April 17, 2024

Facing a budget shortfall, legislators are considering adding back in requirements to receive free meals at schools, although the state launched the School Meals for All program in 2021. "There is simply no way to impose bureaucratic school meal paperwork requirements on parents that verify their income that won't also result in denying the absolute neediest, the absolute hungriest children the food they need when they need it the most -- when they are growing up," writes Robert Fellmeth, executive director of the Children's Advocacy Institute.