Des Moines, Iowa (RI) — Governor Kim Reynolds says she’s getting positive signals from USDA officials reviewing Iowa’s request to redirect electronic benefits families with children who qualify for free or reduced price school lunches get to buy groceries in the summer. The Biden Administration twice rejected the governor’s plan to instead have the state make bulk purchases of healthy food and provide boxes of groceries to families in the summer.
During a visit to Iowa at the end of March, US Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins said she was really excited about the plan Reynolds had presented, and her staff is reviewing it very closely.
Reynolds and her staff are seeking three other waiver requests of the Trump Administration. In February, Reynolds asked for authority to roll federal funds designated for a variety of education programs into one block grant and let Iowa officials determine how the money is distributed. Reynolds says McKenzie Snow, the state’s education director, has been answering questions federal education officials have about the concept.
Reynolds is also awaiting word on a waiver to let the state change what products can be purchased with federal food benefits as well as a plan to require able-bodied Medicaid recipients to show they work 100 hours a month. Congress is considering a similar change for all state Medicaid programs.
KIWA Staff Photo
