Summer EBT Program: Boosting Kids' Access to Nutritious Food in Summer
In December 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul announced New York State's decision to participate in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program for Children (Summer EBT). This initiative involves a significant allocation of over $200 million dedicated to providing summer meals, benefiting around 2 million low-income school-aged children. Families are expected to receive around $40 per month per eligible child through federally funded grocery benefits on an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card. It is estimated that around 2,027,000 children in New York will be eligible, resulting in about $243,240,000 in distributed benefits for struggling families in summer 2024.
Summer EBT, acknowledged as a proven game-changer in the fight against child hunger, aligns with evidence-based policies that contribute to reducing child hunger and promoting healthier diets. It decreases the number of kids with very low food security by one-third, increases whole grain, dairy, fruit, and vegetables consumption, and decreases both sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and child food insecurity overall. According to the USDA, every dollar spent on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) generates between $1.50 and $1.80 in local economic activity during an economic downturn. Based on the number of children eligible, New York could expect an economic impact of $364,860,000 to $437,832,000 from Summer EBT benefits in the summer of 2024.
Highlighted by Senate majority leader Charles Schumer, who recognizes Summer EBT’s critical role for families facing financial challenges: “no child should have to worry about having access to healthy, nutritious meals when school is out of session for the summer. Hunger never takes a vacation.” Joining New York, multiple states, U.S. territories, and tribal nations including Kansas, Maryland, Puerto Rico, and Washington, plan to launch the Summer EBT program in 2024. This collective effort is expected to reach over 20 million school-aged children, providing essential food access during the summer break.
However, it's also essential to note that states such as South Dakota, Alaska, Georgia, Wyoming, Mississippi, Florida, Iowa etc, have opted out of the program, citing concerns over federal funding implications, administrative burden, and unclear understanding about the effectiveness of existing food programs in their states.
Food Research and Action Center, an advocacy group targeting hunger, has found that due to a variety of reasons, the main federally funded summer nutrition program doesn’t reach most qualified children. During the summer of 2022, it fed only one of every nine children served by the free or reduced-price lunch program nationwide during the 2021-2022 school year.
From the perspective of the Tisch Food Center, as was the case with Pandemic EBT at a time where schools were closed, the Summer EBT program can bridge the gap left by the limited reach of traditional summer meal programs. Summer can be the hungriest time for children, with millions losing access to the school meals they depend on when the academic year ends. The Summer Nutrition Programs, coupled with the introduction of Summer EBT, will alleviate this challenge, ensuring that children return to school well-nourished and ready to learn!