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900K PA Children To Get Money For Food This Summer

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Most U.S. States plan to give benefits to low-income families with children to provide them food assistance when school is off.

February 6, 2024
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Thirty-five U.S. States including Pennsylvania are planning to launch an expanded benefits program this summer to enable low-income families with school children to afford groceries.

The initiative known as the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program For Children (EBT) will feed more than 30 Million children across the country as reported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The main aim of the program is to give children access to nutritious meals while the school is off.

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The new, permanent Summer EBT Program established by the Consolidations Appropriations Act of 2023 is set to launch this year. This program allows school-aged children to receive additional access to nutritious food.

Around two-thirds of the U.S. States are planning to join the summer benefits program including territories like Guam, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico. Besides this, the other nations participating in the program include the Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Osage nations.

Under federal law, Summer EBT benefits are set at $40 per month for each eligible child during June, July, and August. However, Pennsylvania has decided to issue these benefits as a one-time payment of $120, with the disbursement to be completed by September 30.

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According to the program’s description, the summer EBT funds must be used within 122 days from issuance. The monthly benefit of $40 is to be adjusted annually starting in 2025 to keep pace with the inflation.

The benefits will be given to families via an EBT card. Pennsylvania in its 2023-2024 budget has allocated $46.5 Million to provide universal breakfast to the commonwealth’s 1.7 Million public school students.

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Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Secretary Val Arkoosh said, “Summer EBT builds upon the work Governor Shapiro and his administration are already doing to address student hunger by securing funding in the 2023-24 budget to provide universal free breakfast for more than one million public school students. We are so pleased to offer this program to the students who need it so they can continue to access these meals during the summer months while schools are closed.”

On average, between 600,000 and 900,000 Children in Pennsylvania will receive Summer EBT benefits because of their eligibility for free or reduced-price meals.

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The content provided in this article draws inspiration and includes quotes from various reputable sources, including news articles, government data, and interviews. Affordable Housing 411 strives to ensure accuracy and credibility, but the information presented may be based on some external sources. We encourage readers to refer to the referenced materials for more in-depth insights and verification.

DiSanto Matt. “900K PA children could get EBT money for food this summer. See if your child qualifies”. Yahoo, February 6, 2024,
900K PA children could get EBT money for food this summer. See if your child qualifies (yahoo.com)

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Last Updated: September 20, 2021