West Virginia families with eligible school-age children will receive funding from the federal government for groceries this summer.
One-time benefits of $375 are expected to be issued for each eligible child by mid-July, the state Department of Education said in a news release. The benefits will be loaded onto existing pandemic electronic benefits transfer cards that were issued during the 2020-21 school year.
School-age children are eligible if they were enrolled in a school that participates in the National School Lunch Program and qualified for free or reduced-price school meals. Children under age 6 are eligible if they live in a household that receives Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
The state expects to issue $83.4 million to more than 222,000 schoolchildren and $13.3 million to 35,000 kids enrolled in SNAP this summer.
The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.