The proposed "Healthy Kids Act" aims to establish nutritional standards for children's meals offered in restaurants in Rhode Island. Under this act, restaurants will be required to offer at least two children's meals, or twenty-five percent of the children's meals on the menu, whichever is greater, that meet specific criteria: a maximum of 550 calories, 700 milligrams of sodium, 15 grams of added sugars, 10% of calories from saturated fat, and zero grams of trans fat. Additionally, these meals must include servings from at least two of five designated food groups, with at least one being a fruit or non-fried vegetable.

The act also mandates that the default beverage included with children's meals must be either water with no added sweeteners, unflavored nonfat or low-fat milk with no added sweeteners, or a nutritionally similar non-dairy milk alternative without added sweeteners. Restaurants will be required to list or display compliant meals and beverages on their menus, including online menus and those used by delivery-based entities.

The Department of Health will implement, administer, and enforce the provisions of this act, providing written informational resources and signage in English and Spanish to support restaurants and employees in compliance. Restaurants must provide these resources to employees upon commencement of employment and train them on compliance within thirty days of receiving the materials. They are also required to maintain records documenting the nutritional content of children's meal food and beverages and make these records available to the Department of Health upon request.

The act is set to take effect on January 1, 2026.