FL Opts-Out Of Federal Program To Feed Poor Kids

June 25, 2024 Politics, Republicans

Miami’s NPR affiliate reports:

Florida has opted out of a federal program that nonprofits say could decrease food insecurity for low-income families during the summer, when children no longer have easy access to school meals.

State officials decided not to participate in SUN Bucks, which would have given qualifying families $120 per child for grocery expenses. It was one of 13 states to opt out of the program, all of them led by Republican governors.

Officials for Florida’s Department of Children and Families say existing programs are enough — and argue that the federal program came with “strings attached” in the shape of operational costs that would be shared with the state.

Tampa’s NBC affiliate reports:

While the state would have had to cover 50% of the administrative costs, the benefit itself is federally funded. The USDA estimates more than 2 million kids in Florida would be eligible, totaling more than $250 million in benefits.

More than 150 organizations from across the state have now signed a letter to Governor Desantis and the secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families, urging the state to participate in the program next summer.

Among the other red state governors to opt-out is Louisiana Gov. Jeff “Ten Commandments” Landry.



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