Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 218 - Department of Human Services › Chapter 20 - Individual and Family Support Programs › Subchapter 00 - N/A › Part 2 - Rhode Island Works Program Rules and Regulations › Section 218-RICR-20-00-2.19 - Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT)

Current through June 14, 2024
2.19.1
Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Cards
A. Eligible RI Works Program families access
				  their EBT cash benefits by using a RI EBT card along with a personal
				  identification number (PIN). Recipients who receive both cash benefits and
				  Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) benefits receive one (1) RI EBT card
				  to access both benefits. However, the benefits are maintained in separate EBT
				  accounts.
B. EBT Card Issuance
1. An EBT card is issued to the applicant in
				  the RI Works/SNAP case. In two (2) parent families, a card is issued to one (1)
				  parent and another card may be issued to the other parent as an authorized
				  payee.
2. RI EBT cards are issued
				  in all RI Works district offices and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
				  offices using special card embossing and PIN selection machines.
C. Personal Identification Number
				  (PIN)
1. In order to use an RI EBT card, the
				  cardholder must also use a secret four (4) digit number known as a personal
				  identification number or PIN. The cardholder selects a PIN in the local office
				  via special PIN encoding machines. For replacement RI EBT cards, the recipient
				  may use the same PIN or select a new number.
2. Authorized payees must have their own RI
				  EBT card and their own PIN. (See §2.19.6 of this Part, EBT
				  Cards for Authorized Payees.)
3.
				  When using an RI EBT card, the cardholder is allowed four (4) attempts to enter
				  the correct PIN. On the fifth (5th) try, the cardholder is locked out of the
				  EBT system until the next day. However, the card is not confiscated by the ATM.
				  Cardholders must call the Customer Service Help Line at
				  1-888-979-9939 for
				  assistance.
D. Payment
				  of EBT Cash Assistance
1. Payment of RI Works
				  Program cash benefits through an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) system is
				  authorized by R.I. Gen. Laws §
												40-5.2-31. Cash benefits are
				  credited to an EBT account in the recipient's name by 5:00 a.m. on the first
				  (1st) and sixteenth (16th) of the month including weekends and
				  holidays.
E. Accessing
				  EBT Cash Benefits
1. Recipients and authorized
				  payees' access EBT cash benefits by using a plastic Rhode Island EBT card and
				  their personal identification number (PIN). The RI EBT system provides access
				  to cash benefits at bank, credit union, and retail store automated teller
				  machines (ATMs) which display the NYCE logo.
2. Some retail establishments also provide
				  access to cash accounts at point-of-sale (POS) terminals which display the
				  QUEST logo. This service is called a cash back transaction and policies on its
				  availability and limits on the amount of cash dispensed are set by the
				  individual store. No fee is charged when cash benefits are accessed at POS
				  terminals.
3. Each month,
				  recipients can make a total of two (2) free cash withdrawals from ATMs. For
				  each additional ATM cash withdrawal in the month, a fee of forty-five (45)
				  cents is charged. The fee is automatically deducted from the recipient's cash
				  benefit account.
4. Disputes
				  regarding recipients' EBT cash account balances are handled by the EBT Customer
				  Service Help Line at
				  1-888-979-9939.