What to know about the new SUN Bucks food assistance program
Story at a glance
- A new federal food assistance program called SUN Bucks launches this summer.
- Under the program, eligible families can receive $120 during the summer to help pay for fresh food at grocery stores, farmers markets and other convenience stores
- About 21 million children are expected to benefit from the program.
Hunger worsens in the summer for many children who rely on school lunches for regular meals when class is in session. A new federal program aims to help mitigate that "summer food gap" by offering funds for millions of families to put toward groceries.
Some families have begun to get extra cash for food under the SUN Bucks program, which is launching this summer.
The Biden administration announced SUN Bucks in May among a suite of “SUN Programs” the Department of Agriculture (USDA) would launch to provide additional food assistance to eligible families during the summer months.
SUN Bucks are essentially an extra issuance of food assistance dollars to households that receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits or some other forms of food assistance.
About 21 million children are expected to benefit from the program this summer, according to the USDA.
Here's what you should know about SUN Bucks.
How much assistance does the program offer?
In much of the U.S., eligible households with school-aged kids can get an extra $120 in food assistance funds to buy fresh food and snacks during the summer through SUN Bucks.
The amount will be higher in some states and territories: Households in Alaska, Hawaii, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands can get more money to adjust for the higher cost of food in those places.
For example, SUN Bucks-eligible households in Hawaii will receive a one-time issuance of $177 this summer.
Are the funds available nationwide?
The USDA made the SUN Bucks program available to all 50 states, tribes and territories, but only 36 states, the District of Columbia, five territories and two tribes have chosen to participate in the program, according to an agency spokesperson.
“This is the inaugural year of the program, meaning states and tribes are not launching this summer will have future opportunities to opt-into this valuable program,” a USDA spokesperson wrote to The Hill in an email.
“USDA expects even more states and tribes will provide SUN Bucks in 2025.”
A map of participating states, territories and tribes is available on the USDA website. Interested families can also see if their state is participating in the program by checking the local agency that oversees SNAP.
Who is eligible for the funds?
Households with school-aged kids that participate in food assistance programs like SNAP, Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) are eligible to apply for SUN Bucks.
In addition, households with children in that age range that meet the requirements for free and reduced-price school meals are also eligible to apply for the program.
Families or households that do not receive state or federal food assistance can apply for the SUN Bucks programs, also called summer EBT, through the department that oversees EBT and SNAP in their home state.
Interested households that do not receive benefits or that have not previously qualified for free or reduced lunch but still think they might meet the income requirements for the program should first see if the funds are available where they live.
After that, interested households should check with the local state agency that oversees SNAP to see if their Summer EBT online application is live.
All households with children, regardless of citizenship status, are eligible to apply as long as they meet the income requirements.
When are families going to get funds?
Households with children already enrolled in other benefits like SNAP will most likely automatically receive SUN Bucks funds this summer if they live in a participating state, territory or tribe, according to the USDA’s website.
Exactly when those families will see the automatic payment depends on the state.
Some, like Louisianna, Arizona , Washington and California, have started to issue those payments to EBT cards or mail out SUN Bucks cards to eligible households already receiving benefits.
Participating states have the option of either breaking up the $120 into weekly or monthly payments or issuing one-time payments to households by early September.
If a state chooses to break up the $120 into, for example, monthly $40 issuances, it must issue the payments within 122 days of each other, according to a USDA spokesperson.
For households not already receiving benefits, when and how they receive SUN Bucks will depend on when and where they apply.
Some states like Kentucky are accepting applications for Summer EBT, while others like New York are preparing to accept online applications soon.
Different states also have different deadlines to apply for Summer EBT, but they typically fall around early August or early September.
SUN Bucks need to bedistributed and available for use 15 operational days after an application is received by a state Summer EBT agency, according to the USDA.
Will the amount of SUN Bucks issued each year change?
Simple answer: Yes.
The USDA chose to issue $120 in extra food funds this year but will adjust the amount annually starting next summer.
Changes to the SUN Bucks allotment will be based on changes to the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP), which determines the maximum amount of SNAP benefits eligible individuals and families can receive as a fixed amount every month, according to a USDA spokesperson.
The USDA takes a few things into account when adjusting the TFP every year, including the cost of food. If, for some reason, changes to the TFP result in lower SNAP allotments, that decrease will not impact SUN Bucks, according to a USDA spokesperson.