(a) Calculation

The value of the allotment which State agencies shall be authorized to issue to any households certified as eligible to participate in the food stamp program shall be equal to the cost to such households of the thrifty food plan reduced by an amount equal to 30 per centum of the household's income, as determined in accordance with section 2014(d) and (e) of this title, rounded to the nearest lower whole dollar: Provided, That for households of one and two persons the minimum allotment shall be $10 per month.

(b) Benefits not deemed income or resources for certain purposes

The value of benefits that may be provided under this chapter, whether through coupons, access devices, or otherwise ^[1] shall not be considered income or resources for any purpose under any Federal, State, or local laws, including, but not limited to, laws relating to taxation, welfare, and public assistance programs, and no participating State or political subdivision thereof shall decrease any assistance otherwise provided an individual or individuals because of the receipt of benefits under this chapter.

(c) First month benefits prorated

(1)

The value of the allotment issued to any eligible household for the initial month or other initial period for which an allotment is issued shall have a value which bears the same ratio to the value of the allotment for a full month or other initial period for which the allotment is issued as the number of days (from the date of application) remaining in the month or other initial period for which the allotment is issued bears to the total number of days in the month or other initial period for which the allotment is issued, except that no allotment may be issued to a household for the initial month or period if the value of the allotment which such household would otherwise be eligible to receive under this subsection is less than $10. Households shall receive full months' allotments for all months within a certification period, except as provided in the first sentence of this paragraph with respect to an initial month.

(2)

As used in this subsection, the term ''initial month'' means

(A)

the first month for which an allotment is issued to a household,

(B)

the first month for which an allotment is issued to a household following any period in which such household was not participating in the food stamp program under this chapter after the expiration of a certification period or after the termination of the certification of a household, during a certification period, when the household ceased to be eligible after notice and an opportunity for a hearing under section 2020(e)(10) of this title, and

(C)

in the case of a migrant or seasonal farmworker household, the first month for which allotment is issued to a household that applies following any period of more than 30 days in which such household was not participating in the food stamp program after previous participation in such program.

(3) Optional combined allotment for expedited households. -

A State agency may provide to an eligible household applying after the 15th day of a month, in lieu of the initial allotment of the household and the regular allotment of the household for the following month, an allotment that is equal to the total amount of the initial allotment and the first regular allotment. The allotment shall be provided in accordance with section 2020(e)(3) of this title in the case of a household that is not entitled to expedited service and in accordance with paragraphs (3) and (9) of section 2020(e) of this title in the case of a household that is entitled to expedited service.

(d) Reduction of public assistance benefits

(1) In general

If the benefits of a household are reduced under a Federal, State, or local law relating to a means-tested public assistance program for the failure of a member of the household to perform an action required under the law or program, for the duration of the reduction -

(A)

the household may not receive an increased allotment as the result of a decrease in the income of the household to the extent that the decrease is the result of the reduction; and

(B)

the State agency may reduce the allotment of the household by not more than 25 percent.

(2) Rules and procedures

If the allotment of a household is reduced under this subsection for a failure to perform an action required under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the State agency may use the rules and procedures that apply under part A of title IV of the Act to reduce the allotment under the food stamp program.

(e) Allotments for households residing in centers

(1) In general

In the case of an individual who resides in a center for the purpose of a drug or alcoholic treatment program described in the last sentence of section 2012(i) of this title, a State agency may provide an allotment for the individual to -

(A)

the center as an authorized representative of the individual for a period that is less than 1 month; and

(B)

the individual, if the individual leaves the center.

(2) Direct payment

A State agency may require an individual referred to in paragraph (1) to designate the center in which the individual resides as the authorized representative of the individual for the purpose of receiving an allotment