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Food Stamp, Cash Assistance Recipients to Get Automatic 6-Month Extension, Increase in Maximum Allotment

The V.I. Department of Human Services (DHS) said Tuesday it was alerted that the USVI has received a temporary increase to the maximum Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, also called food stamps) allotments due to the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the release, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, signed by President Donald Trump on Sunday, increases food stamp benefits by raising maximum allotments to 115 percent of the June 2020 value of the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP). The legislation requires that the increased maximum allotments take effect beginning on January 1, 2021 and remain for each subsequent month through June 30, 2021. For current USVI SNAP recipients, the temporary increased maximum allotments beginning on January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2021 are as follows: Automatic 6-Month Extension of the Certification Period DHS also notified current food stamp and Cash Assistance (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Aid to the Aged, Blind and Dis...