Sanders, Omar Introduce Bill to Permanently Provide Kids With Free School Meals
Children eat lunch at their desks as a coronavirus safety protocol on their first day of kindergarten on September 9, 2020, in Stamford, Connecticut.
John Moore / Getty Images
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) introduced legislation last Friday that would create a permanent universal school meals program to provide children with free breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack, thus eliminating school lunch debt once and for all.
The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2021 would expand and make permanent a program recently extended by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide universal free lunches through the 2021-2022 school year. It would provide food for all children, regardless of their family income levels, free of charge.
POLITICO
Progressives want to go bigger than Biden on free school meals
The measure is backed by nearly 400 groups, including powerful players like the School Nutrition Association and the National Education Association.
Kids eat lunch at an elementary school in Paducah, Ky. | Ellen O Nan/The Paducah Sun via AP
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Progressives in Congress are pushing to go much bigger than President Joe Biden’s plan to expand access to school meals: Make them free for everyone.
Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) and Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) on Friday intend to
Fri, 05/07/2021 - 1:14pm tim
Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) Friday announced legislation to expand on the success of the universal free lunch approach recently extended by the USDA, and bring long-term relief to millions of food-insecure families. The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2021 would permanently provide free breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack to all school children regardless of income, eliminate school meal debt, and strengthen local economies by incentivizing local food procurement.
The Universal School Meals Program Act is cosponsored in the Senate by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.); and in the House by Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton
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