Deadline for Additional Pandemic SNAP Benefits Extended to July 31st

The deadline has been extended another month for Minnesota’s low-income families who may be eligible for additional benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

According to the Minnesota Department of Human Services, up to 150,000 families may still be eligible to apply for SNAP benefits for a limited-time program that ensures children don’t go hungry while not in school and not receiving school lunch.

The deadline, previously June 30, has been extended to July 31.

The program is called the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer, or P-EBT, where DHS issues a lump sum of $325 per child to purchase food within a year of the date issued.

Minnesota’s Human Services Commissioner Jodi Harpstead says the aim of the program is to supplement families’ food budgets by providing additional help to purchase healthy foods for school children.

The state’s human services department, or DHS, says about 200,000 families have already applied for, or received, benefits from the program.

Families who are already qualified have received the funds automatically on their existing EBT cards.

The Minnesota DHS says families who were receiving free or reduced meals for 2019-2020 school year -- but were not receiving SNAP or Minnesota Family Investment Program benefits -- need to sign up for the P-EBT card to receive the additional funds.

Again, the deadline is extended until July 31. For more information, search Minnesota Pandemic EBT on any search engine.

The deadline extension comes amid increasing worry that the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a hunger crisis not seen since the great depression. In June, the nation’s largest food bank, Second Harvest Heartland, projected demand for food to spike in July and peak in September.