Committee adopts amendment to school-meals bill after DOE questions cost accounting

A joint Senate education committee on March 25 advanced House Bill 2296 with amendments after questioning Department of Education officials about how school meal costs are calculated and the fiscal implications of the bill’s language.

The measure, as amended in committee, substitutes Senate Bill 2615 language into HB2296 and directs that meal charges be set in reference to a 25% figure; the chair said the committee would further defect the bill’s effective date to July 31, 2055 and include technical non‑substantive edits. The chair’s recommendation was adopted by voice vote.

Shonta Jima, testifying on behalf of the Department of Education, told the committee the department prefers the bill revert to its original "no less than 25%" language because the amended "no more than 25%" ceiling would require lowering current meal prices and reduce revenue. "We do have that figure… which is $9.05," Jima said, describing the department’s method as a total annual expense (food, milk, labor, equipment) divided by total meals served.

Sen. Descartes pressed DOE about a state auditor report that found DOE lacks ingredient-level cost data and inconsistent oversight at the school level. Descartes said the audit showed "nearly $1,000,000 in unused federal food credits over the past 2 years," and argued a statutory cap would impose parameters and accountability on local spending. DOE said it is not disputing the audit’s findings and is working to set school budgets while also trying to prioritize purchases of locally sourced food, which it noted is more expensive.

Committee members also asked whether fringe benefits are included in DOE’s per-meal calculation and requested historical data and projections on meal-cost increases. DOE agreed to follow up with details on methodology and projections.

On program scale, DOE gave approximate volumes, stating, "the total number of meals that we serve per year, 11,000,000 of those meals are free, 7,000,000 are paid, and about 1,000,000 are reduced," and said reduced-price meals are being transitioned to free this year with further allocations planned for next year’s Alice expansion.

Committee members stressed the need to balance affordability with fiscal sustainability. The chair told the library and education officials to return with clear plans showing funding sources and program impacts before further substantive changes are pursued.

The committee’s action substitutes the Senate language into the House bill, amends the effective date and forwards the measure according to committee procedure.