By: Jeff Beach
BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – A day after rejecting free school meals for all North Dakota K-12 students, House members on Tuesday slightly increased the number of students who qualify for free lunch.
Within House Bill 1013, the budget bill for the Department of Public Instruction, students from families within 225% of the federal poverty line would be eligible for free lunch. That’s an increase from 200% of the poverty line that was funded in the 2023 session.
At 225%, a family of four with an income of about $72,000 would qualify for free lunches.
A public opinion poll earlier this year by the North Dakota News Cooperative showed strong public support for free school meals but the House on Monday voted down a bill to spend $140 million to pay for the meals.
“I know our emails have been blasted in the last week or so and on this, and I think we need to respond in some fashion, and this is the best thing I’ve seen so far,” Rep. Jon Nelson, R-Rugby, said during a meeting Tuesday of the House Appropriations Committee as it amended the bill.
The House later approved the amended education bill on a 72-17 vote, with little discussion of school meals. The bill goes to the Senate.
As legislators have discussed free school meals bills this session, there have been questions about why the federal school meals program doesn’t get more use. The 2023 expansion of the program provided $6 million to make more students eligible but only about half got used.
The state education budget includes $4.5 million for the program this session.
The state program provided free lunches to students who qualify for reduced-price lunch at the federal level, with the state making up the difference. Some families not eligible for the federal program also were covered by the state.
Children from families with incomes at or below 130% of the federal poverty level are eligible for free meals, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture that operates the program. Those with incomes between 130% and 185% of the federal poverty level are eligible for reduced-price meals.
Rep. Eric Murphy, R-Grand Forks, said Tuesday that at 200%, that’s about the median income in North Dakota but the participation appears well below that, in part because it requires filling out a form.
“That parent has got to want to fill out the paperwork,” Murphy said.
The Together for School Meals coalition, a group of more than 75 organizations, has been advocating for funding free school meals.
“While this is a step in the right direction, we strongly encourage the Legislature to continue seeking avenues to ensure every child in North Dakota has access to free breakfast and lunch at school,” coalition member Amy Jacobson said in a statement.
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