P-EBT retro to approx. 600k MA children TODAY! + Coalition mtg Tues 4/13

FoodSNAP
04/12/21
Info on tomorrow's SNAP Coalition meeting below, along with an overview of the tens of millions of critical P-EBT dollars going out to families today!!
 
SNAP Coalition - tomorrow, 4/13 from 10-11:30 AM
 
The agenda for our meeting will include federal updates, the state FY22 budget, DTA updates on PEBT and the expanded Emergency Allotments for the lowest income SNAP households, and a special presentation from DPH on WIC for pregnant women and families. See attached for a chart of the WIC caseload increase since 2019. We look forward to "seeing" you all for this important conversation!
 
 
 
P-EBT Retro benefits to ~600,000 MA children issued TODAY!
 
Today, April 12, DTA is issuing a one time payment of significant retroactive P-EBT benefits to all kids who have gotten P-EBT since the start of the 2020-2021 school year. Generally speaking, these funds should be available by midday. This is very significant for low income families and for the Commonwealth. MLRI - as a very rough estimate - estimates the retro dollars total more than $80 million in federal nutrition dollars. We are very appreciative of DTA's work to get these benefits out to low-income families. 
 
Please reassure families they are eligible for these funds and they do not need to call DTA! It is NOT a mistake! They can use these funds for purchasing food as they see fit. These funds roll over from month to month!
 
Here is how these retro dollars are being issued:
 
K-12 students who got P-EBT since the start of this school year: 
  • issued either $9.20 (if they got the hybrid P-EBT amount) or $19.20 (fully remote/virtual) for each month they got P-EBT - going back to the start of the school year through January. This is because of a 15% increase in PEBT benefits included in an executive order from President Biden. The retro ends in January because in February DTA began issuing the higher amounts. 
Example: A student was fully remote between September and January. The student is issued $96 in retro P-EBT. 
 
0-5 children who are part of a household enrolled in SNAP:
  • issued $136.40 per month going back to October - for about 87,000 children, this equals $545.60! The law was changed effective October 1 for 0-5 children attached to a SNAP household - that is why the retro for this group goes back to October, not the start of the school year. 
Example: A mom gets SNAP for her 2 children, ages 2 and 4. She is issued $1,091.20 in back P-EBT benefits for the months of October through January.
  
How to check P-EBT balance:
  • PEBT card: Call the Customer Service Number on the back of the card or go to DTAConnect.com/PEBT
  • DTA EBT card: Check DTAConnect.com, the DTA Connect mobile app, or call the Customer Service Number on the back of the card. Note that the PEBT balance is added to any SNAP balance - so the amount listed includes both! You can check a history of benefit payments to see what was issued and when on DTAConnect.com.  
  • Reminder these benefits do NOT expire as long as the household is using the P-EBT card at least once within a 365 day period. 
For more information, visit MAp-EBT.org. Outreach materials for K-12 and kids 0-5 are available on MAp-EBT.org in multiple languages. 
Attachment Size
WIC_Daily_Caseload_Tracker.pdf (84.83 KB) 84.83 KB