paused during the appeal process You can request a fair hearing online through the state website or by calling 1-800-952-5253. Don't delay, as the deadline is strict.

I want to add one important thing - even if you do have separate overpayments in multiple programs, there are limits to how much they can collect at once. For CalFresh, they typically can't reduce your benefits by more than 10% unless you agree to a higher amount. For CalWORKs, there are similar limitations. And wage garnishments for public benefits are usually capped too. When you get the breakdown of the overpayments, check if they're exceeding these limits in total. Sometimes the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing in these agencies, and they might be taking too much when all collections are combined. During your fair hearing, bring this up if the total reduction across all programs exceeds reasonable limits.

One more question - did you get an actual Notice of Action for each overpayment? Those are the official forms that explain what happened, why, and your appeal rights. Sometimes people miss these in their mail or only read part of them. Each notice should clearly state which benefit program it applies to (CalFresh or CalWORKs). If you didn't get proper notices for each program, that's another issue you can raise in your hearing.

UPDATE: You all were right!!! I went through ALL my papers last night and found that I actually have TWO separate overpayments - one for CalFresh ($1,475) and another for CalWORKs ($2,275). They sent separate notices but they looked so similar I thought it was just duplicate papers about the same thing! I'm still going to request a fair hearing because they never explained they were taking from all these different sources, and I think they're taking more than they should legally be allowed to. Thank you all so much for your help!!!

So glad you figured it out! That's exactly what happened to me too - the notices look almost identical and it's so confusing. You're absolutely doing the right thing requesting the fair hearing. Even with two separate overpayments, they still need to follow the collection limits for each program and can't just take whatever they want. Make sure to mention in your hearing that they never clearly explained you had two different overpayments - that lack of clear communication is a real problem. Also document how much they're taking total from all sources so you can show if it's creating undue hardship. Good luck with your hearing!