Federal Grant Award Summary

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service awarded $683,874 to the New Mexico Health Care Authority (Department of Human Services) under the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Administrative Costs program (CFDA 10.568) effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. This formula grant provides funding for administrative, storage, and distribution costs necessary to operate TEFAP, which supplements the diets of low-income populations across the state. The award amount was determined using a congressionally mandated formula that accounts for New Mexico's proportional share of persons living below the poverty level (weighted at 60 percent) and unemployed individuals (weighted at 40 percent).

Under the terms of this award, the New Mexico Health Care Authority is required to make a minimum of 40 percent of the administrative funds available to emergency feeding organizations, such as food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens, either through direct grants or by expending funds on their behalf. The state agency administers the program via a federal-state agreement and must track all receipts and dispersals for three years following the close of the fiscal year. Funds are distributed electronically on an as-needed basis for actual expenditures, with any unused allocations returned to the federal government for reallocation to other states according to the established formula.