UPDATE April 11, 2020: U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced approval for Florida’s request to provide online purchasing of food to SNAP Households. This approval will allow the State to expedite the implementation of online purchasing with currently authorized SNAP online retailers with a target start date later this month. Florida’s SNAP participation is nearly 3 million individuals, about 1.5 million households, and totals nearly $4 billion annually in federal funding.
Tallahassee, Fla. – Governor DeSantis has directed the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) to begin developing plans to implement an online purchasing program for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.
On Friday, April 10, DCF requested a federal waiver to permit the State of Florida to launch a pilot project that will allow Florida families to purchase groceries online with their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card.
“After executing Executive Order 20-91 to limit outside activities to essential services, this commonsense policy approach is a no brainer,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Allowing Florida families to purchase groceries online instead of venturing into a public store is a sound practice during this public health emergency and yet another step that will help Florida flatten the curve.”
“I commend Governor DeSantis for his tireless efforts to ensure Florida’s most vulnerable population has the information, resources, and services needed to respond to and ultimately endure this public health emergency,” said DCF Secretary Chad Poppell.
Current federal regulations prohibit SNAP recipients from purchasing groceries online with an EBT card. In response, under the leadership of Governor DeSantis, Florida has submitted a waiver to participate in the United States Department of Agriculture’s Online Purchasing Pilot, which ensures Floridians can access nutritious food while also practicing social distancing and self-quarantining to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
For more information regarding Florida’s benefit programs during this time, please contact the visit https://www.myflfamilies.com/
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