Feds approve to extend application date for P-EBT food coupons

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The U.S Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has granted approval to American Samoa’s request to extend the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) application deadline for households to claim benefits for School Year 2020- 21 and the summer of 2021.

The P-EBT program was launched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2020 to offset the financial impact on families whose children missed free or reduced price school meals while campuses were shuttered due to COVID-19.

American Samoa’s P-EBT Program is operated by Human and Social Service Department’s American Samoa Nutrition Assistance Program (ASNAP). And the territory’s State Plan to operate the program was approved by federal grantor in August this year.

Human and Social Service director Muavaefa’atasi John Suisala early this month submitted a proposed amendment to the territory’s P-EBT State Pan to FNS’ Western Region Administration, Jesus Mendoza, saying that DHSS is currently midway through with program implementation and administration.

The territory’s State Plan approved in August includes a process that requires eligible households to complete an application by Oct. 30, 2021, “for us to collect demographic and other data necessary to set up case files and issue benefits,” Muavaefa’atasi said in his Dec. 2nd letter to Mendoza.

“Unfortunately, we underestimated the amount of time needed for this purpose,” he said and requested approval of an amendment to extend application deadline to Dec. 31, 2021.

According to the director, the deadline extension is to “provide eligible households with additional time to provide the necessary information to create case files and issue benefits.”

FNS issued the approval on Dec. 10th saying that the amendment does not change the estimated number of beneficiaries or value of benefits in American Samoa’s approved plan.

FNS reminds American Samoa of the importance of accurate reporting of P-EBT benefits on forms already released in April this year.

The federal agency publicly released on Wednesday this week, Muavaefa’atasi’s request letter as well as the federal approval document. And the agency’s public affairs office also informed Samoa News about the documents.

BACKGROUND

The P-EBT program, is funded under provision of the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act which authorized a temporary assistance program for households with children affected by school closures during the public health emergency declared due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The program qualifies children both in public and private schools.The P-EBT benefits are issued in the form of food stamp coupons to households with children without access to free meals in school. (See Samoa News editions Aug. 20th and Aug. 31st for details.)

DHSS began distribution of the P-EBT food coupons in mid-October and November this year.