The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued questions and answers about mid-period reporting for CalFresh.
If the county cannot determine the impact of a mid-period report on the household’s benefits, the county must contact the household. If that is unsuccessful, the county must document the information in the case record and send the household a No-Change Notice of Action.
When a household reports a change in shelter expense mid-period and does not provide the amount of the new shelter cost, the county must send the household a CW 2200 Request for Verification form. The client’s statement of the new shelter cost is sufficient verification. The County allow ten days to provide the verification. If the household does not provide the information, the county must document the information in the case record and send a No-Change notice of action. If the shelter expense information is questionable and verification is not provided, benefits must be recalculated without the shelter cost.
When a household reports an address change mid-period, the county must act on any change in shelter cost related to the address change. If the household does not provide the new shelter cost, the county can attempt to contact the household. If that is not successful, the county must send a CW 2200 Request for Verification form to the household. If the household does not provide the information within 10 days, the county calculates the benefits without the shelter cost. Note that California has a waiver until June 30, 2026 that if the household does not provide new shelter cost information, the county will update the address but not change the shelter cost information until the next recertification or periodic report.
If a household makes a mid-period report and provides necessary information and/or verification, the county must determine if the information is a mandatory mid-period report or is verified upon receipt. If it is neither a mandatory mid-period report nor is verified upon receipt and the change would decrease benefits, the county does not act on it. If the report will increase benefits, the county must act on it for the next monthly benefit allotment.
When a new household member is reported mid-period, the county does not consider the new household member’s income for purposes of the Income Reporting Threshold. The county must update the household’s Income Reporting Threshold to reflect the new number of household members.
Counties do not verify changes in income from the same income source that are $50 or less. However, counties must act upon changes in income from the same income source that are less than $50 if the additional income puts the family over the Income Reporting Threshold.
Households with income between 131 and 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level do not have an income reporting threshold requirement. Mid-period reports of income for those households are not actionable.
When multiple household composition changes are reported at the same time, the county can only act on the household composition changes that increase benefits. (ACIN I-58-25, October 14, 2025.)