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Creates a universal free school lunch policy for all students in participating schools and sets a federal per-meal payment that starts at $4.86 and is adjusted annually for inflation. It removes reduced-price lunch eligibility rules, preserves existing rules for breakfasts, and makes multiple statutory cleanups. The bill also creates a USDA-administered program to reimburse schools for existing unpaid meal debt, bars participating schools from collecting unpaid lunch charges effective on enactment, requires rapid program setup and reimbursements tied to the Act's effective date, and authorizes whatever funding is necessary to carry out the reimbursement program.
The bill expands access to universal free school lunches and reduces stigma while improving transparency and offering reimbursements to schools, but it shifts significant costs to federal taxpayers and raises funding, targeting, and administrative risks for districts.
Students in participating schools (especially low-income children) will receive free lunches so families no longer pay for school meals and students avoid stigma from unpaid meal accounts.
Low-income students will have more reliable daily nutrition, which can improve concentration and learning outcomes.
Schools and USDA/FNS get a predictable federal per-meal payment ($4.86 base with annual CPI-FAFH indexing and rounding), simplifying reimbursement calculations and giving school meal programs clearer revenue expectations.
Federal taxpayers will likely bear substantially higher costs because the bill funds universal free lunch and authorizes reimbursement of delinquent debt (open-ended 'such sums as are necessary').
The $4.86 base payment and indexing to CPI-FAFH may be insufficient or misaligned with actual meal cost drivers (e.g., labor, regional food prices), risking local budget gaps for some districts and potential underfunding of meals over time.
Removing the reduced-price lunch category eliminates a more targeted subsidy mechanism, which may shift resources away from the neediest households or reduce targeting flexibility.
Introduced February 12, 2026 by S. Raja Krishnamoorthi · Last progress February 12, 2026