A webinar for state agency and school food authority staff focused on the community eligibility provision.
The Community Eligibility Provision is a National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program meal service option that allows schools and school districts located in high poverty areas to offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students.
A final rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Community Eligibility Provision-Increasing Options for Schools (88 FR 65778), was published on Sept. 26, 2023, with an effective date of Oct. 26, 2023, that established the 25 percent minimum ISP threshold. As a result, more students, households, and schools have the opportunity to experience CEP’s benefits, such as increasing access to school meals at no cost, eliminating unpaid meal charges, minimizing stigma, and streamlining meal service operations.
This map contains links to state-specific information on local educational agencies and schools that may be eligible to elect the Community Eligibility Provision.
Congress passed a law in late 2022 to help SNAP participants who are victims of card skimming, cloning and other similar methods. To implement this new law, states are working quickly to develop and implement processes to help people whose SNAP benefits were stolen seek and obtain relief. FNS will list plans on this page as they are approved
The CEP resource center provides extensive resources for parents, teachers, and school officials at the local, state and Federal level to better understand CEP and its positive benefits, along with useful tools to help facilitate successful implementation of the provision in your school!
A webinar for state agency and school food authority staff focused on the Final Rule: Child Nutrition Programs Community Eligibility Provision — Increasing Options for Schools.
USDA published a final rule in the Federal Register on Sept. 26, 2023, to expand access to the Community Eligibility Provision by lowering the minimum identified student percentage participation threshold from 40 percent to 25 percent.
FNS monitors SNAP-authorized retailers and transaction data and investigates potential concerns as illustrated in this SNAP infographic highlighting retailer compliance.
Infographic explaining improper payments in the SNAP program.