Take action! The House Ways and Means Committee has proposed concerning changes to school meal programs in an upcoming Reconciliation Bill that would reduce student access to nutrition. We need your help to protect access to nutritious school meals!  

The proposal would:  

  • Raise CEP eligibility from 25% to 60% ISP—making 24,000+ schools serving over 12 million students ineligible  
  • Require income documentation from all families applying for free/reduced-price meals  
  • Cut $12 billion from school meal funding over 10 years  

Why it matters: These changes would have immediate impacts on your community:  

  • Increased paperwork burden and administrative cost  
  • Return of meal debt and stigma  
  • Reduced access to the nutrition that students depend on to learn  
  • Some background: CEP currently allows schools in high-poverty areas to serve free meals to all students without collecting applications—reducing administrative work and ensuring all students have access to healthy meals. 

Your voice matters! Tell Congress: Don’t cut access to school meals for millions of students! 

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