How Your State May Verify SNAP Volunteer Hours
This guidance is informational and not legal advice. It reflects public sources as of November 2025. SNAP rules are federal, but each New England state runs its own paperwork. Forms, who may sign, and how hours are verified can change. Always confirm with your state SNAP agency or the participant’s caseworker:
- Massachusetts
- Connecticut
- Rhode Island
- New Hampshire DHHS.
- Vermont DCF.
- Maine
SNAP’s work rule for many adults without dependents is “20 hours per week averaged monthly,” which means 80 hours a month. Those hours can be met through paid work, participation in a qualifying program like SNAP Employment & Training, a mix of activities, or verified volunteer service. States administer the program and handle the paperwork, but the 80-hours-per-month standard comes from federal regulation and USDA guidance.
What varies is the verification process. Each state sets the form, who signs it, and when it is due. Two states sometimes use “workfare math,” which can set a personalized monthly target that is lower than 80 hours.
Massachusetts
What counts and how you verify
Massachusetts accepts verified volunteer service toward the 80-hour requirement. DTA instructs clients to verify at reporting with the Work Program Participation Report. Host sites typically keep a monthly log and copy totals to the DTA form when asked.
What you will sign
ABAWD Work Program Participation Report (WPPR). It records site details, dates, monthly totals, and a signer with contact info. Keep a copy with your monthly log in case DTA calls to confirm.
Bottom line for hosts
Keep a clean monthly log and be ready to complete and sign the WPPR at reporting.
Connecticut
What counts and how you verify
Connecticut says an ABAWD can work, be in a program, volunteer at least 80 hours a month, or combine activities to reach 80. DSS verifies hours and may contact your site. Community Action Agencies often help participants with paperwork.
What you will sign
DSS may accept your signed monthly log or ask the participant to submit a DSS verification page at reporting. Expect an occasional phone or email from a DSS worker to confirm totals.
Bottom line for hosts
Maintain a monthly log with totals and a supervisor signature. Be ready to confirm by phone and to fill a DSS page if the participant brings one.
Rhode Island
What counts and how you verify
Rhode Island DHS explains that ABAWDs in specified cities and towns must engage in 80 hours per month of work, training, or volunteering and submit documentation. Nonprofits usually sign a participant’s log and may be asked to complete a DHS page.
What you will sign
DHS posts ABAWD forms, including an exemption/verification form. Use your monthly log for routine proof. Complete the DHS page if requested. Keep a copy with your records.
Bottom line for hosts
Expect monthly verification and occasional calls. List one staff contact on anything you sign.
New Hampshire
What counts and how you verify
New Hampshire repeats the federal baseline and provides a plain-language handout for ABAWDs. DHHS commonly accepts signed monthly logs from host sites and may ask for a state form included in a participant packet.
What you will sign
Your monthly log serves as primary proof. Reference the DHHS SNAP page for general program context and be prepared to validate totals by phone if asked.
Bottom line for hosts
Keep a clear monthly summary per participant. Sign with printed name, title, and contact. Expect verification calls.
Vermont
What counts and how you verify
Vermont’s 3SquaresVT uses workfare for many placements. Required monthly hours are not a flat 80. The state calculates a personalized target by dividing the household’s SNAP benefit by the higher of the federal or Vermont minimum wage. Confirm the person’s exact monthly number before scheduling.
What you will sign
Workfare Verification, Form 218-WFV. You sign after the first month when the requirement is met and again at recertification. Keep your monthly log attached.
Bottom line for hosts
Ask for the assigned monthly target. Track against that number and sign the Workfare Verification form when presented.
Maine
What counts and how you verify
Maine’s Office for Family Independence provides an ABAWD Volunteer Form to verify volunteer hours. For some placements, Maine uses workfare math similar to Vermont, which can set a monthly target below 80. Confirm the person’s assigned number.
What you will sign
ABAWD Volunteer Form, plus your own monthly log. Keep copies and be ready to respond to OFI verification.
Bottom line for hosts
Fill Maine’s Volunteer Form with your monthly totals. If the person is on workfare, verify the exact number first.
What varies across New England, at a glance
Hours target.
MA, CT, RI, NH: plan around 80 hours per month. VT and some ME placements use workfare math that can set a lower personalized target. Confirm the number before scheduling.
Paperwork.
MA uses WPPR. VT uses Workfare Verification. ME publishes an ABAWD Volunteer Form. CT and RI often accept a signed monthly log and may ask for a state page at reporting. NH accepts signed logs and may include state forms in participant packets.
Submission rhythm.
Expect monthly checks or verification at the participant’s reporting or recertification date. Keep a one-page monthly summary for quick production in any state.
Practical setup that works in every state
Keep one monthly hour log per participant with date, start, stop, total, task title, participant signature, supervisor signature, and a monthly total. Store summaries in a single place. List one staff contact on every form. When presented with a state form, copy your monthly totals and sign with printed name, title, phone, and email. This aligns with each state’s verification process while keeping your records consistent.