CHICAGO – The Illinois Department of Human Services announced Monday that Illinois households who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits will begin receiving the maximum benefits by the end of this week. State Senator Robert Peters, who has sponsored legislation dealing with SNAP benefits in the past, welcomed the announcement.

“People who receive SNAP benefits already have difficulty getting the food they need to feed their families,” Peters said. “The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in a high demand for food and instances of unethical price gouging, which makes an already difficult task even harder for these families. Increasing the benefits will help ensure that no one goes hungry in a time of crisis.”

The IDHS’s announcement came the week after the federal government passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which gives states the option to provide SNAP recipients with maximum allotment. Households that are currently not receiving the maximum will see an increase in benefits to bring their allotment to the maximum. Households currently at the maximum will not receive an increase. Maximum benefits are based on household size, and follow this chart:

In total, more than 450,000 households in Illinois will receive an increase in benefits. Illinois SNAP recipients receive their benefits at different times each month, so increased benefits will be loaded on different dates for recipients. More information can be found here.