Will my new Section 8 housing voucher affect my CalFresh benefits in Yuba County?

Congratulations on getting Section 8! Yes, you absolutely need to report this to your county CalFresh office. It's considered a 'change in household circumstances' that must be reported within 10 days. The good news is that Section 8 often doesn't reduce CalFresh benefits as much as people fear because of how they calculate the shelter deduction. When your housing costs decrease, that can affect your benefit amount, but having Section 8 doesn't automatically make you ineligible.

congrats!! i got section 8 last yr and my calfresh went down by like $40 but still worth it for the cheaper rent obviously lol. make sure you tell them ASAP cuz if u don't they might say u got overpayment later on and make you pay back $$$

I went through something similar in Sutter County (right next to Yuba). When I got Section 8, my CalFresh benefits were reduced a bit because I was paying less toward my rent, which affected my shelter deduction. They recalculate your benefits based on your new housing expense after Section 8 pays their portion. You'll need to provide them with your Section 8 voucher amount and what your new rent portion will be. BTW - I've had SUCH a nightmare getting through to the welfare office by phone. I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that saved me hours of waiting. They have a system that calls the welfare office and gets you in the phone queue, then calls you when a real person answers. Saved me literally 3 hours of hold time. Check out their demo: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8

REPORT IT RIGHT AWAY!! My sister didn't tell them about her section 8 for like 2 months and they hit her with a $750 overpayment and had to do a repayment plan AND they cut her benefits for 6 months as a penalty!!! The welfare dept does NOT mess around with not reporting changes!!!

Something important nobody mentioned yet - when you report your Section 8, make sure to also report ANY utility allowance you receive through Section 8. This is actually helpful for your CalFresh calculation because if you get a utility allowance through Section 8, CalFresh might still give you the full Standard Utility Allowance (SUA) in their calculations, which can help maximize your benefits. Also, with Section 8, your actual rent portion is what matters for CalFresh, not the total rent amount. So if your total rent is $1,500 but you only pay $300 after Section 8, then $300 is what CalFresh will use for your shelter costs.

i had section 8 in placer county and my calfresh went down to like $50 a month it sucked but my rent was only $275 after so still better overall

@8 Yes, Claimyr is definitely legit. I was skeptical too but it worked perfectly. They basically wait on hold for you. You still talk directly to the county worker yourself so your information is safe. I used it twice now and it saved me from having to call and call and call for days trying to get through.

To answer your question about reporting methods - for Yuba County, you have several options to report this change: 1. Online through BenefitsCal.com (fastest) 2. By phone: 530-749-6311 3. By mail/fax using a SAR 3 form 4. In person at the Yuba County DHHS office I recommend doing it online and then calling to confirm they received it. Keep documentation of when and how you reported the change. For CalFresh, changes that affect your benefits have to be implemented within 10 days of reporting, but it might take until your next benefit issuance to see the adjustment.

@4 for me they adjusted it the next month but i reported it right at the beginning of the month. if u report now it'll probably change for june benefits

UPDATE: I reported the Section 8 through BenefitsCal this morning and also uploaded a copy of my voucher. Then I tried calling to confirm but couldn't get through (big surprise). Going to try again tomorrow. Thanks everyone for your help!

Great job on getting Section 8 and reporting it so quickly! Just wanted to add that you should also keep an eye on your benefit letter when it comes - it will show exactly how they calculated your new CalFresh amount. If something looks off, you can request a fair hearing within 90 days. Also, once you actually move into your Section 8 unit, you'll need to report that address change too (but that's separate from reporting the voucher itself). The fact that you're being proactive about this shows you're handling it right!