Hudson Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Provide Free or Reduced-Cost School Meals to Eligible Military Children

Statement

Today, U.S. Representatives Richard Hudson (R-NC) along with Mike Levin (D-CA), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), and Sanford Bishop (D-GA) introduced the Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act to ensure military families have access to school meal programs.

"Our servicemembers and their families have enough challenges to worry about and putting food on the table should not be one of them," said Rep. Hudson. "I'm proud to sponsor this bipartisan legislation that will ensure military dependents at Fort Bragg and across our nation have access to school meals. I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance this common sense bill that offers one more measure of support for our nation's men and women in uniform and their families."

Nearly one in seven military families say they are experiencing food insecurity. Multiple barriers keep military families from participating in programs such as National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP). This legislation would help military families have access to food security program's and alleviate financial stress for military families. By eliminating basic allowance for housing (BAH) from the calculation of military income when determining eligibility for school meal programs, more military families will have access to school meal programs.

This legislation would: qualify almost all children of entry-level, active duty servicemembers for lunch programs, up through ranks E-6. Enable the Department of Defense (DoD) to share family eligibility with school districts, for families to directly certify for free or reduced-price school meals. And increase the percentage of directly certified students in schools, making schools more eligible for the community eligibility provision, which offers free meals to all students.

"The men and women who risk their lives for our country should never struggle to feed their children, and it's unacceptable that nearly one in seven military families face food insecurity," said Rep. Levin. "Our bipartisan legislation will help address that injustice by taking a more accurate measurement of servicemembers' income and automatically enrolling the children of eligible active duty servicemembers in school meal programs. While we must do more to improve the financial security of our men and women in uniform, this is an important step towards ensuring military parents around Camp Pendleton and across the country can focus on fulfilling their mission rather than on where their kids will find their next meal."

"I've always said that joining the military is more than just a job -- it's a family commitment to our country. That's why it's so disappointing that we find ourselves in a position where food insecurity is becoming a growing concern amongst our military families. This is not a challenge military families should be faced with, and we must do something to address it immediately," said Rep. Rodgers. "While this bill won't fix everything, it will take an important step towards providing critical food security to military children and promote their success in the classroom, reduce financial stress for military families, and allow active duty servicemembers at Fairchild Airforce Base and across the country to focus on serving our nation. Kids who have balanced, nutritious meals do better in school and experience better health outcomes. This is a commonsense piece of legislation, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to lead on it for our servicemembers and their families."

"We have an obligation to our service members to ensure that their basic needs are met, which includes making sure that their families have access to the nutritious food needed to lead healthy and productive lives. When children in military families go hungry, their school success is put at risk," said Rep. Bishop. "School meal programs have been an effective safety net for America's school children since the end of World War 2. I am proud to join my colleagues in assuring that school children in our military families -- like those from Fort Benning, Robins Airforce Base, and the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany -- also have access to school meal programs."