The Obama Administration announced plans Wednesday to devote $12 billion of the FY2017 Budget to helping grade-school students access food during the summer, easing the burden on schools that try to fill the need.
The program will also allow states to use Medicaid data to qualify low-income students automatically for free and reduced meals provided through the federal school lunch program. That component of the plan is expected to extend the lunches to millions of additional students.
Most of the money will be funneled into the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children program, which gives families a credit to spend at grocery stores during the summer.
The proposed investment for the 2017 budget will be passed along to legislators on Feb. 9.
When school is out for summer, many of the 22 million low-income children who receive free and reduced meals in schools do not have access to a consistent food source, according to The White House. Some school districts try to address that need in their communities through initiatives such as dispatching food trucks to distribute meals near playgrounds and other summertime gathering spots.
The announcement comes on the heels of the Senate Agricultural Committee’s approval of a bill that would also use electronic debit cards to help feed children during summer months.