Families face food insecurity in Republican-led states that turned down federal aid this summer - Lemmy.World

… Millions of American children are going without extra food this summer, after 13 states declined to participate in a federal program [https://apnews.com/article/states-rejecting-federal-funds-summer-ebt-8a1e88ad77465652f9de67fda3af8a2d] that helps families in need buy groceries. Thirty-seven states, four U.S. territories and five Native American tribes are benefitting from the program, according to the Department of Agriculture. Qualifying families [https://apnews.com/article/ebt-usda-children-food-assistance-6ca5110019a53293ebbf5e0e090485d7] with children who rely on school meals to get enough to eat are getting an extra $120 per child this summer to help feed their kids. … The states [https://www.fns.usda.gov/summer/sunbucks#usa-map-links] that declined to participate in the program cited reasons such as problems with aging state computer systems, philosophical opposition to welfare programs, and a belief that existing free meal programs are sufficient. All 13 are led by Republican governors. … An estimated 2 million [https://frac.org/wp-content/uploads/Summer-EBT-State-Fact-Sheets_FL.pdf] Florida children could have benefited from more than $258 million in aid this summer if state officials hadn’t turned it down. Nationwide, roughly 21 million kids are being fed by the program this year.