Families who believe their children are eligible but have not received their P-EBT card(s) by Oct. 15 may visit this website or call (405) 522-5050 for assistance.

 Millions of dollars worth of P-EBT benefits to be distributed beginning this week

OKLAHOMA CITY (Sept. 16, 2021) - The Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS), in partnership with the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE), will begin delivering millions of dollars in federal aid directly to families across the state this week. The Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program provides food benefits for families with school-aged children who qualified for but did not receive free or reduced-price school meals due to pandemic-related virtual learning during the 2020-21 school year. Benefits will be distributed in multiple batches beginning this week, with all benefits to be distributed to hundreds of thousands of Oklahoma children by Oct. 15.

Families with eligible students, as identified by their schools, will receive new P-EBT cards in the mail. The benefits loaded on the cards can be used to purchase groceries at authorized retail food stores and farmers’ markets.

OKDHS and OSDE utilized a collaborative data-sharing agreement, using the most current data available, to ensure hundreds of thousands of eligible households across the state would automatically receive P-EBT benefits without having to complete an application.

“P-EBT has been a critical program to address childhood hunger as a result of COVID-19,” said Secretary for Human Services and OKDHS Director Justin Brown. “We share a commitment with the State Department of Education to support Oklahoma children and families who may face increased food insecurity due to the pandemic. We are here to offer resources and are grateful to the many partners who continue to raise their hands in service to others.”

"We're pleased to partner with OKDHS to ensure that children can continue to learn despite the difficult circumstances presented by the pandemic," said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister. "Proper nutrition is essential for children to be ready to learn, and our state and school leaders have stepped up during this unprecedented time to see that our children's most basic needs are met first and foremost."

“Children need access to healthy food to ensure they thrive. That need doesn’t go away when they are learning virtually,” said Deb Smith, Director of OKDHS Adult and Family Services. “The P-EBT program is designed to ensure that children and families have access to the nutrition they need to be successful. This program will benefit hundreds of thousands of our state’s most precious citizens, our children.”

Families of students identified by their schools as eligible will receive a P-EBT card by mail to the address of record with their local school.

The 2020-21 program differs from the first year of the P-EBT program. In the 2019-20 P-EBT program, each eligible student received a set amount of benefits because of statewide school closures from March through May 2020, and eligibility was dependent on the child’s free and reduced-price lunch status.

The benefits for the 2020-21 school year are equivalent to $6.82 per day for school days from Aug. 2020 through May 2021 in which the student was enrolled in a National School Lunch Program (NSLP) participating school and received virtual instruction, based on the school calendar and student attendance records. Days in which the student received in-person instruction or was counted absent from virtual instruction do not count toward benefits. P-EBT benefit amounts are individualized to each student, as determined by the attendance and number of days in distance learning, and children in the same household may have varied benefit amounts.

The first phase of benefits will be automatically loaded onto the new P-EBT cards when a family receives them. Each month’s benefits will be issued in staggered payments resulting in ten separate deposits by Oct. 15. Instructions for checking card balance and deposits, along with other information, will be included in the envelope with the P-EBT card. Each child will receive a separate card.

Children enrolled in schools that do not participate in the National School Lunch Program, including virtual charter schools or Head Start programs, are not eligible for P-EBT benefits. The child must have attended an NSLP participating school and been eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals to be eligible for benefits. Eligibility includes students who attended schools that provided free meals to all enrolled students through the NSLP Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) in the 2020-21 school year. CEP differs from pandemic-related free meal waivers.

P-EBT cards may be used to purchase eligible food items under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) at any retailer that accepts SNAP benefits. Families should refer to the information mailed with their P-EBT cards or visit this website to learn more about SNAP-eligible purchases and participating retailers, including retailers who accept SNAP for online grocery purchases.

Families who believe their children are eligible but have not received their P-EBT card(s) by Oct. 15 may visit this website or call (405) 522-5050 for assistance.

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About P-EBT and NSLP

P-EBT benefits are funded by a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). On June 14, 2021, USDA announced Oklahoma’s approval to operate the program through funding provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Oklahoma must abide by eligibility requirements outlined in the grant.

The NSLP is available to any public or private nonprofit school or licensed residential child care institution. The objectives of the NSLP are to provide to all students enrolled in schools and institutions a meal during a period designated as the lunch period; to provide nutritionally adequate meals acceptable to students, thus reducing plate waste; to provide assistance to participants to ensure that minimum meal requirements are met; and to ensure that all programs are accountable. School districts and residential child care institutions may receive reimbursement for lunches served to enrolled students at predetermined rates established for free, reduced-price, or full-price meals each fiscal year.