Echoing public concern, members of the Missoula City Council on Monday expressed frustration with state leaders over their decision to let lapse millions of dollars in federal funding for food assistance.

The Gianforte administration has passed on roughly $36.6 million in federal food assistance, which would sustain nearly 98,000 Montana children, according to state food programs. It remains a matter of frustration for those with an eye on food insecurity.

“Montana is one of the very few handful of states to not apply for this, which leaves kids in our community super vulnerable to experiencing food insecurity and hunger,” said Missoula resident Maggie Bornstein. “It makes me so sad.”

Despite the pleas of food banks, faith organizations and the Montana Food Bank Network, leaders in Helena have not acted on so-called P-EBT benefits, or pandemic-related food benefits. The program provides nutrition to families who have lost access to school meals due to the pandemic.

In a letter to the governor, the Montana Food Bank Network suggested the program has over the past two summers “been the difference between hunger and nourishment for struggling families across Montana.”

Along with other organizations, it has urged the state to reconsider it's decision to pass on this year's funding.

“The pandemic has only exacerbated the difficulties that struggling families face, particularly in rural states such as Montana, when they lose access to school meals,” the network wrote the governor. “They still need your help in order to receive much needed benefits for this school year and the summer.”

Many states including Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada and Utah have submitted a plan to the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide benefits during the current school year and into the summer.

The Montana Food Bank Network
The Montana Food Bank Network
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Experts say childhood hunger often increases over the summer when kids lose access to free and reduced-price meals at school. Meal programs are needed to fill the gap and P-EBT has been beneficial, as it provides vulnerable families money for eligible groceries.

“It is a shame and I really wish we were using that,” said Missoula City Council president Gwen Jones. “A lot of these are state-level decisions. I hope our state legislators and our governor are thinking about this and reconsidering it, as it does make a huge difference to people.”

Last May, Gianforte vetoed a bipartisan measure that sought to expand food assistance in Montana, saying it was too expensive and duplicated federal initiatives “at the expense of the Montana taxpayer.”

This March, the Department of Public Health and Human Services also confirmed that Montana would not submit a plan to the USDA for P-EBT benefits. Both the governor's office and DPHHS has cited an “administrative burden” in operating the P-EBT program.

Last month, the Missoula Food Bank reported its busiest month ever, providing more than 12,000 services to around 4,300 households. Nutrition advocates have urged the state to reconsider its decision to pass on funding to extend food this school year.

“That money is going to get spent by the federal government somewhere,” said City Council member Mike Nugent. “The fact that Montana is not taking it is political theater at its worst.”

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