USDA Approves Replacement SNAP Benefits After Winter Power Outages in Humboldt

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved automatic replacement of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits in California equal to 50 percent of a household’s allotment after winter storms beginning Feb. 15 left widespread power outages and spoiled refrigerated food. The user-supplied materials identify Humboldt County among eligible counties for the mass replacement.

Winter storms that began Feb. 15 produced widespread power outages across multiple regions of California, and “many households lost perishable items bought with CalFresh benefits during the outages,” according to reporting summarized in the supplied materials. Known in California as CalFresh, the program delivers monthly food assistance through electronic benefit transfer cards, and the loss of refrigeration affected food purchased on those EBT cards.

The waiver approved by USDA for California permits an automatic, area-based approach rather than requiring individual loss reports. “The waiver allows California to issue automatic mass replacements equal to 50 percent of benefits for households that lost food due to the power outages,” the Mountain Messenger account states, and the reporting adds that the approach “eliminates the need for individual loss reports from every participant in heavily impacted zones. Instead, officials assume losses occurred when outages met the established criteria for duration and prevalence.”

A California article dated March 2, 2026 notes a map accompanying the announcement that highlights zip codes in the Sierra Nevada and foothill regions in red as receiving replacement SNAP benefits. The same account summarized USDA language that households in affected California areas “may qualify for replacement benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).” The item reiterates that power outages disrupted refrigeration access and “led to spoiled food purchased with program benefits for many recipients.”

Federal Food and Nutrition Service rules underpin the replacement authority. SNAP regulations at 7 CFR 274.6 permit replacement of benefits destroyed due to a household misfortune, and FNS is adopting similar policy for FDPIR. FNS guidance states that “for verified power outages, only those foods requiring refrigeration must be replaced, up to the total quantity of refrigerated/frozen USDA Foods issued to the household in the month that the foods were destroyed. Households, at their option, may take less than the maximum quantity made available to them.” FNS guidance further requires agencies to “provide written notice of denial of the request for replacement foods” and lists denial reasons and the right to a fair hearing.

By contrast, materials from Massachusetts describing Blizzard Hernando show a different, individual-claim process: “Massachusetts residents who lost food due to power outages following Blizzard Hernando may be eligible for replacement SNAP benefits,” and the Commonwealth’s Department of Transitional Assistance requires that “all food losses be reported within 10 days of the incident to qualify for replacement benefits.” Those materials also include a DTA assistance line at 877-382-2363 and specify pressing 5 then 1 after language selection to reach the appropriate department.

The USDA-approved California waiver aims to “help restore food security for affected residents while minimizing administrative burdens during recovery,” per the supplied reporting. CalFresh recipients in the designated zip codes should monitor their EBT account activity and contact county social services or CalFresh administrators for confirmation on timing and posting of the automatic 50 percent replacement.