BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Gov. Jeff Landry will not be changing his mind on opting out of the federal Summer EBT program.
Governor spokesperson Kate Kelly released the following statement.
“Summer EBT is a pandemic-era-related program that costs $7 million. The pandemic is over. Louisiana already administers robust social safety net programs including SNAP, TANF, as well as the Child Nutrition Programs—including the USDA Summer Food Service Program, the USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program, the Seamless Summer Option, and WIC. This year, the Summer Food Service Program will offer meals-to-go. Under these numerous programs, every child will be able to receive the meals they need throughout the summer.”
The deadline to reverse the opt-out is Thursday, Feb. 15. Some states, like Nebraska, did end up changing course to opt in to the federal funds.
The state is now turning down around $71 million in financial support that the USDA estimates could have benefitted 594,000 children. The federal government would have covered the benefits cost and half of the administrative cost, and the state would have had to cover the other half. The program would have allowed for low-income families, who make up under 185% of the federal poverty line, to get an additional $40 a month per child to help make sure they are getting enough to eat when they aren’t in school.
With the governor not changing his mind, local food banks are looking for how they will fill the gaps. While there will be traditional summer SNAP benefits available to families, the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank CEO Mike Manning said they will also see a cut to federal funds. This is due to pandemic-era funding drying up.
“It’s really a lost opportunity for kids to be able to get some more food. The regular EBT program is fine. It’s not going to change. But this was an additional opportunity for additional funds for kids for the summer,” Manning said.
Manning believes it is critical to children’s development to make sure they are well fed not just when they are in school. He also points out there has been a slight increase in the number of people needing their help with inflation increasing and wages not keeping up with the cost of food.
“It’s most important for their overall development. Not just physical, but also their mental development, their brain capacity and all,” Manning said. “It’s fueled just like everything else with appropriate food and nutritious food. So we’re really keen on focusing on nutrition.”
The food bank is looking to expand its summer feeding programs for children over time. In the spring and summer months, they often see a slowdown in donations until the holiday season picks it back up.
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