Dear Community and Education Partners,
After a successful inaugural year, the Maryland SUN Bucks program will return this summer! Children need healthy food year-round to play, grow, and learn. Maryland SUN Bucks helps families stretch their grocery budget during the summer when many children lose access to free or reduced-price meals at school.
Over 600,000 students were served last summer. Together, we helped families put meals on their tables with $120 in benefits for each eligible child ($40 per month for June, July, and August) over the summer months when children were not in school. Our 2024 work represented a 6-fold increase in the number of students served statewide from 2023. We need your help to keep making this investment in children and their families successful!
Eligibility
A school-aged child is eligible for Maryland SUN Bucks benefits if they:
● Are enrolled in a Maryland school that participates in Free or Reduced-Price School Meals (FARMS);
● Are age 5-18 and live in a household that participates in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Cash Assistance (TCA), or Medical Assistance/Medicaid (MA);
● Applied for and were enrolled in FARMS or School Breakfast Program (SBP) during the school year;
● Are in foster care, homeless, runaway, child of a migrant worker, or do not meet the above criteria but apply and are determined eligible for FARMS by August 31 of the application year.
Enrollment
Many families will get Maryland SUN Bucks benefits automatically, but others will need to apply. If a household already participates in SNAP, TCA, or Medicaid and/or has applied for and received Free and Reduced School Meals (FARMS) during SY 2024-2025, they will be automatically enrolled in the program. Also, children who are in foster care, homeless, migrant, or runaway will be automatically enrolled. These households do not need to fill out an application.
A child who is enrolled in a Community Eligibility Program (CEP) school that automatically receives FARMS, is not actively receiving SNAP, TCA, or Medicaid, and is not in foster care will not be automatically enrolled. The child’s parent/guardian will have to apply and be determined eligible to enroll in the Maryland SUN Bucks program.
If you need to apply for Maryland Sun Bucks, please visit https://dhs.maryland.gov/sunbucks/
How Maryland SUN Bucks Works
Maryland SUN Bucks benefits will be issued on existing SNAP EBT cards for families who have received SNAP or TCA benefits at any time since July 1, 2024. For children that do not receive SNAP or TCA benefits on an existing card, the benefits will be issued on a white “Maryland SUN Bucks” card in the child’s name, pictured below.
The benefits can be used at authorized SNAP retailers like grocery stores and farmers markets to purchase healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, meats and other protein sources, whole grains, dairy, and other food products.