March 28, 2023 3:00 a.m.

Oregon will provide an additional $170 million in food benefits to 434,000 children beginning in late March.

A release from the Oregon Department of Human Services said through the end of May 2023, $391 in additional food benefits will be issued to each eligible child.

A P-EBT card containing the food benefits, which is different from a regular electronic benefit transfer card, will be sent to each eligible child. Cards are being sent in batches from late March through the end of May.

Children are eligible for the Summer P-EBT is they:

*Were eligible to receive free or reduced-price National School Lunch Program meals during the school year 2021-22 or a attended a Community Eligible Provision school

*Were under the age of 6 and enrolled in SNAP during the summer 2022 months

The release said households with multiple eligible children will receive individual letters and cards for each eligible child. Households will start receiving notification letters at the end of March and P-EBT cards will begin arriving in April.

Go to: www.pebt.oregon.gov for more information about the program. It is in partnership with the Oregon Department of Human Services and the Oregon Department of Education.