Effective November 1, 2013
Background: The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 requires that food assistance benefits be adjusted annually based on the calculation of the thrifty food plan. The maximum allotments are based on the thrifty food plan. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) raised the maximum food assistance allotments by 13.6 percent in order to provide relief to assistance groups impacted by the economic downturn. The ARRA provision is set to expire on October 31, 2013. As a result, the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service has released the new thrifty food plan, as well as the maximum and minimum allotments.
New policy: As of November 1, 2013 the maximum and minimum allotments will decrease. The federal poverty income levels, the standard deductions, the maximum excess shelter costs, and the utility allowances remain unchanged. The notes section of rule 5101:4-4-27 will be updated to include the new thrifty food plan. Below are the maximum and minimum allotments as of November 1, 2013.
Maximum Food Assistance Allotments
| AG Size | Maximum Allotment |
|---|
| 1 | $189 |
| 2 | $347 |
| 3 | $497 |
| 4 | $632 |
| 5 | $750 |
| 6 | $900 |
| 7 | $995 |
| 8 | $1137 |
| each additional | +$142 |
| Minimum Allotment | $15 |
Implementation: The changes in the maximum and minimum allotments will be implemented via a mass change on the weekend of October 5, 2013. Alerts will be generated and an exception report will be created for all cases which CRIS-E cannot update automatically and the eligibility worker will be required to run ED/BC for those cases to implement these changes. Each assistance group affected by this change will also receive a notice providing their new benefit amount.