The office of Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves said the state opted out of the program as part of his rejection of “attempts to expand the welfare state,” according to Mississippi Today.

Texas officials told The Texas Tribune that the federal government didn’t give them enough time to get the program up and running.

Jason Raven, a spokesperson for the South Carolina Department of Education, told Stateline that the state already has two federally funded summer programs that provide free meals to kids 18 and under.

But one advocacy group estimates that close to 150,000 children statewide don’t get enough food even with existing programs, the South Carolina Daily Gazette reported.

One participating state, Tennessee, has already announced it will opt out of the program in 2025, according to The Associated Press.

A spokesperson for Republican Gov. Bill Lee’s office said that Tennessee has other food assistance programs in place.

Change of heart

Three states — Louisiana, Nebraska and Vermont — originally said they would not participate in the summer program, but changed course.

After Louisiana Republican Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration and the state Department of Education opted not to apply for the program, the Louisiana legislature pushed back and included $3.6 million in the state budget to participate.

Vermont Republican Gov. Phil Scott’s administration initially opted out, saying the state wouldn’t be able to afford the administrative costs, according to Vermont Public. But state officials secured a waiver to participate after they said they worked with the federal government to get more flexibility in administering the program, VTDigger reported.

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