PENNSYLVANIA — Summer is a time when many children might not have access to the free and reduced-price meals they get during the school year, and households might need a little extra help putting meals on the table.

This year Pennsylvania will launch SUN Bucks, Pennsylvania’s Summer EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) program. It’s a new grocery benefits program that provides households with a one-time payment of $120 for each eligible child, to help buy food while school is out. Benefits can be used at local participating retailers for food.

Some households will need to apply. The benefits will be added to an existing SNAP/TANF EBT card or a newly issued Summer EBT card.

For the first year of this program, paper applications for children who are not automatically eligible will become available in July 2024. Benefits will be issued to all eligible children by October 2024.

To learn more about SUN Bucks, visit www.pa.gov/en/agencies/dhs/resources/summer-ebt.html.