The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that low-income Louisiana residents in eight parishes (Ascension, Assumption, Lafourche, St. Charles, St. James, St. John, St. Mary, and Terrebonne) recovering from the impact of Hurricane Francine that began on September 11, 2024, could be eligible for a helping hand from the USDA’s Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP).

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that approximately 40,000 households that may not normally be eligible under regular Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) rules may qualify for D-SNAP – if they meet certain criteria, including the disaster income limits and have qualifying disaster-related expenses.

“USDA is committed to ensuring that Louisiana residents impacted by Hurricane Francine get all the help they need,” said Vilsack. “This waiver will provide the vital food assistance that individuals and households need to help them get back on their feet.”

To be eligible for D-SNAP, a household must live in an identified disaster area, have been affected by the disaster, and meet certain D-SNAP eligibility criteria. Eligible households will receive one month of benefits – equal to the maximum monthly amount for a SNAP household of their size – that they can use to purchase groceries at SNAP-authorized stores or from select retailers online to meet their temporary food needs as they settle back home following the disaster. Louisiana will operate its D-SNAP application September 25, 2024 – October 1, 2024. Louisiana will share additional information about D-SNAP application dates and locations through local media.

Although current SNAP households are not eligible for D-SNAP, USDA has also approved Louisiana to automatically issue supplemental SNAP benefits to current SNAP households in six parishes (Ascension, Assumption, Lafourche, St. John the Baptist, St. Mary, and Terrebonne) to bring their allotment up to the maximum amount for their household size if they don’t already receive that amount. SNAP households in the remaining two parishes of St. Charles, St. James may request supplemental benefits from their state SNAP agency.

For more information about this and other available aid, callers from Louisiana can dial 2-1-1 or 1-888-524-3578. For more information about Louisiana SNAP, visit Louisiana’s Department of Children and Family Services.