CalWORKs diaper allowance payment missing for March 1st - anyone else's payment delayed?
I've been receiving the diaper allowance for my 2-year-old daughter consistently on the 1st of each month since applying last year. It's usually $45 that gets loaded with my regular Cash Aid, but I just checked my EBT card balance and only my regular Cash Aid amount is there - no diaper money! Did anyone else not get their diaper allowance today? I'm wondering if there's some kind of system delay or if I need to call my worker. My daughter is definitely still under 3 years old, and I didn't receive any notices about changes. Rent is due and I was counting on that extra money...
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Hugo Kass
not just u. mine didnt show up either and my baby is only 18 months. my cousin got hers tho so idk whats goin on
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Simon White
•That's weird that your cousin got hers but we didn't! Have you tried calling the county yet? I might wait until tomorrow to see if it's just delayed before spending hours on the phone...
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Nasira Ibanez
My worker told me last month that there was going to be a system update on the last day of February that might cause some payment delays. They said all benefits should be up to date by the 3rd. I'd wait a couple days before calling about it.
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Khalil Urso
•This is correct. SAWS (the computer system that processes CalWORKs benefits) is undergoing quarterly maintenance which occasionally affects diaper stipends and other supplemental payments. They typically process within 1-3 business days after the maintenance window. If you don't see your diaper allowance by Monday, then I'd recommend contacting your county office.
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Myles Regis
ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? They do this EVERY QUARTER and never warn anyone! Some of us depend on that $45! I have twins and get $90 for the diaper stipend and now I have to somehow come up with that money until they get their act together. I've been on CalWORKs for 2 years and this happens ALL THE TIME with these "system updates." They should process the payments BEFORE doing their updates!
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Brian Downey
•Totally get your frustration. This happened to me last quarter too, but the money showed up 2 days later. Still annoying they don't tell us in advance tho!
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Jacinda Yu
Mine is missing too. Called the county number this morning and got the automated message saying "higher than normal call volume" and then it hung up on me after I waited for 45 minutes! I need to talk to a real person about this because my situation might be different - my son just turned 3 last week so I'm wondering if they cut mine off because of his age. Does anyone know if they stop it exactly at age 3 or at the end of the month they turn 3?
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Landon Flounder
•If your kid just turned 3, that's probably why yours stopped. When my daughter turned 3, it stopped that same month. But for everyone else missing their payment, it's probably that system update thing people mentioned. You might want to try Claimyr if you need to get through to someone at the county. I used it last month when I couldn't get through about my Welfare to Work hours, and they got me connected to a real person in like 10 minutes. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE
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Khalil Urso
Just to clarify for everyone about the diaper allowance rules: 1. Children must be under age 3 to receive the benefit 2. The benefit continues through the month of the child's 3rd birthday, then stops 3. The current amount is $45 per eligible child per month 4. You must be receiving CalWORKs Cash Aid for the child 5. The diaper benefit does NOT need a separate application - it's automatic for eligible children If your child is under 3 and your payment is missing, it's most likely due to the system update. If it doesn't appear by Monday (3/4), call your county office. If you have trouble getting through, request a call back or try calling right when they open.
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Simon White
•This is really helpful information, thank you! I'll definitely wait until Monday then. My daughter is only 2 so I should still be eligible.
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Hugo Kass
mines just showed up!!! check ur accounts ppl
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Simon White
•OMG you're right! Just checked and my $45 is there now. What a relief! Thanks everyone for your help!
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Nasira Ibanez
Glad to see some payments are coming through! For future reference, it might be a good idea to save this information somewhere. These quarterly system updates usually happen around the same time each quarter (end of February, May, August, and November). If you keep track of these dates, you can plan ahead for potential delays. Honestly it's frustrating they don't communicate this better though!
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Myles Regis
•THANK YOU! Finally somebody besides me is pointing out how ridiculous this is. Why can't they just send a text alert? They have our phone numbers! Or put a notice on the BenefitsCal website? Or include it in the monthly statement? ANYTHING would be better than leaving us wondering if our benefits got cut every three months!
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Natasha Volkov
Same thing happened to me! My 15-month-old's diaper allowance didn't come through today either. I was starting to panic thinking I did something wrong or missed some paperwork. Really glad to see it's just a system issue and not just me. Going to check my balance again now that some people are saying theirs showed up. This whole quarterly maintenance thing is news to me - wish they would send us some kind of heads up about it!
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