School Meal Bill Raises Free Lunch Income Limit to 224% of Poverty Line, Ends Reduced-Price Tier

The new Expanding Access to School Meals Act of 2025 is poised to dramatically overhaul how millions of kids get fed at school. Simply put, this bill is designed to simplify the system and make sure significantly more students qualify for free breakfast and lunch. It does this by making two huge changes: eliminating the confusing “reduced-price” meal category entirely, and massively expanding the income limits for free meals.

The End of Reduced Price

Under current law, there are three tiers: free, reduced-price, and paid. This bill (Sections 101 and 102) wipes out the middle tier—reduced-price breakfast and lunch—for good. This is a massive simplification for school cafeterias and for parents filling out forms. However, this change means that families who currently pay a small amount for reduced-price meals will now either qualify for free meals under the new rules or be bumped up to paying the full price. The good news is that the new eligibility rules are designed to catch almost everyone who was previously in that middle category.

Free Meals for More Families

This is where the bill delivers the biggest punch for working families. Currently, a family must be at or below 130 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) to get free meals. Section 201 of this bill shoots that eligibility ceiling up to 224 percent of the FPL. For a family of four, this means a substantial increase in the income they can earn while still qualifying for free school meals. This change acknowledges the reality that making 130% of FPL often doesn't mean a family is financially secure, especially with today’s housing and childcare costs. This expansion is designed to reduce food insecurity for the working poor and middle-class families who are just scraping by.

Automatic Enrollment via Medicaid

If you’ve ever filled out the school meal application forms, you know they can be a bureaucratic headache. Section 202 aims to cut through that red tape by allowing for automatic enrollment, or “direct certification,” for children receiving Medicaid benefits. The state agencies running the school meal programs must now set up agreements with the state Medicaid agencies to share eligibility data. If a child is on Medicaid and their family income is verified to be under the new 224% FPL threshold, they are automatically certified for free meals. This is a huge win for busy parents, eliminating yet another annual form to fill out and ensuring kids get meals faster.

Financial Stability for Schools

The bill also contains two key provisions that help schools manage the financial side of expanded meal programs. First, Section 203 allows schools to claim retroactive reimbursement for free meals. If a student enrolls mid-year and is later certified for free meals, the school can now get paid for all the free meals they served that student dating back to the first day of the school year. This fixes a common administrative headache and ensures schools aren't left holding the bag.

Second, the bill addresses the Community Eligibility Program (CEP), which allows high-poverty schools to offer free meals to all students without collecting individual applications. Section 204 sets the CEP multiplier at a fixed rate of 2.5 starting July 1, 2025. This standardization provides financial certainty for districts using CEP and encourages more high-need schools to adopt the universal free meal model, further simplifying the process for everyone involved.