A excessive variety of meals support recipients in El Paso County who’re prone to lack of efficiency, the Colorado Springs Information company studies

An unusually high number of El Paso County residents could lose food aid benefits this month if they fail to provide documentation to prove their eligibility, officials from the El Paso County Department of Human Services said Monday.

More than 2,000 El Paso County households receiving food aid through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program failed to provide updated information in July to continue receiving benefits in August – a number that surprised county DHS officials said the ministry spokeswoman, Kristina Iodice.

Of the 3,200 SNAP docs due for August support last month, nearly 65% ​​- 2,072 – haven’t been updated in the system since last week. Forms and documents must be submitted to the district by Saturday so that customers can continue to receive benefits this month and in September.

The county sees between 3,000 and 4,000 SNAP cases each month, enabling families in need to “buy groceries and essentials for children,” said Julie Krow, executive director of DHS.

During the “redefinition periods”, when continued eligibility needs to be assessed, around 20% to 30% forfeit for a number of reasons – beneficiaries no longer need the assistance, their circumstances have changed or they have moved, but the current numbers were unusually high. Iodice said.

“We were very surprised when we saw these numbers, and we don’t understand why the number of redeterminations (submitted) was so small,” she said.

The program saw a surge in applications in Colorado and across the country in late March as the coronavirus pandemic hit.

“Applications for assistance tend to follow the economy,” said Iodice. “When the economy is good we see fewer people looking for help, but when the economy is bad we see more uses for those services.”

On average, a SNAP case has about one to six customers, with an average of three customers per case in El Paso County.

There were more than 40,600 SNAP cases and more than 81,200 SNAP customers in El Paso County in July, compared with nearly 37,000 cases and just over 63,500 customers in July 2019, data from the department shows. From April to July this year, El Paso County saw more than 5,600 new SNAP cases and nearly 10,000 new customers.

Documents required for redetermination can be submitted via PEAK at colorado.gov/PEAK, via the MyCOBenefits mobile app, or in person to the Human Services Department for El Paso County, 1675 Garden of the Gods Rd. For more information on SNAP, visit the Colorado Department of Human Services program website at colorado.gov/pacific/cdhs/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap.