Audit finds thousands missed out on North Dakota summer grocery aid

BISMARCK — Help for families to buy groceries never reached thousands of North Dakotans who qualified for it. A state audit released this week estimates more than 5,800 eligible children did not receive Summer EBT benefits due to inconsistencies in automatic enrollment. The program provides $120 per eligible child to help cover food during summer break, when school meals aren t available. Health and Human Services and the Department of Public Instruction coordinate enrollment using assistance program records and school data. Auditors found that process missed eligible children while providing benefits to an estimated 1,600 children who did not qualify. State Auditor Josh Gallion says that points to a need for better checks between agency records. "So clearly there is an opportunity to improve some of the data and the verification process between these multiple systems," Gallion said. Gallion s office plans to revisit the program in two years, testing