Thank you for your interest on information on services Yolo County Health and Human Services offers. Due to an unprecedented increase in applications for Medi-Cal, CalFresh and CalWORKS, residents may experience extended wait times and delays in processing benefits. Applications are being processed in the order they are received and our team will connect with applicants as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work diligently to serve Yolo County.

The CalFresh program provides monthly benefits to help low-income individuals or families purchase healthy and nutritious food.

Eligibility

CalFresh benefits are provided to eligible, low-income “households.” A household can be one person, a group of people, a family, or any combination of people that buy and prepare food together. Children living with their parents are considered part of the same household until age 22.

Many legal non-citizens are eligible for CalFresh benefits.  Even if you can’t get CalFresh benefits for yourself, other members of your household may be eligible.

Benefits are based on household size and household income, with deductions allowed for certain expenses such as housing.

While most eligible households receive CalFresh assistance within 30 days of submitting an application, you may meet the criteria for "Expedited Service", in which CalFresh assistance is provided within 3 days of submitting your application. Households are eligible to Expedited Service if they meet one of the following criteria:

• Household has both less than $150 in gross monthly income and less than $100 liquid resources.
• Household combined gross monthly income and resources is less than household’s monthly rent or mortgage and utilities.
• Migrant or seasonal farmworker who is destitute and has less than $100 resources.
• Household is destitute, meaning the household’s only income was received before the application date and has terminated, the household has income from a new source but no more than $25 will be received within 10 calendar days of the application, or a combination of those.
• You have experienced domestic violence and are a resident of or on a waiting list for a domestic violence shelter and certified as a separate household from the abuser if the separate household is receiving CalFresh.

Set up your online account for CalFresh (Food Stamps) or Medi-Cal at https://benefitscal.com

You can also apply for CalFresh:

• Online at GetCalFresh.org 
• By phone at (855) 278-1594
• In-person at one of our office locations found at the bottom of this page
• By mailing a CalFresh application to 137 N Cottonwood St Woodland, CA 95695
• By faxing a CalFresh application to (530) 661-2697

Your name, address, and signature are all that is required to apply. Spanish CalFresh applications can be found here and Russian CalFresh applications can be found here. If you request an interpreter or other interview arrangements due to a disability, please inform the county. 

CalFresh Updates:

Replacement of Stolen CalFresh Benefits

You can protect yourself from future EBT theft by downloading the ebtEDGE Mobile Application on your phone today.

More information can be found here:

English: FIS ebtEDGE Flyer (PUB 525)

Spanish: FIS ebtEDGE Flyer (PUB 525 - Spanish)

Russian: FIS ebtEDGE Flyer (PUB 525 - Russian)

Attention TNB Recipients

The Transitional Nutrition Benefit (TNB) recertification process was put on hold for two years effective November 2021. The TNB recertification process will restart November 2023. If you receive TNB benefits, your recertification form will be sent to you between October 2023 and September 2024 depending on your renewal month. This means you must complete the TNB recertification packet (TNB 4) in order to maintain your EBT food benefits. You may be recertified for an additional 12-months if you qualify.

You can still apply for regular CalFresh at any time if there are changes in your household or income. Please contact your county office if you have any questions. 

FFY 2025 CalFresh Cost Of Living Adjustment

The U.S. Department of Agriculture updates the SNAP (CalFresh) maximum allotments, deductions and income eligibility standards at the beginning of each Federal Fiscal Year (FFY), which runs from October 1 through September 30 of each year.

Effective from October 1, 2024 through September 30, 2025 eligible households may see new benefit amounts and deductions applied. More information on the FFY 2025 CalFresh Cost of Living Adjustment can be found on the CF 11 – Notice to All CalFresh Recipients (English) (Spanish).

 Public Charge

Applying for or receiving SNAP (CalFresh) does not make you a public charge and will not be considered in a public charge determination. Applying for or receiving SNAP will not affect your ability to:

• Remain in the United States
• Get a Green Card/Permanent Legal Resident Status,
• Keep a Green Card/Permanent Legal Resident Status, or
• Become a U.S. Citizen

You can also apply for SNAP on behalf of the eligible immigrants or U.S. citizens in your family, even if you do not want to apply for benefits for yourself, without affecting your or their immigration status. For example, if a parent is not eligible for SNAP because of their immigration status, they can still apply for their eligible children. The SNAP office is not allowed to ask for immigration documents for people who are not applying to receive benefits themselves.

If you need food help, and you or members of your household qualify, please apply for SNAP for yourself or your family. Do it for your family's good!

For more information relating to general immigration information in English or in Spanish, please call USCIS at 1-800-375-5283. For general information about SNAP, please call 1-800-221-5689 (English only) or 202-720-2791 (English and Spanish) to be connected to your state's SNAP hotline.

Eligibility of Humanitarian Parolees from Ukraine

If you are a Ukrainian national, citizen, or individual who last habitually resided in Ukraine who has been granted parole into the U.S. between February 24, 2022 and September 30, 2023, you may be eligible to receive CalFresh benefits due to the newly enacted Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act. If you fall under one of these categories and were previously denied CalFresh benefits, please contact us at the phone number at the bottom of this page, or re-apply for benefits at BenefitsCal.

SUN Bucks

SUN Bucks is a new summer grocery benefit available to families with eligible school-aged children (K-12). Eligible households will receive $120 per child on a pre-loaded SUN Bucks card to help buy groceries during the summer. If you’re already enrolled in benefits like SNAP or TANF, your school-age children will automatically be enrolled in SUN Bucks. Also, if your child attends a school that offers the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program (NSLP/SBP), and your household income meets the requirements for free or reduced-price school meals, your child may automatically be enrolled in SUN Bucks. All eligible children will receive a new SUN Bucks card which will be mailed in a staggered date format between mid-June through August 2024. Each eligible child in the household will receive their own SUN Bucks card. Yolo County is not involved in SUN Bucks. The state will be mailing SUN Bucks cards automatically to all eligible households and no application is necessary.

More information as well as eligibility criteria can be found on the SUN Bucks website. Questions can be answered by calling the P-EBT Helpline at (877) 328-9677.

Be Aware of a Text Message Scam Targeting SNAP Recipients

Be aware of a scam using texting to obtain your personal information.  The text might say you were chosen to receive SNAP, CalFresh, or Food Stamp benefits.  If you do not know if a request for information about CalFresh is real or not, contact the county office. 

Never share personal information with individuals or organizations that you do not know.  Personal information includes your social security number, bank information, or CalFresh electronic benefits transfer card (EBT) or PIN number.

If you think the text is a scam, do not reply at all.  Just delete.

EBT Online Purchasing is here!

 You can now use your CalFresh EBT card benefits to purchase groceries online from Amazon.com and Walmart.com. If you receive CalWORKs or General Assistance, you may also be able to use your cash benefits to make purchases online at Wal-Mart.  More retailers will be added in the future.

 CalFresh EBT card benefits cannot be used to pay for delivery, convenience, or other fees and charges associated with online purchasing. Amazon offers free delivery online with purchases over $35.00. Walmart does not offer free grocery delivery, but they do accept EBT cash benefits to pay for delivery fees.

View more information at the CalFresh website

Other Food Resources in Yolo County

Yolo Food Bank- 233 Harter Ave - Woodland CA 95776 - (530) 668-0690

View food distribution calendars and sites

Mercy Coalition - 3605 Gregory Ave - West Sacramento CA 95605 - (916) 371-6706

(free lunches everyday Mon - Fri at 11am to noon - 500 Jefferson Blvd. West Sacramento)

 or

Subscribe to FreshText

FreshText connects people to food in their area via a free phone texting program. View flyer.

If you would like to subscribe to receive text messages about food distribution sites in your area

simply text 888777 to the keyword(s) below:

KEYWORDS:

For Davis: Text TOMATO to 888777

For UCD Students: Text AGGIES to 888777

For Esparto and Guinda: Text WALNUT to 888777 

For Winters: Text ALMOND to 888777

For West Sacramento: Text GRAPE to 888777

For Woodland: Text OLIVE to 888777

For Dunnigan, Yolo, and Knights Landing: Text RICE to 888777

 Contact Us 

Days and Hours of Operation: 
Monday through Friday, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm