Live site: https://baney75.github.io/helper/
Built with TypeScript and Vite.
Helper helps someone 60 or older find an official state SNAP page, prepare a papers list, and keep an interview or recertification date. It has no account and does not send answers to a server.
This is not a government website. It does not decide a case and does not file an application. If it conflicts with an agency notice or worker, follow the agency.
- Enter a ZIP or pick a state, then open the official SNAP destination.
- Print the papers checklist. Bring what you have.
- Save, change, remove, or download the interview, recertification, or energy-help date.
SNAP is open year-round. Energy programs are seasonal and funds can run out. The optional income screen uses FY2026 figures only through September 30, 2026; it pauses after that date until the table is rechecked from FNS.
Progress saves in this browser on this device. If the internet drops, the packet and saved date still work; official state pages need the internet. On a shared computer or phone, use Erase this device before handing it to someone else. A new version waits for a person to choose Reload, so the current page does not mix old and new assets.
USDA reported that SNAP participation in FY2022 was 55% among eligible people 60 and older, compared with 88% overall. Helper cannot submit an application, but it can get someone to an official page, make a paper list, and keep a date from getting lost. The source is listed in research/SOURCES.md.
LIHEAP is a block grant. States set the rules and funds can run out. Meeting an income cutoff does not mean someone will receive help.
npm install
npm test
npm run typecheck
npm run build
npm run devOpen the URL Vite prints. The production build assumes GitHub Pages at /helper/.
State links live in src/data/programs.ts. SNAP income tables for FY2026 (1 Oct 2025 through 30 Sep 2026) live in src/data/fpl.ts. Sources and the update policy are in research/SOURCES.md.
If a portal is down, keep the official how-to page. Do not invent URLs. Screening copy may say likely_worth_applying or maybe. It must not say eligible or ineligible.
19103opens Pennsylvania's COMPASS SNAP application and the official Pennsylvania LIHEAP information page.90210opens California's BenefitsCal SNAP application and the California LIHEAP information page.
For either demo, print the packet, save a date, reload, edit it, then remove it. Test the state picker and an invalid ZIP too.
MIT. See LICENSE.
If this saved you a trip: https://buymeacoffee.com/baneydonovan