BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) -- Summer SNAP benefits were issued to eligible Louisiana families, and one group wants to remind parents to use them before they expire.

In June, the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services announced that a one-time payment of $120 per child would be loaded onto their household’s SNAP EBT card. SUN Bucks must be used within 122 days of the issuance date or the benefits will expire, DCFS said.

Alliance to Defeat Hunger wants families to make sure their address is up to date with their local Medicaid office and their school so they can receive the EBT card.

"If these new dollars are not properly utilized, they will also expire and need to be returned to the federal government,” said Mike Rolfsen, an Alliance organizer.

SUN Bucks are for kids between the ages of 5 and 18. Children who received SNAP benefits for the last school year were included in the first phase.

Phase 2 of the SUN Bucks program will include children between the ages of 5 and 18 who received Medicaid or got free or reduced-price school meals last school year. DCFS said the department will mail the new EBT cards in late July.

“Last year, Louisiana left between $12-$14 million on the table that was available to provide groceries to eligible children, and that is simply unacceptable,” Alliance member Emily Chatelain said. “And if we don’t get the word out this year, it’s going to happen again.”

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