The Pennsylvania SFSP Rural Area Eligibility Pilot Evaluation

The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 (PL 108-265) authorized a pilot to operate in rural Pennsylvania during the summers of 2005 and 2006. The purpose was to test whether lowering the site eligibility threshold from 50 percent to 40 percent would increase the number of children participating in the program.

The legislation directed USDA, through the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), to evaluate the impact of the pilot eligibility criterion on:

1. the number of sponsors operating sites that offer meals under the SFSP,
2. the number of sites offering meals through SFSP,
3. the geographic locations of sites,
4. services provided at the sites, and
5. other factors influencing participation.