To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to exclude certain military housing allowances from the calculation of household income, and for other purposes.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · September 21, 2023
Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
This bill addresses school meal eligibility for children of military service members by making two key changes to federal lunch and breakfast programs. First, it requires the Agriculture and Defense Departments to study by October 2024 whether military families can be automatically certified for free or reduced-price school meals without filling out applications, potentially using existing military benefit data. Second, it amends the school lunch law to exclude military housing allowances from the income calculations used to determine meal eligibility, which could help more military families qualify for assistance. The legislation primarily affects children of active-duty and uniformed service members and their families, who may currently struggle with meal affordability due to how their military compensation is counted. While the bill requires a feasibility report by October 2024, it does not specify any particular funding amounts for implementation in the text provided.
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