Moving from TN to CA - Will CalFresh do a home inspection of my food storage?
I recently moved to California from Tennessee and just applied for CalFresh after canceling my SNAP benefits in TN. I'm currently staying with my godmother while I get settled. When I told her I applied, she completely freaked out! She says years ago when her daughter applied for food stamps, someone from the state came to their house and inspected their kitchen and food storage areas. My godmother is now paranoid they'll show up wanting to see what food we have in the house. I've never experienced anything like this in Tennessee and told her I think she's overreacting, but now I'm second-guessing myself. Does CalFresh actually do home visits to check your food? Would they come inspect my godmother's kitchen even though she's not on my case? I'm stressing because she's threatening to withdraw her offer to let me stay if it means government inspectors coming around.
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Freya Larsen
No, CalFresh does NOT conduct home visits to inspect your kitchen or food storage. Your godmother is confusing CalFresh with something else entirely. I've been on CalFresh for over 5 years and this has never happened to me or anyone I know. The only verification CalFresh typically requires is documentation of your identity, residency, income, expenses, etc. They process your application based on the paperwork you submit and sometimes phone interviews. They're concerned with determining your eligibility based on income and household size, not what's in your pantry. You can reassure your godmother that no one will be coming to inspect her kitchen!
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Ravi Kapoor
•Thank you SO much! I thought this sounded crazy but wasn't 100% sure since different states have different rules. She's convinced it happened to her daughter but maybe that was for some other program? I'll show her your response and hopefully that calms her down.
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GalacticGladiator
lol no they definitely dont do that. ur godmom is trippin. they just want ur paystubs and ID and stuff. nobody comin to count ur cans of beans lmao
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Ravi Kapoor
•😂 That's exactly what I tried telling her! She swears it happened though, so I was starting to doubt myself.
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Omar Zaki
Your godmother might be remembering something from the really old days. Back in the 90s, I think some programs did do home visits, but CalFresh in California definitely DOES NOT do kitchen inspections now. The only time they might do a home visit is if they suspect fraud like claiming to live alone when you have undisclosed household members, but even those are super rare. They're worried about your income and household composition, not how much food you have. So weird she's so freaked about this! Different generation I guess. My mom was the same way about "government programs.
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Chloe Taylor
•Yes, this is exactly right. I worked as an eligibility worker about 10 years ago (not in California but the programs are similar). Home visits were phased out decades ago for regular SNAP/CalFresh. The only time home visits happen now is during fraud investigations, and those require specific allegations and evidence. The OP's godmother might be remembering the old "declaratory" method of determining eligibility from the 70s/80s when workers sometimes did home visits. But modern CalFresh administration is paperwork-based with verification through documents and database checks. They don't have the staffing or budget to do random home visits - the county offices are already overwhelmed with applications!
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Diego Flores
Like others have said, CalFresh doesn't do kitchen inspections. Your godmother might be thinking of a different program or something from many years ago. Since you mentioned you just moved from Tennessee, make sure you're aware that California's verification requirements might be different from what you're used to. They'll likely need proof of residency (a statement from your godmother might work), identity, and income. If you're having trouble getting through to the county office to ask questions about these requirements, I've found Claimyr really helpful (claimyr.com). It got me through to a live person at my county office after I spent days trying. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8 Good luck with your application!
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Ravi Kapoor
•Thanks for the tips! I actually have been trying to call the county office to ask about what verification they need for my living situation (since I don't have any bills in my name yet), but I keep getting stuck in their automated system. I'll check out that service!
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GalacticGladiator
wait i just rememberd - my cousin said they did come to his house once but that was bcuz someone reported him for fraud saying he was hiding income or something. but thats super rare and only if ur reported. regular applications dont get home visits
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Freya Larsen
•This is an important distinction. Fraud investigations are completely separate from the regular application process. For a normal application or recertification, there are NO home visits. But if someone reports you for fraud (like claiming to live alone when you're actually living with a partner who has income), then yes, they might investigate. But that's extremely rare and only happens when there's a specific allegation of fraud.
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Anastasia Ivanova
This might sound silly but i think maybe ur godmom is confusing calfresh with some other program?? My grandmother used to get commodity foods (the government cheese and stuff) back in the 80s and I think they did home visits for that program. But not for SNAP/CalFresh!!
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Omar Zaki
•OMG the commodity food program! My family got those too when I was a kid. The giant blocks of orange government cheese and those huge cans of peanut butter! You might be right - they did have different requirements back then. Good catch!
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Sean Murphy
THE GOVERNMENT IS ABSOLUTELY MONITORING WHAT YOU EAT!!! This is why I tell EVERYONE to be careful what benefits they sign up for! They start with "helping" you and end with CONTROLLING you! Your godmother is RIGHT to be concerned. They might not do it right away but eventually they WILL check what you're eating. This is part of their plan to track and restrict our food consumption. Do your research people!!!
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Chloe Taylor
•This is completely false information. I've worked in the benefits system, and there is absolutely no monitoring of what foods people purchase with their EBT cards beyond the standard restrictions (no alcohol, tobacco, hot prepared foods, etc.). The system doesn't track individual food items, and there are no home inspections to see what's in your pantry. Please don't spread misinformation that might frighten people away from getting assistance they need.
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Ravi Kapoor
Update: Thank you all for your responses! I showed this thread to my godmother, and while she still insists "they used to do it back in the day," she's now convinced it won't happen with my application. I think I've calmed her fears enough that she's not going to kick me out, lol. My phone interview is scheduled for next week, so hopefully everything goes smoothly from here!
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Freya Larsen
•Glad to hear it worked out! Good luck with your interview. Just be honest about your situation, have your verification documents ready, and you should be fine. The CalFresh workers are generally pretty helpful.
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Jacob Lee
Great to hear you got it sorted out! Your godmother probably was remembering something real from decades ago - the old welfare system was much more intrusive back then. But today's CalFresh is totally different. For your phone interview, just have your ID, proof of where you're staying (maybe a letter from your godmother), and any income documentation ready. Since you're new to California, they might ask about your move from Tennessee, but that's totally normal. The fact that you properly closed your SNAP case in TN before applying in CA shows you're doing everything right. Hope your interview goes smoothly and you get approved quickly!
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