by Coral Aponte CTNewsJunkie
HARTFORD, CT – The Children’s Committee is considering a bill to give free school meals to all students in the state, ultimately removing the income-based eligibility requirements already in place.
Senate Bill 1217 would bar local and regional boards of education from charging students for school lunches, breakfasts, or any other child-feeding programs that are offered to any and all students.
The bill says the state Board of Education would provide annual grants to any school system that participates in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and has a child-feeding program.
Current law follows the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) requirements when determining if a student is eligible for free or reduced-price school meals. To be eligible they need to be in a low-income household, or in a household participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDIR).
“One of the things this bill does is catch a lot of the families and the children that don’t qualify for free and reduced school lunch,” said Rep. Mary Welander, D-Derby, during the committee’s meeting Tuesday.
Many families may fall shy of qualifying and still not have the necessary funds to provide school meals for their children, Welander said.
Other committee members addressed concerns regarding waste production and the financial impact.
Rep. William Pizzuto, R-Middlebury, said the amount of waste already being produced by schools could feed a small town in the state. He urged his colleagues to consider quality control before providing free school meals.
The World Wildlife Fund published a study in 2019 analyzing food waste in 46 schools across nine cities: Atlanta, Boulder, Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, Nashville, Phoenix, Portland, and Seattle.
“On average, each of the 46 schools produced approximately 39.2 pounds of food waste per student per year, which is 9% higher than the estimated amount the average American wastes at home normalized by meals,” the study said.
Sen. Ceci Maher, a Wilton Democrat and committee co-chair, said that when there is sufficient funding it allows them to purchase and provide healthier meals that kids would be less inclined to throw out.
In response, Rep. Rebecca Martinez, D-Farmington, said students don’t have to take the meal since it is voluntary. With that concept in mind she believes there would be no added waste production.
Rep. Gale Mastrofrancesco, R-Wolcott, said that along with the food waste, she believes the bill would have a big financial impact.
In testimony opposing the bill, Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker wrote that the legislation does not provide funding for the department to offset the cost of free meals for the school districts. She estimated that the meals would cost $70 million, which doesn’t include the cost of the 12 public school districts that don’t participate in the NSLP.
Again, she noted these numbers don’t include those 12 districts not participating in the NSLP.
Betsy Gara, executive director of the Connecticut Council of Small Towns, wrote in her testimony that the legislation would overwhelm local and regional school budgets along with taxpayers.
“Towns are struggling to fund education given rising costs associated with salaries and benefits, facilities, energy, special education services, etc. At the same time, they are working hard to hold the line on property taxes, recognizing that increases burden residents and local businesses,” Gara wrote.
Rep. Aundré Bumgardner, D-Groton, supported the bill in written testimony, stating that the issue outweighs the financial impact. He wrote that providing free school meals will reduce long-term negative health effects linked to childhood hunger, in turn increasing a child’s overall well-being.
“By making school meals free for all students, Connecticut can provide much-needed relief to families struggling with the rising cost of living while making a long-term investment in the health and success of its students,” Bumgardner wrote.
The Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) wrote testimony in support of the bill for the same reason, stating that hunger can impact a child’s ability to learn, and their learning environment, in a negative way.
The nonprofit End Hunger Connecticut! (EHC!) says students are more successful academically when they have nutritious meals. Along with economic relief for families, they say free school lunches will diminish the stigma and shame by leveling the playing field for every student.
The CHRO supports this bill for the same reasons, as stated in their testimony. They urged the state to join Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and California in providing free school meals for students.