The Sacramento government has initiated the Family First Economic Support Pilot program to support the children of eligible families and reduce child poverty. The eligible families who have applied for the program and are expecting the payment can check the payout date and other details here.
$725 Stimulus Checks
The Department of Child and Family Adult Services of Sacramento County is administrating the guaranteed income FFESP program to ensure the children of eligible families get the proper care and come out of poverty. The program is funded by the California Social Services Department (CDSS) under the collaboration of United Way California Capital.
The government plans to provide financial relief to the selective population, especially Alaska Native/ American Indians and African American/ Black groups struggling to make ends meet due to the rising living cost. Under the pilot program, eligible families will receive $725 every month for a year.
The application for the FFESP program commenced on 30 Sep 2024 till midnight of 13 Oct 2024. The eligible families who have applied for the Sacramento FFESP program before the deadline now await the payout. According to the FFESP program guidelines, the payout of the program will be distributed in mid-December 2024 (15 December 2024), followed by 15 of each month for a year.
How will you receive the $725 Stimulus Checks?
The $725 Stimulus check will be offered to selective applicants only who will be selected through the random process. The selected applicants who get verified and enrolled in the program have two options to receive the payout, (i) Opening a SAFE Credit Union bank account and (ii) Signing up for the debit card.
The enrolled applicants who are interested in the debit card option must provide the relevant info to the FFESP staff to sign up and receive the debit card via Usio Company timely, so the $725 payout can be sent to selected applicants.
The enrolled applicants interested in opening the SAFE Credit Union Bank account will get assistance to open the account so that the FFESP payout will be directly processed in your bank account and you can use it at your convenience.
How will the $725 Stimulus Checks be provided to the selective population?
Sacramento County offers an FFESP program via a lottery system where the authority will select random applicants from the focus zip codes for the benefit. The government is trying to reduce the entry of children into foster care in the mentioned ZIP codes among eligible families.
As we said, the authority will select the recipients of the benefit via the lottery system, where the authority will use the random number generator to select the applicants. In the pilot program, the government plans to provide benefits to the 200 random applicants who will be selected.
The authority will notify the shortlisted applicants about their selection through the random process during the October and December period before the distribution of payment begins. The selected applicants must respond before the deadline and verify their eligibility before enrollment in the program to receive the $725 stimulus check.
If the selected applicant withdraws or is found ineligible for the program, the authority will again select the candidates as beneficiaries based on the random process until the 200 applicants become beneficiaries.
Who will receive the $725 Stimulus Checks under Sacramento FFSEP?
According to the Sacramento FFESP guidelines, people who fulfill the below eligibility requirements can participate in the program:
Residency:
- You must be the resident of any of the following ZIP codes:
- 95838
- 95823
- 95815
- 95825
- 95821
- 95828
Household Income:
- Your household for the FFESP should be less than 200% federal poverty line. The yearly income of the family includes the wages of the members and the 200% FPL depends on family size to define the limit. The applicants can check the FPL limit for the program below:
- For 2 family members (1 adult and 1 child), the limit is $40,880.
- For 3 members (2 adults and 1 child/ 1 adult or 2 children), the limit is $51,640
- For 4 members, the limit is $62,400
- For 5 members, the limit is $73,160
- For 6 members, the limit is $83,920
- For 7 members, the limit is $94,680
- For 8 members, the limit is $105,440
- For more than 8 members, you must add $10,760 per person in the limit to determine the value.
Child age and ethnicity
- The child’s age should be between 0-5 years and must reside with parents/legal guardians for at least 50% of the time. The child should come from Alaska Native/ American Indians and African American/ Black ethnic groups.
- The parents must not receive any guaranteed income from any other government-funded pilot program.
Will the FFESP benefit affect other benefits?
Many eligible families who receive other benefits such as CalFresh and CalWORKS through the California State must be wondering about the effect of the FFESP benefit on their benefits.
The authority has assessed other government assistance programs, like Tribal TANF, SHRA, Subsidized child care, WIC for CalWORKS, Medi-CAL, and CalFresh families, and housing subsidies and confirmed it will not impact their other benefits.
However, the FFESP benefit may affect your annual household income and eligibility for other benefits that depend on income. The FFESP recipients should not worry about tax bills as the DCFAS has confirmed it is a non-taxable benefit, still, you should consult with the tax preparer for better guidance.
The State of California and Sacramento County together started the guaranteed income pilot program for the well-being of eligible families’ children. The selected applicants will soon receive the notice of their selection so be ready to complete the verification and enroll in the program to receive the $725 stimulus check.
