MARKET-LEVEL SYSTEM
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Customers go to a centrally located, easily identifiable tent in the market with their SNAP/EBT/P-EBT or credit/debit card. Customers swipe their snap SNAP/EBT/P-EBT card or credit/debit card and enter the amount they wish to spend. Customers take their tokens to vendors to purchase goods. SNAP/EBT tokens can only be used for SNAP-eligible items and change cannot be given. Credit/debit tokens can be used to purchase any item in the market. Vendors may provide change in cash. SNAP/EBT tokens may be used to purchase SNAP-eligible foods; no change may be given for these SNAP/EBT purchases. Note: $1 SNAP/EBT tokens may not be used as change for credit/debit token purchases. At the end of each market day, vendors count tokens and report total SNAP/EBT and credit/debit tokens received to the market manager, who records these numbers. Some markets have vendors fill out reimbursement forms, collect all tokens, and return forms and tokens to the market manager. During the course of the next week, the market manager verifies the amount of tokens each vendor turned in and handles reimbursement for each vendor’s combined SNAP/EBT/P-EBT, and credit/debit sales. Even though vendors receive only one check for all SNAP/EBT/P-EBT, and credit/debit sales, consider keeping a separate bank account for SNAP/EBT transactions, this makes bookkeeping easier. Some farmers markets charge vendors a service fee for credit/debit transactions to offset the costs of running the program. For instance, some markets charge vendors a 3% fee for all tokens redeemed, so vendors receive $4.85 for each $5 redeemed. Some farmers markets offset the cost of the program by charging a transaction fee to shoppers using the credit/debit service. For instance, if a shopper gets $40 in credit/debit tokens, they would be charged $42 for the service and the $2 would go to offset the costs of the program. On a mutually agreed upon schedule, the market manager reimburses vendors for SNAP/EBT/P-EBT and credit/debit transactions. If the market uses reimbursement forms to track new SNAP/EBT/P-EBT and credit/debit sales, new forms may be distributed at this time as well. The process begins again as customers make new SNAP/EBT/P-EBT and credit/debit transactions and purchase items from vendors.
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