Documentation Project Shows How States Implemented a New Program to Provide Food Benefits to Up to 30 Million Low-Income School Children
Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) is a new state option launched in the spring of 2020 under authority provided in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to address the food needs of low-income children during COVID-related school closures. Under P-EBT, states provide directly to families receiving free or reduced-price school meals the value of missed breakfasts and lunches via a SNAP-like benefit card. Every state, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands implemented P-EBT.
The Food Research & Action Center and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities conducted a rapid assessment project to document the development and implementation of P-EBT benefits covering the spring of 2020. The project identified the various approaches states took to implement P-EBT, as well as key preliminary lessons state officials and other stakeholders have learned. This information will help states to strengthen implementation efforts when Congress extends this option for the FY2020-2021 school year. We’ve posted the information we gathered below; we will continue to update this page with additional analyses and resources.
Report: P-EBT Implementation Documentation Project, Full Report
FRAC and CBPP conducted a rapid assessment project to document the development and implementation of P-EBT benefits covering the spring of 2020. This report, by Kone Consulting, identifies the various approaches states took to implement P-EBT in the spring and summer of 2020, as well as key preliminary lessons state officials and other stakeholders have learned.
