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State announces renewed bump in food assistance payment

Food assistance recipients spend about 10 percent of their food budget on sugary drinks, while the rest of the population spends about 7 percent.
David Paul Morris
/
Bloomberg via Getty Images
Food assistance recipients spend about 10 percent of their food budget on sugary drinks, while the rest of the population spends about 7 percent.

Households in Michigan that get federal food assistance will see the benefit boosted for another month.

“Michiganders will receive additional assistance to put food on the table in March as we continue growing our economy,” said Governor Gretchen Whitmer in a press release.

The bump was re-authorized by Congress and will be automatically added to Bridge card accounts for families to use to buy food.

That will mean another 95 dollars a month for roughly 700 thousand families in the state, says Alex Rossman is with the Michigan League for Public Policy.

“This is another instance where it’s kind of a win-win in terms of helping households directly as well as money getting spent in local grocery stores and going back into the economy as well.”

The food assistance boost for some Michigan residents started in April of 2020 as part of federal economic recovery plans.

Rick Pluta is Senior Capitol Correspondent for the Michigan Public Radio Network.