Proposed Federal Budget Cuts Endanger Free Meals for Arizona Students

Federal Budget Proposal Poses Risks to Free School Meals for Arizona Students A proposed change in federal budgeting may jeopardize the provision of free meals for students across Arizona. This initiative specifically targets the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which currently allows schools in high-need areas to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students, reducing the barriers associated with meal applications. Nationwide, the proposal could result in over 24,000 schools losing eligibility for the program. Organizations such as the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) advocate for CEP, emphasizing its efficiency in managing school meal access without requiring extensive paperwork, instead reimbursing based on the percentage of students living in poverty within a school. Currently, schools qualify for CEP if at least 25% of their students are enrolled in federal assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). The new proposal aims to increase this threshold significantly to 60%. Kyrstyn Paulat, who is the director of early learning and education at Children’s Action Alliance, a nonprofit organization, emphasized the importance of school meals for children facing food insecurity. She stated, “Obviously, if you are not well-fed and you don’t know when your next meal is going to be, that’s going to hinder your health and your academic performance.” The proposed changes could impact 366 schools and affect more than 148,000 students across Arizona. Paulat noted, “There’s so much in the way of rising costs for families right now. When we look at housing, when we look at groceries, when we look at childcare, all of these costs just keep adding up for our families and this would just be another additional expense to increase their grocery prices.”