#HandsOffSNAP; State FY26 Budget, Skimming Replacement Campaign, SUN Bucks info and more!

Thanks to everyone who joined our SNAP Coalition meeting on Tuesday. 102 attendees the day after Memorial Day weekend - WOW! Our next Coalition meeting will be Tuesday, June 24 from 10–11:30 AM. Here’s some follow up from this week’s meeting:

#HandsOffSNAP Defense:

While we are truly devastated that Congress adopted the harsh Reconciliation Budget, it is NOT a done deal! The fight to protect and defend SNAP continues in the Senate.

• Phone banking: Thanks to folks who were able to join the phone banking to CA on Tues eve. We will be pivoting to Senate calls and hope to confirm the June dates soon! If you have not already signed up for phone banking alerts, check it out HERE.
• Emails to U.S. Senators: Project Bread has an excellent platform for you, your family and friends in sister states to send emails to Senators (and Reps as well). “The House voted to gut SNAP, Tell the Senate to Stop Them.” Click HERE. Please continue to share this link broadly with your out-of-state contacts.
• More statements: Check out Project Bread’s powerful statement. As Erin McAleer states, “Without exaggeration, Congress is advancing the most devastating attack on food assistance in our lifetime…..These proposals jeopardize the very infrastructure Americans count on to access food and stay healthy. People will fall through the cracks, not because they aren’t eligible, but because the system is designed to push them out."
• More media: Flagging Saturday’s Boston Globe article:
  What Trump’s ‘beautiful bill’ means for Medicaid, food stamps, and Massachusetts: Safety net cuts hit poorest families, while tax breaks benefit the richest. Please amplify, and please share with us any local or statewide media you can do. If you can do local Op Eds or LTEs, here are fact sheets with quick facts you for each MA Congressional District.

Action Alert: Replace Stolen SNAP - Send Letter to Senate ASAP!

Unfortunately, the Governor, the House, and the Senate did not include funds to replace stolen SNAP in their FY26 budgets. Thank you to all who reached out to Guv Healey and the legislature! Right now there is one more big opportunity to make sure victims of SNAP theft are reimbursed: the legislature is acting on a FY25 “Supplemental” budget. The Governor and the House included funds in that budget for chip EBT cards - which is great! But, neither included funds to replace stolen SNAP. It will take months for DTA to issue chip cards. In the meantime, families desperately need reimbursement.

Please join us in asking the Senate President and Senate Ways and Means to include funds for SNAP replacement in their version of the FY25 Supp budget. Here is a template letter, and here is a fact sheet on this issue. Please let Vicky (vnegus@mlri.org) know if you can do this, or if you need more info!

State FY26 Budget Priorities in Conference Committee

As discussed at Coalition, the MA Senate finished up its deliberations of the FY26 Budget last week. The House and Senate will announce a “Conference Committee” next week to work out the differences between their budgets before it goes to the Governor’s desk. The Conference Committee will include 3 House Representatives and 3 Senators. Members typically go to House and Senate leadership to communicate their top priorities for the final budget.

This is where YOU can make a difference by sharing your top priorities with your Rep and Senator and by reaching out to the Conference Committee members (once posted)!

Coalition Member Priorities for FY26 Conference Budget

See list

SUN Bucks (Summer EBT) Food Benefits Coming - What to Know!

SUN Bucks is a summer food benefit of $120/eligible student. DTA will issue this benefit for the summer starting in July. Here is what you should know right now:

• The bulk of eligible students will be automatically issued SUN Bucks - they do not need to apply. For example, DTA will automatically issue SUN Bucks to all kids who were part of a SNAP household since July 1, 2024.
• DTA has been texting and mailing SUNBucks notices to families on the “automatic issuance” list. For families who did not get the DTA text or notice, we will share information about how they can apply in early June.
• During June, DTA will mail out the SUN Bucks cards to all families on the list. This is a change from last year!
• Please tell families on SNAP, or who heard from DTA about SUN Bucks a) SAVE the card when it shows up in the mail and b) check to make sure their mailing address is up to date so they get a card! Update mailing address on DTAConnect or by calling the SUN Bucks hotline (855-425-8770).

For more information, see Mass.gov/SUNBucks, and here’s DTA’s SUN Bucks Powerpoint shared at Tuesday’s SNAP Coalition meeting.

Register for MLRI ABAWD Trainings: June 17 & July 15

Massachusetts is required to implement a federal 3-month time limit for certain SNAP recipients ages 18 through 54 who DTA identifies as “Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents” (ABAWDs). Many people do not have to meet these punitive rules. However, some do - and they risk losing SNAP after 3 months unless they show DTA they are exempt or meet the rules. The first group of people harmed by these rules in MA will be terminated starting August 1. Here is MLRI’s ABAWD Guide for Community Organizations.

Please join us to learn more about these rules and what you can do to make sure vulnerable adults are not terminated from SNAP. Register for MLRI’s training on Tuesday, June 17 from 2-3 PM and Tuesday, July 15 from 2-3 PM.