This story was originally published by The Hechinger Report.

Thirteen Republican state governors  reject federal funding for summer lunches

Children eat at a summer lunch program in Maine. This year, 13 states opted out of a summer food EBT program that gives families more flexibility to buy food while school is out.

A growing number of states and cities are declining federal summer food dollars, slashing their own offerings or reaching capacity earlier than expected. More than 40 percent of summer meal participants are children ages 5 to 8.

Tens of thousands of children could go hungry this summer.

Thirteen states, all led by Republican governors, opted out of the federal SUN Bucks program this summer.

The program which launched in 2024 and provides $120 in grocery benefits for eligible school-aged children during the months when school is out. Those states include Indiana, where last year, 669,000 children received SUN Bucks benefits, and Tennessee, which would have received $70 million in federal funds for the program. 

Instead of spending $6 million in state funds to administer the federal program, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee proposed a $3 million state-funded summer food program. That program will feed about 4 percent of the 700,000 children who were served by SUN Bucks last year.

In Montana, legislators turned down nearly $20 million in federal funds, claiming the program is duplicative of other existing programs.

“I think something people don’t always recognize is that summer is the hungriest time of year for families,” said Rachel Sabella, director of the nonprofit No Kid Hungry New York. SUN Bucks in particular gives families more flexibility during the summer to access food, she added.

[Related: Nearly 10 million children won’t get summer food benefits as states opt out of new federal program in 2024]

In Montana, legislators turned down nearly $20 million in federal funds, claiming the program is duplicative of other existing programs.

“I think something people don’t always recognize is that summer is the hungriest time of year for families,” said Rachel Sabella, director of the nonprofit No Kid Hungry New York. SUN Bucks in particular gives families more flexibility during the summer to access food, she added.

Cities and school districts have also announced cuts or limits to summer meals. Clarissa Doutherd, a parent and family advocate in Oakland, was stunned when she heard the news this spring that her town’s summer food program would be canceled.

In Oakland, California, where the cost of living far exceeds the national average and about 33,000 children rely on free or reduced-price meals during the school year, she knew thousands of children would go without meals.

“The idea that in the city of Oakland, children could possibly go hungry, that our most vulnerable families would be at risk of hunger, is unimaginable,” said Doutherd, who is executive director of Parent Voices Oakland, a grassroots organization.

In Maryland, Anne Arundel County Public Schools, where more than 40 percent of students receive free or reduced-price lunch during the year, will be offering fewer summer meal locations than last year. A summer meal program in Santa Barbara, California, was canceled this year due to budget cuts. And in Dayton, Ohio, summer meal programs are already at capacity, far earlier than in previous years.

Nationwide, 1 in 5 children don’t have enough food each day.

Elementary-age children account for the largest group of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals, and they are especially vulnerable when out of school. Food insecurity can have long-term consequences, especially for children who experience ongoing hunger early in life.

Ongoing hunger has been linked to cognitive and health declines in children, and research shows children who experience food insecurity during the earliest years of school have:

Summer meal programs can ease hunger and food insecurity, but already struggle to reach all children who may need food. Research shows only 15 children out of every 100 that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch during the school year access summer food programs, even before the recent shifts in policy.