This bill would make it easier for all students in a state to get free meals at school, regardless of their family's income. It would allow states to use federal funding to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students, rather than requiring families to apply for assistance.
Latest Action
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
AI Summary
Plain-English explanation of this bill
This bill would make it easier for all students in a state to get free meals at school, regardless of their family's income. It would allow states to use federal funding to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students, rather than requiring families to apply for assistance.
Last updated: 12/29/2025
Official Summary
Congressional Research Service summary
<p><strong>No Hungry Kids in Schools Act</strong></p><p>This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish an option for states to utilize a statewide Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) for USDA school meal programs. (The CEP allows eligible schools, groups of schools, and school districts the option to offer free breakfast and lunch to all enrolled students without collecting household applications.)</p><p>Specifically, USDA must establish a statewide CEP option that may be used by a state agency. The state agency must provide state (nonfederal) funding to local educational agencies to reimburse applicable schools at the free reimbursement rate for 100% of the meals served.</p><p>Eligibility for the statewide CEP must be based on a statewide calculation of the percentage of identified enrolled students, regardless of a school's local educational agency. Further, the bill lowers the CEP participation threshold for a statewide CEP to an identified student percentage (ISP) of zero, from 40%. The ISP is the percentage of students who are eligible for free school meals without a household application, primarily those who are directly certified through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).</p><p>In addition, the bill specifies that the reimbursement multiplier for school meals remains at the current level of 1.6. The reimbursement multiplier is used to calculate how many meals will be reimbursed at the free meal rate.</p><!--tinycomments|2.1|data:application/json;base64,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-->
Key Points
Main provisions of the bill
Allows states to use federal funds to provide free meals to all students in the state, without requiring individual families to apply
Lowers the threshold for a state to offer free meals statewide from 40% of students being eligible to 0%
Maintains the current 1.6 reimbursement rate for free meals, so schools are fully compensated
How This Impacts Americans
Potential effects on citizens and communities
This bill would significantly expand access to free meals for students from low-income families across the country. It would eliminate the administrative burden on schools and families to apply for assistance, ensuring all students have access to the nutrition they need to learn and thrive.
Policy Areas
Primary Policy Area
Agriculture and Food
Scope & Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction Level
federal
Congressional Session
119th Congress
Citation Reference
3112, 119th Congress (2025). "Better CARE for Animals Act of 2025". Source: Voter's Right Platform. https://votersright.org/bills/118-hr-3112
