The West Virginia Department of Human Services announced Friday that it no longer has the ability to replace stolen Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. The agency’s Bureau for Family Assistance said in a news release that a federal law – the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 – gave the bureau the ability to replace SNAP benefits stolen via card skimming, card cloning and other fraudulent methods through Dec. 20, 2024. The American Relief Act of 2025 was signed into law on Dec. 21, 2024, and did not include an extension of the authority to replace stolen benefits. Residents are encouraged to protect their benefits by following these tips: avoiding the use of easy-to-guess PIN numbers.