March 31, 2025
Lawmakers Could Tighten Eligibility Guidelines for Free and Reduced School Meals,
WUSF (Tampa Bay, FL), March 25, 2025
Federal lawmakers are considering proposed cuts to school meals, including the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), a program allowing high-need schools to offer free meals to all students at no charge. In Florida, an estimated 1 million children could lose access to free meals at over 1,000 schools if the proposed cuts are enacted. “Taking away this important and effective way for local schools to offer breakfast and lunch at no charge to all of their students would increase hunger in the classroom, reintroduce unnecessary paperwork for families and schools, increase school meal debt, and bring stigma back into the cafeteria,” according to FRAC and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Utah Ends Reduced-Price School Meals for Kids, Making Them Free Instead. Here’s Who Is Eligible,
The Salt Lake Tribune, March 26, 2025
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has signed a bill, HB100, eliminating reduced-price school lunches for some students. Instead, an additional 40,000 students in kindergarten through sixth grade who currently receive reduced-price meals will now receive school meals for free beginning on July 1. HB100 also prevents schools from employing cafeteria practices that stigmatize students who receive free or reduced-price school meals.
Millions of NY Kids Could Lose Access to Free School Meals. Here’s Why,
The Journal News, March 24, 2025
Proposed cuts to CEP could affect over 12 million children across the country, including 2.3 million in New York. “CEP is a win for students, families, and schools,” FRAC and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities write. “CEP gives all students access to the nutritious school breakfasts and lunches they need to be well-nourished and ready to learn, while reducing the stigma often present in school cafeterias when schools have to track students’ eligibility for free, reduced price, and paid meals. When students have access to free meals at school, families have lower grocery bills and more money in their household budgets to help make ends meet.”