BATON ROUGE - The first of three phases of DSNAP benefits for residents affected by recent historic flooding begins on Monday.

DSNAP, formerly called Disaster Food Stamps, provides food assistance to eligible households who do not receive regular SNAP benefits and who need help buying groceries due to lost income or damages following a disaster.

The following locations will open for the first time on Monday, Aug. 22. They will open each day through Saturday, Aug. 27 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

East Feliciana Parish ZIP Codes 70722, 70730, 70748, 70761, 70777, and 70791:
Early Learning Center, 9414 Hwy 67 (Plank Road), Clinton

Iberia Parish ZIP Codes 70518, 70528, 70552, 70560, 70563, and 70592:
South LA Community College, 908 Ember Dr., New Iberia

Livingston Parish (all ZIP codes):
Amvets Post 68, 26890 Hwy 42, Springfield
Judson Baptist Church, 32470 Walker North, Walker

Pointe Coupee Parish ZIP Codes 70749, 70760, and 70783:
Pointe Coupee Multi-Use Facility, 1400 Major Parkway, New Roads

St. Helena Parish (all ZIP codes):
Greater Turner Chapel AME, 875 Turner Chapel Rd, Greensburg

St. Landry Parish ZIP Codes 70512, 70525, 70535, 70541, 70550, 70570, 70577, 70584, 70586, 70589, 70750, and 71358:
Southeast Community Center, 101 City Avenue, Eunice
Opelousas Civic Center, 1638 Creswell Lane Ext., Opelousas

Tangipahoa Parish ZIP Codes 70401, 70403, 70422, 70443, 70444, 70446, 70454, 70455, 70456, 70465, and 70466:
Eagle Heights Community Church, 47318 Rufus Bankston Rd., Tickfaw
Vermilion Parish ZIP Codes 70510, 70533, 70548, 70555, 70575, 70578, and 70592:
First Baptist Church, 210 N. St. Charles, Abbeville

The benefits will be released to applicants on a staggered alphabetical schedule. Applicants and anyone who pre-registered for benefits is urged to go to a DNSAP location only on one of the days indicated based on the first letter of their last name. Applicants who find they are unable to visit a site on their designated day are instructed to go on one of the final days specified.

For the locations listed above, applicants should go their registration center on the following designated days based on their last name.

Monday, August 22: A-D
Tuesday, August 23: E-K
Wednesday, August 24: L-R
Thursday, August 25: S-Z
Friday, August 26: A-K applicants unable to make prior scheduled day
Saturday, August 27: L-Z applicants unable to make prior scheduled day

Those applying for DSNAP must go to a specified DSNAP site for the parish where they resided during the disaster to apply for and receive benefits, if eligible.

Phase Two of DSNAP will begin on Monday, Aug 29 and run through Saturday, Sept. 3 for Acadian, Ascension, East Baton Rouge and Lafayette parishes. Phase Three will run from Monday, Sept. 5 to Saturday, Sept. 10 for Avoyelles, Evangeline, Iberville, Jefferson Davis, St. Martin, Washington and West Feliciana parishes.

Applicants may name an Authorized Representative to go to a DSNAP site on their behalf. Authorized Representatives must bring with them to the DSNAP site a picture ID and the picture ID of the applicant/head of household along with a signed statement from the applicant/head of household or an adult household member authorizing them as a representative.

Accommodations will be made for the elderly and those with disabilities to reduce on-site wait times, but we strongly encourage these residents to name an Authorized Representative to visit a DSNAP site and complete an application on their behalf.

To help expedite the application process DCFS encourages residents in all affected areas to pre-register for DSNAP benefits. The pre-registration is not an application for DSNAP. Residents will need to visit their respective parish DSNAP sites in which they reside to complete an application and determine their DSNAP eligibility.

Pre-registration is available online at www.dcfs.la.gov/preregister. Residents can also pre-register by phone at 1-888-LAHELP-U (1-888-524-3578). Beginning Monday, Aug. 22, the call center will extend its hours on Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday phone hours will be remain from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

All pre-registrants will be required to provide the following information:

Name, Social Security Number and Date of Birth for each household member

Current address and parish of household

Monthly income for each household member

All liquid assets for each household member (cash on hand, checking, savings)

The pre-registration process does not guarantee benefits but is designed to save time, minimize long waits and prevent applicants from coming to the site, only to find out they do not have the right information needed to apply.

Disaster Loans

Five new recovery centers will open to assist affected small businesses.

The U.S. Small Business Administration, Louisiana Economic Development and the Louisiana Small Business Development Center Network announced that Business Recovery Centers will open in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Baker, Prairieville and Amite to provide a wide range of services to businesses impact by recent flooding. Another center has already opened in Walker to serve Livingston Parish and neighboring areas.

LED has provided a complete resource guide for flood assistance at OpportunityLouisiana.com.

The Businesses Recovery Centers will be open at the following locations and times:

Baton Rouge
Louisiana State Archives, 3851 Essen Lane (near Interstate 12), Mondays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Lafayette
Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) Executive Conference Room, 537 Cajundome Blvd., Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sundays from noon to 4 p.m.

Baker
Baker Workforce Development Center, 3262 Baker Blvd., Mondays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Sundays from noon to 4 p.m.

Prairieville
BancorpSouth Bank, 13423 Louisiana 73, Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Amite
Amite Chamber of Commerce, 101 SE Central Ave., Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sundays from noon to 4 p.m.

The Amite center will opened for the first time last Saturday with the other operations centers opening on Monday.

The Livingston Parish facility began operations last Thursday and is located at the Southeastern Louisiana University Literacy and Technology Center, Room 101, 9261 Florida Blvd. in Walker. It’s open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

No appointment is necessary and all services are provided free of charge. Specialists from SBA and LSBDC will be available to meet individually with each business owner. The SBDA representatives can explain how an SBA disaster loan can help finance their recovery and guide the business owner through the application process.

Disaster loan information and application forms are also available from SBA’s Customer Service Center by calling 800-659-2955 or emailing disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Temporary Housing

Gov. John Bel Edwards has announced two types of housing available right now for displaced residents.

Transitional Shelter Assistance will be made available through FEMA. TSA pays for a hotel or similar shelter on a rolling 30-day basis. To find out if you qualify for TSA, visit the Transitional Shelter Assistance website.

A list of participating hotels is available by searching the FEMA Evacuee Hotel List.

Gov. Edwards has also called anyone with a house or apartment for rent to list it on LAHousingSearch.gov as a short-term rental to help flood victims until they can find a long-term solution.

A more long-term plan is expected to be announced this week by the governor.