(ABC 6 News) — Hunger is an issue 12 months of the year for many families, especially during the holidays. But now, help is on the way in Minnesota.

This year, Governor Tim Walz announced the state is providing $5 million to help families by using unused federal American Rescue Plan money from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are able to find the remaining dollars in our American Rescue Plan dollars and today I’m proud to announce we’re able to give five million dollars to our food shelves across the State of Minnesota during this holiday season,” Walz said.

The state has about 300 food shelves that will be able to apply for some of the money based on community need.

In Minnesota alone, there likely will be about nine million visits to food shelves, up from 7.5 million visits last year.