SNAP

Over 160,000 Hawaiʻi residents receive SNAP benefits every month. But new requirements and federal funding cuts to the program put many at risk of losing this assistance. HPR's Emma Caires has more.

The cuts impact the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, forcing states to pay for those cuts themselves, make changes to the program, or eliminate it altogether.

A University of Hawaiʻi program that works with about 15,000 people a year is at risk after federal funding cuts. In a news release, UH says the program will end on Sept. 30 if Congress doesn't restore its funding.

The state Department of Human Services said it has a 25% vacancy for eligibility workers and 50% for clerical staff at SNAP processing centers.

The bills would establish a Farm to Families program within the state Department of Agriculture to allocate state funds to food banks for buying, storing and delivering locally grown or produced food for food-insecure communities.

A virtual marketplace for local produce is now accepting online Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program payments, giving some low-income households more accessibility.

The state wants to change the rules of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program so that more than 13,000 more households could be eligible for food stamps. HPR's Ashley Mizuo explains.

The state Department of Human Services has opened up applications for its Summer EBT program, also known as SUN Bucks. Households will receive $177 for each qualifying child. That’s more than the $120 per child allotted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Long-term funding could finally be coming to the state’s DA BUX program. The initiative cuts the price in half for eligible produce grown by Hawaiʻi farmers, and this year’s state budget bill could allocate a recurring $1 million annually to DA BUX.

Gov. Josh Green has released $500,000 for the DA BUX Double-Up Program, helping families facing food insecurity buy more local fruits and vegetables.