Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen appears to have had a change of heart, confirming Monday that the state will now accept $18 million in federal funds to feed an estimated 150,000 at-risk children this summer.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Electronic Benefits Program (EBT) will provide low-income families whose kids are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals with preloaded cards to purchase additional groceries: $40 a month or $120 for the whole summer.
The governor, who stonewalled earlier attempts to opt into the program, said his perspective changed after speaking with students across the state who didn’t get enough to eat over the summer months.
“When you sit down with kids that are living it, I’ve learned life lessons from the students that I talked to,” Pillen said. “We have to do better for them, pure and simple.”
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Eric Savaiano, who works for Nebraska Appleseed, a non-profit that advocates for underserved communities, said the organization is excited about the governor’s plan and looks forward to working with the state to help implement it.
“This would not be possible without the tremendous amount of outreach and pressure the public put on our elected officials to do the right thing,” Savaiano said.
In 2022, 12.1% of households in Nebraska experienced food insecurity, above the 11.2% national rate, according to a survey by the USDA.
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will also train staff to follow up with EBT recipients to see if more aid is needed, according to HHS Director Dr. Steve Corsi.
“We won’t just be transferring money, we’re setting up the program to ensure kids are safe in the summer and families have the resources they need,” Corsi said.
Earlier this month, Omaha Sen. Jen Day introduced legislation that would urge the state to join the program along with 35 other states, which Republican Sen. Ray Aguilar of Grand Island prioritized.
“I am pleased that we have come up with a solution that will allow us to pursue summer EBT funding for this year,” Aguilar said at the press conference. “Rural kids don’t have the networks of support that are available to some other area of the state.”
