The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has provided information about the implementation date of the CalFresh Minimum Nutrition Benefit Pilot Program (MNB Pilot). CDSS also announced revised MNB Pilot program criteria.
The required automation for the MNB Pilot will be completed in the California Statewide Automated Welfare System (CalSAWS), for the implementation date of December 1, 2025.
The new MNB Pilot eligibility criteria are that households must meet all of the following requirements to be eligible to participate in MNB Pilot:
- Households must be eligible for the Elderly Simplified Application Project (ESAP)
- Must receive a monthly food benefit allotment of less than $60.
- Households must have two or more CalFresh eligible members.
- Eligible households must be receiving CalFresh on December 1, 2025, or have a pending application for CalFresh that is approved with a beginning date of aid on or before December 1, 2025.
Benefits issued under the MNB Pilot will not be replaced if lost in a disaster, including a household misfortune or stolen by electronic theft.
Correction of any MNB Pilot underissuances must be made no later than June 30, 2027. The (MNB Pilot) program will operate from December 1, 2025 through November 30, 2026. (ACL 25-59, August 8, 2025.)