Sponsored by:
Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Assemblywoman ANGELA V. MCKNIGHT
District 31 (Hudson)
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblymen Conaway, Verrelli and Assemblywoman Pintor Marin
SYNOPSIS
Requires Commissioner of Human Services to request authorization for SNAP benefits to be used to pay delivery charges for online grocery purchases.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Commissioner of Human Services shall request that the Food and Nutrition Service within the United States Department of Agriculture take such steps as are necessary to permit funds available through the “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” (SNAP), established pursuant to the federal “Food and Nutrition Act of 2008,” Pub.L.88-525 (7 U.S.C. s.2011 et seq.), to be utilized by individuals receiving SNAP benefits to pay the delivery fee levied by an authorized New Jersey SNAP retailer for home delivery of the individual’s SNAP-eligible purchase.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would permit an individual who receives benefits under the “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” (SNAP) to use funds available through the individual’s SNAP electronic benefits transfer card to pay the delivery charge for home delivery of the individual’s SNAP-eligible grocery purchase. In March 2020, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) opened its pilot program for online grocery purchasing to New Jersey’s SNAP participants. Individuals participating in New Jersey SNAP may purchase groceries online through Amazon, and at participating Walmart, The Fresh Grocers, and ShopRite stores. Currently, the USDA does not allow the use of SNAP funds to pay the fee charged for home delivery of grocery purchases.
The SNAP is a nutrition assistance entitlement program for low-income households regulated by Food and Nutrition Service within the USDA, pursuant to the “Food and Nutrition Act of 2008,” Pub.L.88-525 (7 U.S.C. s.2011 et seq.). At the State level, the program is administered by the county welfare agencies, under the supervision of the Division of Family Development (DFD) in the Department of Human Services.