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(Iowa) -- Iowa families facing food insecurity this summer may qualify to receive benefits through the Sun Bucks Summer EBT program.
The program provides qualifying families with $120 per child to be used for grocery purchases over the summer months of June, July, and August. Paige Chickering with Save the Children Action Network says families already receiving state food assistance benefits will be eligible:
"All students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals will be automatically eligible for the summer EBT program. If those families already utilize SNAP, the same cards that they use for SNAP will automatically be loaded with their summer EBT benefits for each of their children."
The state of Iowa aligns its EBT purchases with the federal Healthy SNAP Waiver, meaning purchases of things like candy, soda, or other store-made meals will be covered by SNAP or Sun Bucks benefits.
Families can find their local summer meal site through the following options:
Phone:
- 2-1-1
- 1-866-3-HUNGRY (1-866-348-6479), English
- 1-877-8-HAMBRE (1-877-842-6273), Spanish
Text:
- Text “Summer Meals” to 914-342-7744
More information about the Summer Bucks Summer EBT program is available on the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services website.