Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen appears to have had a change of heart, confirming Monday that the state will now accept $18 million in federal funds to feed an estimated 150,000 at-risk children this summer.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Electronic Benefits Program (EBT) will provide low-income families whose kids are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals with preloaded cards to purchase additional groceries: $40 a month or $120 for the whole summer.
The governor, who stonewalled earlier attempts to opt into the program, said his perspective changed after speaking with students across the state who didn’t get enough to eat over the summer months.
“When you sit down with kids that are living it, I’ve learned life lessons from the students that I talked to,” Pillen said. “We have to do better for them, pure and simple.”
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Eric Savaiano, who works for Nebraska Appleseed, a non-profit that advocates for underserved communities, said the organization is excited about the governor’s plan and looks forward to working with the state to help implement it.