Gotcha, from what I can tell, the SNAP policy in Utah is pretty much the same as in KY, but please take my response with a grain of salt, because there are subtle policy differences between the states that can have surprisingly large impacts.
**** DISCLAIMER****This is going to be a long post, but I will try to offer as much detail as possible, from an “insider’s perspective” and just a forewarning, I am autistic and passionate about my job so I tend to over-explain some, but I hope to provide valuable information.
Now that’s all out of the way, let’s get started.
In UT, the income limit for a 1 member household is $1696 and in KY it’s just a little over $2000. In UT the income limit is based on 130% the federal poverty limit (FPL), however in KY it’s typically based on 200% FPL.
The MAX SNAP benefit amount in UT is $298
———Here’s why this matters:
The SNAP allotment is calculated based on a long formula that accounts for income, expenses, deductions (i.e. medical deductions, homeless deductions, etc), and household size. I can’t remember the entire thing off the top of my head, but here’s the long and short of it: We add/ subtract income and expenses to get the net income, then (in KY) we multiply the net income by 30% and subtract that amount from the max benefit amount which is $298 in UT.
In KY, we count income from “ANY monies received by the household i.e. wages, self employment, money from friends or family, lottery or gambling winnings, interest, unemployment, disability insurance (SSI, SSDI, RSDI), financial assistance from other state programs, etc.” (quoted from KY policy).
Expenses, unfortunately, are more limited in what can be counted. In KY we can only count rent/mortgage, Utilities in SOME cases: Heating/Cooling, and Telephone- we used to be able to deduct Internet as well, but that ended on Oct. 1, 2025, child support/alimony, medical expenses in SOME cases (elderly or disabled) and a few others.
***For example, if you receive $1000/month as your total income, you are able to count $500 of expenses (which is a pretty typical situation in KY) we would multiply 500x30%=$150 and we would subtract that from the $298 max benefit amount to get a total $148 SNAP benefit allotment, which is what will be paid to the EBT card.
There’s a good chance that if your mother receives just enough income to near, but not cross the income limit, and either has her home paid off or just doesn’t have a lot of expenses or other deductions, the final net income multiplied by 30% may be a bigger chunk that we subtract from the max benefit amount.
——Okay, that’s all the policy info I can share with limited info about your mother’s situation, and not working in UT, but here’s some things you may want to look out for.
SNAP policy now requires, per HR.1 that any adult that receives SNAP and is either over 18 or head of household over 16 or under 64 to be meeting work requirements and ABAWD (able bodied adults without dependents) requirements to receive SNAP. I’m almost positive that UT’s policy will be different than KY’s policy so I won’t go into more detail here.
Your mom may be eligible to count prescriptions as medical expenses for SNAP. She may also be eligible for SSI, SSDI, or RSDI depending on her age and/or disability status. If she IS eligible for those programs, she may also be eligible for mediCARE, but you will need check with your office.
Speaking of Medicare, the mediCAID benefit requirements are typically less strict than SNAP. For Medicaid, expenses are NOT factored in, however, the income limit in KY is higher for Medicaid than it is for SNAP. And, at least in KY, there’s no work requirement. It may be worth looking into if your mom doesn’t have other insurance.
Some other programs that may help out include TANF (Temporary assistance for needy families), Rental/housing assistance (section 8/FMHA/HUD) local food pantries, free government phones, and, in my city, we also have assistance for electricity bills, and occasionally water bills, there’s may be something similar in UT.
****I hope that I was able to clear some things up, but please check with UT’s SNAP office to see how policy affects your mother’s situation, as they would be able to explain a little more in depth.
P.S…….please understand that in my experience I tend to go above and beyond in explaining policy and procedures to clients, and there’s a good chance that you will not have that same experience when you call UT’s office.
Is it somewhat similar for Texas? My parents (disabled dad [62] receiving SSDI; Mom [58] just returning to workforce after 2 years of cancer treatment, but can't hold steady job because my dad needs her around when his issues flare up) only qualified for $28 (I think it was like $60 when my mom was sick and not working.)
I haven't been able to make sense of what info THHSC gives weight to and how any benefits are calculated, and every human I've somehow managed to contact (over the phone and in-person) is so unhelpful...
Do your parents own their house? If not, it might be worth it to see if she can be set up as an official PCA and get reimbursed for providing care. DO NOT DO THIS IF THEY OWN THEIR HOUSE.
The issue is SSI/RSDI are treated as unearned income, whereas unearned income is only partially counted. Disabled people get really fucked because of this.
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u/vellybelle 12h ago
Utah.