CONNECTICUT — About 2,000 of the 25,000 residents promised state-funded $300 grocery cards had received them as of October 27, according to Department of Social Services figures reported by CT Mirror. The program is intended for people who lost federal SNAP benefits under changed work rules, rather than everyone facing high grocery costs.
Keith Phaneuf’s October 27 CT Mirror report, republished by The Day, says the state reached about 575 additional recipients during most of October after an earlier count of 1,425. DSS told the outlet that agencies are now issuing physical cards and that eligible people can obtain them following identity verification.
The governor’s original August 4 announcement describes a one-time benefit for qualifying individuals who lost SNAP under the federal ABAWD work rules since December 1, 2025, and were no longer receiving SNAP. Eligibility must be confirmed by a community action agency. A loss of benefits for one person does not necessarily mean every member of that household is ineligible for SNAP.
For Windham and Tolland counties, Access Community Action Agency’s current grocery-card page directs residents to its outreach team or request form. Access says cards remain available through November 30 and that it cannot distribute them to people outside those two counties. The page says distribution is not first-come, first-served.
DSS’s SNAP Outreach directory lists Access for Windham and Tolland counties at 860-450-7477 and a southeastern Connecticut/New London County contact at 860-889-1365. Those contacts can help residents identify the appropriate agency and verify next steps; this article does not establish that a particular reader qualifies or has a card waiting.
Pickup instructions are not fully consistent across the reviewed sources. CT Mirror reports DSS’s new position that an appointment is unnecessary for eligible recipients, while Access’s currently published page still describes outreach and scheduled appointments. Residents should confirm procedures with their local agency before traveling. Access’s county restriction should not be treated as permission to collect a card at any agency statewide.
The August announcement described virtual prepaid cards, separate from EBT balances. The newly reported move to physical cards is a change in distribution method, not a restoration of ongoing monthly SNAP benefits.
This AI-written report draws on the full authorized The Day republication of CT Mirror’s reporting, the governor’s original program announcement, and current DSS and Access webpages. Eastern CT News did not interview DSS or inspect distribution records. The reported October 27 delivery count has not been independently audited here.
File photo: 55 Farmington Avenue in Hartford, which the state lists as housing DSS among other agencies. It does not depict grocery-card distribution or establish a pickup location for this program.