Pandemic EBT Final Eligibility Determinations and Appeals Process

The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) and the California Department of Education (CDE), in a joint effort, are administering the federal Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program. As of July 27, the CDSS has issued P-EBT cards to over 3.5 million children throughout the state, providing over $1.3 billion to eligible families.
Those households with a pending application who provided an email address to the CDSS have received a communication informing them that the CDE and CDSS has been unable to determine their P-EBT eligibility. If a household believes that this determination was made in error, they can appeal the decision and provide additional information to determine their P-EBT eligibility.
Families that wish to request an appeal may do so by submitting a P-EBT Appeal Formonline. Appeals must be submitted by Monday, August 10. The CDSS will begin processing appeals on August 11. A final communication will be sent to all households that submit an appeal request informing them if they were determined eligible for P-EBT benefits.
Contact Information
For more information about P-EBT, you may visit the CDSS P-EBT web page at https://www.cdss.ca.gov/home/pandemic-ebt.
Families that require assistance with their P-EBT card can call the P-EBT Customer Service Center at 877-328-9677.
For updated information about COVID-19 emergency feeding, please visit the CDE COVID-19 School and Child and Adult Day Care Meals web page at: https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/he/hn/schoolmeals.asp. This page is updated each Friday with new information.
Thank you.
Nutrition Services Division
California Department of Education