Because of school closures from COVID-19, Texas received approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide more than $1 billion in pandemic food benefits to families with children that have temporarily lost access to free or reduced-price school meals.
Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) provides eligible families with a one-time payment for each child who previously received free or reduced-price meals. P-EBT works the same way Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits do and will help families get the food they need during the current pandemic.
P-EBT will be administered by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Texas Department of Agriculture and Texas Education Agency.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Who is eligible for P-EBT?
P-EBT is for children 5-18 years old who received SNAP food benefits for the month of March 2020 and children up to 21 years old who are certified for free or reduced-price meals at school in Texas during the 2019-20 school year.
How much money will I receive for P-EBT?
P-EBT is $285 per eligible child. This amount is based on the average number of days schools are closed for the remainder of the school year.
Do I have to apply for P-EBT?
Families who received SNAP benefits for the month of March 2020 and have children 5-18 years old as of May 17, 2020, do not need to apply for those children. These families will receive P-EBT benefits on their current Lone Star Card by May 22.
Families with children up to 21 years old who are certified to receive free or reduced-price meals during the 2019-20 school year need to apply for P-EBT. (This includes families who received SNAP benefits for the month of March 2020 and have children under 5 and between 19 and 21.) Your school district will send you a link to an online application by the first week of June. Once HHSC receives the application and verifies your eligibility with the school list, you will receive a Texas P-EBT card in the mail that includes P-EBT funds.
When will I get my P-EBT funds?
Families who received SNAP benefits for the month of March 2020 and have children 5-18 years old as of May 17, 2020, will get funds by May 22.
Other families will get P-EBT funds beginning in June. Your application will be processed after HHSC receives the list of children getting free or reduced-price meals.
How will I get the P-EBT funds?
Current SNAP recipients will have the funds loaded on to their current Lone Star Cards. Non-SNAP recipients will be mailed a Texas P-EBT card with the funds loaded on it. The Texas P-EBT card is nontransferable.
For more information, visit the Texas Health and Human Services website.