Low-Income CT Households To Receive Back-To-School Benefit

CONNECTICUT — More than 15,000 Low-income Connecticut households with school-aged children will receive about $260 per child to help with back-to-school costs.

The benefit will cover 27,000 children and should arrive this weekend. Funding comes from a $7 million federal grant that is part of the American Rescue Plan Act.

Eligible households include those with children who received benefits through the Temporary Family Assistance Program during May 2022. Households that received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and had no countable income the same month also qualify.

Benefits will automatically be sent to households Aug. 21, mainly through electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards.

"Connecticut is the most family-friendly state in the country, and this one-time, special benefit puts money back into the pockets of families who have been struggling to make ends meet,” Lamont said in a statement. “In the coming months, many of these families will also receive payments from Connecticut’s recently enhanced earned income tax credit, which is one of the most effective programs for lifting working people out of poverty."

The benefits are separate from the 2022 child tax rebate. Eligible taxpayers who applied will receive the payments in the coming days.