NINE STATES GET GRANTS TO EXPLORE EXPANSION OF FREE SCHOOL MEALS

WASHINGTON, December 6, l999- The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded grants to school food service agencies in nine states that may help them provide free meals to more students while easing some administrative burdens.

Shirley R. Watkins, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services, said grants totaling $2,167,396 were awarded to Arizona, California, Delaware, Mississippi,   New Mexico, New York, Ohio, and jointly to North and South Dakota.

The funds will be used to identify school districts that might benefit from the use of the so-called Provision 2 and Provision 3 in the school meals law.   These provisions allow schools to serve free school breakfast and school lunch to all children while reducing their requirements to count meals and document the eligibility of low-income children for free or reduced-price meals.   The local school district makes up the funding difference between the current level of federal meals reimbursement and the cost of providing free meals to all children.

“These two streamlined procedures were designed to give schools an option to reduce their administrative burden while providing free meals to all their children, but relatively few schools have taken advantage of them,” Watkins said.   “Congress approved this grant money to encourage states and local school districts to consider using one of these two alternate meal claiming systems, and to help them decide whether it would be to their advantage.”

Watkins said that under either of the provisions, free meals are extended to all children while the school’s administrative burden is reduced.   Under regular meal program requirements, schools must take applications every year from children who are financially eligible for free or reduced-price meals, and must submit reimbursement claims based on an actual count of meals served.   Both Provisions 2 and 3 allow schools to take applications only every four years, and Provision 3 eliminates the requirement for meal counting and claiming.

Watkins emphasized that the special provisions may not be appropriate for all schools, and that the grants will only help identify schools that might benefit from the special provisions, and help those schools evaluate the potential advantages.   The grants will not automatically mean that schools will change to the alternate system.   She also stressed that any decision to use the special provisions will be made at the local school district level.

“Despite the federal oversight of the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, administrative decisions about school meals are always up to local school authorities,” Watkins said.

Grants to the States were awarded as follows

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