Georgia Democrats are urging Gov. Brian Kemp to sign the state up to participate in a federal program they say could help feed over 1 million students next summer ahead of a preliminary Thursday deadline, but the governor’s office says it has questions about the program’s sustainability.
According to the USDA, just over 17% of U.S. households with children experienced food insecurity in 2022. Experts say school meals can provide kids in need with healthy meals, priming them to perform academically and reducing pressure on the family budget.
The summer EBT program, or SUN Bucks, is a U.S. Department of Agriculture program designed to continue those benefits during the summer break. It provides families with school-age children $120 to buy groceries when school is out. Families in participating states who receive other federal benefits are automatically enrolled, and they can use the money for things like meat, fruits and vegetables, snacks and non-alcoholic drinks, while items like pre-cooked hot meals, cleaning supplies and pet food are prohibited.
The state would be on the hook for half of the program’s administrative costs, an estimated $4.5 million.
Kemp, a Republican, declined to sign the state up for the program this summer. The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service “strongly encourages” participating states to submit an operations plan by Aug. 15, though the agency will accept signups through Jan. 1. Georgia Democrats are hoping to convince him to change his mind ahead of that early deadline – or to exact a political toll if he doesn’t.
Speaking in a Zoom call with reporters Tuesday, Congresswoman Lucy McBath said the program could benefit about 1.2 million Georgia kids if the state joined in.
“As a mother, I’m enraged by that,” she said. “Every single parent across this state should be incensed. And I’m not even sure most of the parents even recognize what’s happening across the state of Georgia, but they should be incensed that our governor is playing politics with the lives of our children.
Atlanta Democratic state Sen. Jason Esteves sought to tie the issue to the upcoming presidential election and Project 2025, a controversial governance plan written by the conservative Heritage Foundation.
“Trump’s Project 2025 calls for slashing eligibility programs for school meals and ensuring that kids get fewer meals through the EBT program,” Esteves said. “In fact, Project 2025 calls for the elimination of programs like the USDA’s EBT program. Kemp and (former president Donald) Trump are part of the same club of Republicans who were trying to save a buck at the risk of kids going hungry.”
In an email, Kemp spokesman Garrison Douglas did not indicate a desire to join the program.
“While it is disappointing that the Biden administration continues to ignore reasonable concerns surrounding the program’s lack of nutrition standards and fiscal sustainability, we will continue to promote the many successful programs Georgia already has in place, the most notable being GaDOE’s Seamless Summer Option, which alone provided millions of breakfast and lunch meals to students statewide last year and are tailored to address our state’s specific needs by providing necessary nutrition and engagement to families and kids,” he said.
Douglas did not respond to a followup email requesting specifics on the governor’s concerns.
According to the governor’s office, Seamless Summer provided more than 2.5 million breakfasts and 3.2 million lunches in 2023, with the majority of Georgia’s districts participating. Kemp’s office also touts the Happy Helpings program, which reimburses organizations that feed children during the summer and provided 2.8 million meals around the state in 2023.
Esteves said Seamless Summer does not reach all of the children who need it.
“Folks on the ground across this state know that this program is not nearly enough,” he said. “There are not enough sites for the program, for the Seamless Summer program across the state, especially in rural Georgia, and especially in south Georgia, where we have some of the highest food insecurity rates in the entire country.”
Every public school student was eligible for free school meals during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that program expired in 2022.
The issue of free school meals has gained political salience since Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.
Walz lists signing a free universal school meal into law as one of his top wins as governor. A handful of other states have similar policies.
This story was provided by WABE content partner Georgia Recorder.
