Additional food funding available for students

NM approved for $97.8M in Pandemic EBT program funds

New Mexico was approved for $97.8 million in federal funds for students who would normally receive free or reduced-priced meals at school.

Through Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, families will get an extra $5.70 a day per child who qualifies for free and reduced food.

The aim of the Pandemic EBT program is to make up for missed breakfasts and lunches from March 16 through June 19 after schools were closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

About 71% of students in the state qualify for free and reduced-priced food, according to Felix Griego, deputy director of the Public Education Department’s Student Success and Wellness Bureau.

“Any student (whose lunch) was free and reduced during the school year is going to get the benefits,” Griego told the Journal.

Felix said an extra $5.70 a day will equate to about $119 for the month of May. That rate was calculated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which is the agency that approved New Mexico’s Pandemic EBT plan.

For the more than 98,000 children whose families utilize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Griego said the extra money will be automatic.

And for students who were getting free or reduced-priced meals at school but aren’t getting benefits through SNAP, Griego said EBT cards will be mailed to their households.

Families can also apply for Pandemic EBT benefits if they recently became eligible for food assistance.

With the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in school shutdowns across the country, many worried what that would mean for students who rely on school-provided breakfasts and lunches. In New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the PED said the expectation was to continue feeding students while schools were closed and districts across the state launched grab-and-go meal services.

According to the Human Services Department, families can continue to get grab-andgo meals from school sites in addition to using the Pandemic EBT Program funding.

March, April and May payments will be issued in May while the rest of the payments will be made in June.

Ashley Espinoza, spokeswoman for HSD, said the extra EBT funding can only be used on food products.