Question: Last summer kids on SNAP got money for over the summer. Will they do this again this summer?
Answer: Yes. You are referring to the SUN Bucks program, also known as Summer EBT, which is underway and remains open for applications, according to the state Department of Human Services. Many school-aged children, including those in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, automatically qualified for SUN Bucks; their households did not need to apply. A mainland vendor began mailing SUN Bucks electronic benefit transfer cards to those children starting the week of May 19, with delivery expected to take two to three weeks, according to DHS. If your household qualified for automatic enrollment but has not received the $177 benefit per child, you may call the SUN Bucks customer service line toll-free at 1-888-975-SEBT (7328) to ensure your correct mailing address is on file.
“We are using the mailing address based on the child’s school records, or the household’s mailing address per their SNAP or TANF case, if the household participates or has participated in those programs. If families believe we may have incorrect mailing information” they should call the aforementioned number to report the change of address, according to the DHS website.
Families whose children were not automatically enrolled but who meet the requirements still have time to apply. Go to sunbucks.dhs.hawaii.gov to apply online or to download a paper application and for eligibility details, including household income cutoffs. Note that “households that applied for, and were determined eligible for, Summer 2024 during the period of July 1, 2024, through August 4, 2024, do not need to submit an application for Summer 2025. The same Summer 2024 application will be used to determine eligibility for Summer 2025,” DHS says.
The program, which is funded by the state of Hawaii and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is meant to ensure that school-age children who usually eat breakfast and lunch at school have access to healthy food during the summer break.
According to Human Services, school-aged children are automatically eligible for SUN Bucks (no application required) if:
>> The child’s household participated in SNAP or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families in any month from July 1, 2024, through Aug. 3, 2025; or
>> The child has been identified as a ward of the state (foster child), or identified by their school as homeless, migrant, or runaway; or
>> The child attended a school that offers the National School Lunch Program, and their household applied for and was approved for free or reduced- price school meals.
School-aged is defined as “a child who will have arrived at the age of at least 5 years on or before July 31 of the school year, and who will not have arrived at the age of 18 years, by Jan. 1 of any school year.” Exceptions allow SUN Bucks benefits for some younger children, including those in Head Start. See the DHS website for details.
Q: As we approach the second anniversary of the Maui fires, I am wondering how much that one big fund ended up collecting and if they’ve spent it all?
A: Nearly $210 million has been donated to the Maui Strong Fund (including interest earned), of which about $141 million has been awarded and committed to grantees, according to the Hawaii Community Foundation, which administers the fund. Read about specific grants on the HCF website, 808ne.ws/3HMLo5w. The fund provides financial resources for the immediate and long-term needs of people and places affected by the August 2023 Maui wildfires that devastated Lahaina and also ravaged Kula.
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