Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 3, March 1, 2024
(1) The Department
does not replace REF, SNAP, or TANF program benefits after they are delivered
to the EBT account unless one of the provisions in this rule apply.
(2) The Department shall replace REF, SNAP,
or TANF benefits when the Department failed to cancel the EBT card of an
individual leaving a REF, SNAP, or TANF program household and that individual
continues to access the REF, SNAP, or TANF program benefits in subsequent
months.
(3) In the SNAP program,
(a)
Household Misfortune or
Disaster. The Department will replace the value of food purchased with
SNAP program benefits when paragraphs (A) through (D) of this subsection are
true. The replacement is limited and issued under paragraph (E) of this
subsection.
(A) The food was destroyed by a
household misfortune or disaster.
(B) The household misfortune or disaster is
verified.
(C) The
filing
group (see OAR 461-110-0370) reports the loss of food:
(i) Within ten days of occurrence,
or
(ii) By the deadline permitted
through Food and Nutrition Service waiver.
(D) The
filing group submits
both of the following within ten days of reporting the loss:
(i) An itemized list of the food lost and the
estimated cost of the food.
(ii) A
signed statement or affidavit attesting to the loss.
(E) The replacement of destroyed food is
governed as follows:
(i) The amount may not
exceed one month's allotment of the benefit group (see OAR
461-110-0750), unless the issuance includes restored benefits which will be
replaced up to the full value of the restored benefits.
(ii) The Department will issue a timely
replacement of the value of the loss by the later of these two timeframes:
(I) Within ten days after the filing
group reported the loss; or
(II) Within two working days of receiving the
signed statement or affidavit, the itemized list of destroyed food and cost,
and verification of the household misfortune or disaster.
(b)
EBT
Card-Caused Loss. The Department shall replace the amount of SNAP
program benefits stolen or
compromised (see paragraph (A) of
this subsection) by means other than electronic benefit theft (see subsection
(3)(c) of this section) when paragraph (B) of this subsection occurs. The
replacement is limited and issued under paragraph (C) of this subsection.
(A) For the purposes of this subsection,
compromised means the EBT card or the EBT card number has been
used by an unauthorized individual to withdraw or spend the SNAP benefits of
the filing group.
(B) The loss of SNAP benefits must be caused
by one of the following reasons:
(i) The
Department issued the EBT card to an unauthorized individual who was not in the
filing group.
(ii)
The Department failed to cancel the EBT card after the filing
group reported to the Department it had been lost, stolen, or
compromised.
(C) The replacement of lost SNAP benefits is
governed as follows:
(i) When the loss is
caused under subparagraph (B) (i) of this subsection, the Department will
replace all SNAP benefits compromised.
(ii) When the loss is caused under
subparagraph (B) (ii) of this subsection, the Department will only replace the
additional SNAP benefits compromised after the filing
group reported to the Department the EBT card had been lost, stolen,
or compromised.
(iii) The Department will issue a timely
replacement of the value of the loss within ten days after the filing
group reported the loss.
(c)
Electronic Benefit Theft.
Effective May 22, 2023, the Department shall replace the value of SNAP program
benefits lost due to electronic benefit theft when paragraph (B) occurs. The
replacement is limited and issued under paragraph (C) of this subsection.
(A) For the purposes of this subsection,
electronic benefit theft includes the following defined terms:
(i) "Card skimming" is defined as EBT card
information stolen utilizing a store's card-swiping machine.
(ii) "Card cloning" is defined as the use of
information obtained by "card skimming" to create a fake EBT card for
fraudulent use.
(iii) "Another
similar fraudulent method" is defined as EBT card information compromised
through electronic means. This may include but is not limited to scams such as
text, email and telephone. It does not include the theft or unauthorized use of
an individual's physical EBT card.
(B) All of the following must occur:
(i) The filing group reports
to the Department that SNAP benefits have been lost due to electronic benefit
theft due to card skimming, card cloning, or
another similar fraudulent method.
(ii) The electronic benefit theft occurred on
or after October 1, 2022.
(iii) The
theft is reported to the Department within thirty days of the date the
electronic benefit theft is discovered.
(iv) The
filing group
submits a signed statement or affidavit attesting to the electronic benefit
theft within ten days of reporting the theft to the Department. The signed
statement or affidavit must include all of the following:
(I) The date they discovered the electronic
benefit theft.
(II) The total
amount of benefits lost due to the electronic benefit theft.
(III) Which EBT card transactions were
electronic benefit theft.
(IV) If
their physical EBT card was in their possession on the date of each electronic
benefit theft transaction.
(v) The Department has validated the filing
group's electronic benefit claim through the EBT card transaction
history.
(C) The
replacement of SNAP benefits lost due to electronic benefit theft is limited
and governed as follows:
(i) Replacement
issuances are limited to the lesser of the following:
(I) The amount of SNAP benefits reported and
qualifying as stolen under paragraph (B) of this subsection.
(II) Two times the monthly allotment of the
benefit group immediately prior to the date of the first
electronic benefit theft transaction.
(ii) A filing group shall
only receive replacements for two instances of electronic benefit theft in each
federal fiscal year (FFY), even if an occurrence of electronic theft crosses
two FFYs. Each FFY begins October 1 and ends September 30. When electronic
benefit theft occurs over the course of several transactions and several days,
this is considered one incident.
(iii) The Department will issue a timely
replacement of SNAP benefits by the later of these two timeframes:
(I) Within ten days after the filing
group reported the electronic benefit theft, or
(II) Within two working days of receiving the
signed statement or affidavit that includes all required information.
(iv) As permitted through the
Consolidated Appropriations Act (Omnibus) of 2023 and allowed by the Food and
Nutrition Service.
(4) In the REF and TANF programs, when a
household is a victim of skimming or a scam that causes a loss in benefits, or
when the Department issues an EBT card in error to an individual that is not
associated with the case that causes a loss in benefits --
(a) A benefit replacement request must meet
all of the following for lost benefits to be replaced:
(A) The household must report to the
Department they are the victim of skimming or a scam, or that the Department
issued an EBT card in error, within 30 days of occurrence.
(B) The household must submit a signed
statement or affidavit attesting to the loss of benefits within ten days of
reporting the loss.
(b)
When the provisions in subsection (a) of this section are met,
(A) The Department will replace up to the
amount of benefits lost.
(B) The
Department will issue a timely replacement of the value of the loss by the
later of these two timeframes:
(i) Within ten
days after the group reported the loss; or
(ii) Within two working days of receiving the
signed statement or affidavit.
(C) Benefits may be replaced only once in a
calendar month.
(5) The Department will replace an EBT card
reported lost, stolen, or not received only after the current card has been
deactivated. An EBT card that is damaged or not functioning properly is
replaced only after the card's status is changed to "card damaged" and the card
is destroyed.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS
409.050, ORS
409.010,
411.060,
411.816 &
Public Law
117-328
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS
409.010,
411.060,
411.816,
7 CFR
280.1 &
Public Law
117-328