House Education review: Act 64 makes school meals universal; state estimate now $17.7 million

Belle St. James, of the Office of Legislative Council, told the House Education Committee on Jan. 17 that Act 64, the 2023 law commonly called the universal meals law, requires participating public schools and approved independent schools that accept public tuition to participate in the federal school meals program and offer free breakfast and lunch to every attending student.

The law moved the cost of school meals from district budgets into a statewide appropriation. "The new estimate is much cheaper and . . . those all of those costs have been removed from individual districts as a result," St. James said, summarizing the fiscal effect. She said earlier estimates near $30 million had been revised to about $17,700,000.

Why it matters: Act 64 shifted the budgetary responsibility for meals away from individual districts, obliges participating schools to use the federal meals program, and expanded eligibility for the local foods incentive grant to approved independent schools that qualify for universal meals reimbursements. St. James emphasized there are federal rules about how state and local funds interact with federal reimbursements; for example, schools cannot charge private-paying students for meals when offering universal free meals.

Details and context: The statute requires public schools to participate in the federal meals program. For approved independent schools the law does not force participation in the federal program, but if those schools opt in they must provide free meals to every attending student to qualify for the state universal meal supplement; the state reimburses for publicly tuitioned students. St. James noted that the Agency of Education provides guidance on the federal program and that technical questions about program operation and reimbursement are best handled offline with agency staff.

What the committee heard: Members asked clarifying questions about which independent schools participate and how reimbursement flows. St. James said the agency’s food program staff, including Rosie Krueger at the Agency of Education, are strong resources to answer detailed implementation questions.

What’s next: St. James said the budget adjustment act will show the updated fiscal figures for the meal program. The committee is expected to receive more detailed budget materials and agency presentations as the session continues.