Public social services: food stamp benefits.

Existing law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , under which food stamps are allocated to the state by the federal government and are distributed to eligible households by each county. Existing law provides for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits to eligible individuals who are unemployed through no fault of their own. This bill would require a county to take into consideration unemployment compensation benefits of an applicant or recipient of food stamp benefits for the purposes of determining eligibility and the benefit amount only if the county obtains a report from the applicant income and eligibility verification system, containing specified information relating to the applicant's unemployment compensation benefits. Existing law requires that county welfare departments have access to computer information maintained by the Employment Development Department relating to unemployment. This bill would require the county to provide a copy of the applicant income and eligibility verification system report to the applicant or recipient if the county takes any action based on that report. The bill would specify that its requirements would not preclude a county from obtaining official Employment Development Department documentation from the applicant or recipient, if the applicant or recipient already has possession of that verification, as specified. This bill would require the department to implement the bill by all-county letters issued by the department, and thereafter to adopt implementing regulations, as specified.