4 questions about Iowa governor’s new plan to help feed families next summer
DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Media Iowa State Capitol Bureau) - A series of unanswered questions could challenge Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds’ newest plan to feed children next summer. The answers could determine whether the plan can be effective and whether a federal agency will allow the new plan to happen with federal funding.
Instead of participating in the federal USDA SUN bucks plan for 2025 -- the program that she faced heavy criticism for declining for 2024 -- the governor has released plans of her own to provide meals for families next summer.
The governor stated that she feels her feeding program could reach more families, deliver more nutritional value, and provide food at less overall cost than the current federal program.
The federal program gives eligible families $120 on an EBT card for the summer for each child, so that they can buy groceries. Iowa could have received $29 million for that program for this year. But Reynolds declined it and said that the program didn’t do enough to make sure that families were buying nutritional food. She instead expanded meal sites with $900,000 in competitive grants.
The governor wants a federal waiver for next year, so that she can use the $29 million in federal funding to provide boxes of food given to families at designated distribution sites across the state.
Families making below 200% of the poverty rate would be eligible. For a family of four, that is roughly $62,000 per year.
Here are some questions about the governor’s plan:
- Will the governor’s new plan be as accessible for families, since they might have to find transportation to a distribution site rather than receive the loaded EBT card in the mail like they do now under the federal program?
- Can the program be undertaken at less cost as the governor contends, since the state could buy food in bulk for distribution? Or will the logistics involved to expand distribution sites cost more than mailing out the federal EBT cards?
- Should the state take responsibility for selecting foods for families, or should parents decide for themselves what to buy for their children under the current federal system?
- Will the USDA agree to the waiver? Thursday, the USDA provided a statement that called into question why the state would try its own program rather than just use the established federal program that other states use.
About the author: Midwest native Dave Price is Gray Television’s Iowa Political Director for 10 stations that broadcast in the state and has been covering local, state and national politics from Iowa since 2001.
Dave produces and hosts “Inside Iowa Politics,” a weekly, in-depth show focused on interviews with top leaders on politics, issues, challenges and solutions that impact the state.
He has written two books about the Iowa Caucuses (“Caucus Chaos” and “Caucus Chaos Trump”). Email him at dave.price@gray.tv. Follow him on X (Twitter): @idaveprice Meta/Facebook: DavePriceNews Instagram: idaveprice and LinkedIn: Dave Price.
Dave welcomes your thoughts on what answers to seek from politicians and what issues challenge our communities.
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