FALL RIVER – Families of all Fall River Public School children will soon begin receiving $28.50 in federal food assistance benefits per child each week after the state on Thursday announced new nutritional support for approximately 500,000 Massachusetts children.
The food assistance program, called Pandemic EBT, will be extended to all children in the state who receive free or reduced-price school breakfasts and lunches, according to the Department of Transitional Assistance.
Fall River Public School Superintendent Matthew Malone said the benefit extends to all children in the district due to its participation in the USDA’s Community Eligibility Provision.
The federal Community Eligibility Provision, or CEP, allows high-poverty districts including Fall River to provide free lunch and breakfast at no cost to all students regardless of their household income. Fall River Public Schools began providing universal free meals this school year.
The food assistance funds will not replace, but will rather supplement the grab-and-go meals many Massachusetts districts, like FRPS, have been offering students since schools closed on March 17.
“I’m happy to be working across agencies to get these additional benefits to eligible students’ families,” Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeff Riley said in a statement.
“This will supplement the great work that districts and other organizations are already doing to provide grab-and-go meals to students, and I know that many families’ needs have increased as a result of the pandemic.”
Families will begin receiving the funds “in the coming weeks,” and families currently receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, will receive them first, according to DTA.
The funds will be added to existing EBT cards for families currently receiving DAT assistance. Those not receiving DTA assistance will be sent one of what the state is calling a P-EBT card for each eligible student.
“In light of school closures, the approval of this collaborative initiative adds another critical tool to the state’s effort to leverage federal funds, promote food security, and provide additional food assistance to students and their families,” said DTA Commissioner Amy Kershaw in the statement.
In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, the state saw a 400% increase in the number of residents who apply for SNAP benefits each week, according to Kershaw’s department.
The Pandemic EBT funds break down to $5.70 per student each weekday, which can be spent on any food item eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits. Families will receive a letter in the mail from the Department of Transitional Assistance in May concerning student eligibility and when they can expect to receive the funds.
As of last fall, about 500,000 children in Massachusetts received free or reduced school meals.
For more information about Pandemic EBT, call the hotline operated by Project Bread, an organization that partnered with the state to assist the initiative, at (800) 645-8333.