Yahoo Finance Food Stamps: If Your State Participates in Newly Permanent Summer EBT Program, What Expenses Are Covered?
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has enhanced the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program (Summer EBT). The program will officially launch in the summer of 2024 and provide food assistance to low-income families with school-aged children when schools are closed over the summer. More than 29 million children should benefit from the program, according to the USDA.
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Summer EBT benefits are available via pre-loaded cards that families can use to purchase groceries. Families will receive $40 per child, per month, and work with other nutrition assistance programs, such as summer meal sites, SNAP and WIC. This will ensure children have consistent access to food when school is out for the summer.
Summer EBT benefits are similar to SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps. You can use your Summer EBT card at any SNAP-approved retail store to purchase SNAP-eligible foods, including:
Fruits and vegetables.
Meat, poultry and fish.
Dairy products.
Breads and cereals.
Snack foods and non-alcoholic beverages.
Seeds and plants, which produce food for the household to eat.
Not all states and territories have notified the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) that they intend to operate the Summer EBT program in 2024. States had until Jan. 1 to take the initial step and must submit a detailed management and administration plan by Feb. 15. You can check here to see if your state or territory is participating in the program this year.
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Not All States Participating in Summer EBT
Missouri, for example, has opted to participate in the program — but state officials have some concerns.
In a Dec. 21 letter to the federal government, Missouri officials wrote that a “lack of final guidance” from the federal government regarding implementation of the program “poses potential unforeseen challenges to the implementation,” The Salem News reported.
States must also meet state funding requirements, as the federal government will split administrative costs with the state.
Nebraska opted out of the program, which would have provided about $18 million in benefits to around 150,000 low-income children in the state. Governor Pillen issued a statement in December, explaining that hungry kids will not lose access to summer nutrition programs as the state continues to participate in the existing USDA Summer Food Services Program, the Alliance Times-Herald reported.
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