Sponsored by:
Assemblyman DAN HUTCHISON
District 4 (Atlantic, Camden and Gloucester)
Assemblywoman ANDREA KATZ
District 8 (Atlantic and Burlington)
Assemblywoman ROSAURA "ROSY" BAGOLIE
District 27 (Essex and Passaic)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Miller and Assemblywoman Morales
SYNOPSIS
Requires schools to universally provide free meals to all students, regardless of whether students are federally eligible for free or reduced price meals.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the universal provision of free school meals to students, supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending and repealing various parts of the statutory law.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2022, c.104 (C.18A:33-3.2) is amended to read as follows:
1. As used in this chapter:
Breakfast after the bell program means a program that is established and operated by a public or nonpublic school, pursuant to P.L.2014, c.66 (C.18A:33-11.1 et seq.), for the purposes of increasing student participation in an existing school breakfast program.
"Categorically eligible" means that a student is homeless, is a migrant child, is a runaway child, is a foster child, or is a Head Start child, as defined in 7 C.F.R. Part 245, or is receiving assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (TANF), the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), or, to the extent that the United States Department of Agriculture authorizes the matching of Medicaid data to identify children who are eligible for free school meals, is a participant in the Medicaid program, and which student, by virtue of such status, is automatically eligible to be certified to receive free school meals under the National School Lunch Program or the federal School Breakfast Program, without first submitting an application or being subject to the federal income verification requirements established by 7 C.F.R. Part 245.
"Community Eligibility Provision" means a type of special assistance alternative, identified at 7 C.F.R. Part 245, pursuant to which the United States Department of Agriculture provides reimbursement for free school meals that are provided by eligible, high-poverty local educational agencies and schools that participate in both the National School Lunch Program and the federal School Breakfast Program.
"Eligible student" means a student who is categorically eligible [or], income-eligible, or statutorily eligible for [one or more] subsidized school meals.
"Emergency meals distribution program" means a program, established under section 1 of P.L.2020, c.6 (C.18A:33-27.2), pursuant to which a school district is required to provide subsidized school meals to eligible students, through designated distribution sites, during any period in which a school in the district is subject to a public health-related closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Federal School Breakfast Program" means the federal reimbursement program, established under the "Child Nutrition Act of 1966," 42 U.S.C. s.1771 et seq., pursuant to which the United States Department of Agriculture is authorized to provide grants-in-aid and other assistance to the States, as may be necessary to help finance the establishment, maintenance, operation, and expansion of school breakfast programs and facilitate the provision of free and reduced price breakfasts to eligible students.
"Federally eligible for free or reduced price meals" or "federally eligible" means that a student is either categorically eligible or income-eligible for [free lunch under the National School Lunch Program or for free breakfast under the federal School Breakfast Program, or that the student satisfies federal income eligibility requirements, adopted by the United States Department of Agriculture pursuant to 7 C.F.R. Part 245, as is necessary to federally qualify for and receive] free or reduced price lunch under the National School Lunch Program or free or reduced price breakfast under the federal School Breakfast Program, or both.
"Federally ineligible for free or reduced price meals" or "federally ineligible" means that a student is not categorically eligible for, and fails to satisfy federal income eligibility requirements, adopted by the United States Department of Agriculture pursuant to 7 C.F.R. Part 245, as is necessary for the student to federally qualify for and receive free or reduced price lunch under the National School Lunch Program or free or reduced price breakfast under the federal School Breakfast Program.
"Income-eligible" means that a student [either] satisfies federal income eligibility requirements, adopted by the United States Department of Agriculture pursuant to 7 C.F.R. Part 245, [or satisfies State-level income eligibility requirements, set forth in subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1974, c.53 (C.18A:33-4) or subsection a. of section 12 of P.L.2022, c.104 (C.18A:33-14a),] as is necessary for the student to qualify for and receive subsidized lunch under the National School Lunch Program or subsidized breakfast under the federal School Breakfast Program, on the b