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Title 7: SNAP Page 23 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter H: Adjustments Request for Replacement of SNAP Revised October 11, 2024 Replacement of Food Destroyed in a Household… Households must report the loss of food within 10 days of the date the household discovered their food loss and verify the loss. After reporting the loss, a household member or the household’s authorized representative has 10 days to sign and return form 470-2920, Request for Replacement of Spoiled Food. When the 10th day falls on a weekend or holiday, the signed form must be received by the next working day. The food that was destroyed did not have to have been purchased out of the current month’s SNAP to be eligible for a replacement. When processing a Request for Replacement of Spoiled Food, 470-2920, be sure you do not issue a replacement of benefits for a month in which a replacement has already been issued. Exception: If the client contacts you with another loss or to report additional losses for the same month, another replacement may be issued as long as the total allotment for one month is not exceeded. Document all actions clearly in the case narrative. Replacement issuances must be provided to households within 10 days of report of loss or within two working days of receiving the signed household statement, whichever date is later. If the household takes the full amount of days to provide the statement, issue the replacement within two days. The amount replaced cannot exceed the household’s monthly allotment at the time the misfortune occurred, plus any lost benefits issued to the household during that month. In addition, the replacement cannot exceed the amount they claim to have lost, if it is less than the full allotment. NOTE: A household is not eligible for replacement benefits that are approved after the date of loss. EXAMPLE: The household completed a SNAP application on 08/02/2021 and the interview was held on 08/03/2021. The household experienced a power outage on 08/04/2021 and lost all of their food. The SNAP application was not approved until 08/16/2021. The household was not entitled to replacement benefits for 08/2021 benefits because they had not received SNAP benefits prior to their loss. The food that they lost was not food purchased with their 08/2021 SNAP benefits. When a household reports that food was destroyed in a household misfortune: 1. Send form 470-2920, Request for Replacement of Spoiled Food to the household for signature. Before sending, complete as much as possible in the “HHS Use Only” section, but do not make a decision on the replacement until the signed form is returned. The case number should be complete and accurate. Document the source used to verify the cause of the food loss. Verification may include a collateral contact, website, news source or documentation from a community agency, such as the fire department or the Red Cross.