No one knows a family's needs better than that family, John.

But Governor Reynolds seems to think she knows what families need better than anyone else.

Earlier this month, Reynolds announced that Iowa would opt out of the 2025 Summer EBT program — the latest example of her placating far-right extremists in her party. Instead of providing families with pre-loaded cards used to buy groceries, the state will attempt to set up its own program to distribute boxes of food to these families at select locations.

The problem with the Governor's proposal is that it simply ignores the needs of the families served by programs like Summer EBT; creating burdens on families to find a location and travel there multiple times while also denying them the freedom to make crucial decisions about the food their family eats.

The USDA summer EBT program operates in more than 36 states, territories, and tribes helping to feed 21 million children. In the past, a lot of food programs looked similar to this proposal, but they've been replaced over the years with the USDA's program. Why? Decades of research which shows what we all intuitively know: families know their needs best.

Governor Reynolds' proposal still hinges upon approval of the waiver to opt-out from the USDA. If they find the program to be ineffective in providing assistance to families in need, they'll deny the application.

Until then, I'll keep working to ensure that families aren't caught up in the Governor's political games, and can put food on the table.

Stand Tall for All,

J.D.