CNY legislators announce state budget will fund free school meals at qualifying schools

Sen. John Mannion and Asm. Al Stirpe announced Thursday $134 million in the state budget to fund free school meals for students at press conference at Karl W Saile Bear Road Elementary School.

With federal funding running out, continuing this successful pandemic-era program that provides free breakfast and lunch was a high priority for the New York State Legislature.

“Free school meals may be the most consequential achievement in the state budget because it helps kids learn and succeed, covers the costs for school districts and local taxpayers, and it will have an immediate impact. Kids can’t learn on empty stomachs or if they face the stigma of needing free meals,” Sen. Mannion said.

Asm. Al Stirpe said, “At the core of a student's academic performance is their wellbeing and that includes access to breakfast and lunch in school. In this year's budget, the state continues to step up and secured funding to expand access to free school meals for students.”

The federal government funded free breakfast and lunch for all students regardless of household income since the early days of the pandemic, but it expired last June at the end of the academic year. Approximately 700,000 students in New York lost access to free school meals after the federal pandemic program concluded.

Under the enacted 2023-2024 State Budget, schools that participate in the federal Community Eligibility Program (CEP) will be reimbursed by the state for the cost of all meals that are not currently covered by the federal government (the federal government continues to pay for meals of students who are income-eligible for free or reduced lunch price.)

Currently, schools, where 40 percent of the students qualify for free meals, qualify for the CEP program. The federal government has recently announced that it will drop that qualification to 25 percent, thus making many more schools in the state eligible. With the state’s support, schools who qualify but had not enrolled due to lack of funds, or new schools that will now qualify for the program, can benefit from providing free meals to all students at no cost to the school or the students.

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New funding in the state budget, combined with federal programs, will provide free breakfast and lunch to approximately 81 percent of the state’s student population.

North Syracuse Central School District, one of Onondaga County’s largest school districts, is one school that will benefit from state funding. In 2022, Superintendent Dan Bowles said approximately 1,900 of their 7,800 students qualify for free or reduced meals.

“The North Syracuse Central School District is incredibly grateful to Senator Mannion, Assemblyman Stirpe and other local and state lawmakers for continuing to fight for students to get the nutrition they need. Hunger is a real issue and it isn’t something that any student should have to worry about. School district superintendents have all spoken about the importance of offering nutritious, healthy foods to students in our schools so students can focus on their job – learning,” Bowles said.