Due to a technical problem with the docket that prevented comments from being accepted during part of the initial comment period, we are reopening the comment period for the interim final rule that appeared in the Federal Register on June 6, 2025. The rule rescinds an unnecessary reporting requirement for the school meals application verification process.
This notice sets forth the interpretation that the U.S. Department of Agriculture uses for the term “Federal public benefit” as used in Title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. In doing so, this notice supersedes any prior interpretation in any notice or other document issued by any USDA agency. This notice also describes and preliminarily identifies the USDA programs that provide “Federal public benefits” within the scope of PRWORA.
The Community Eligibility Provision is a National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program meal service option that allows schools and school districts located in high poverty areas to offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students.
USDA offers prototypes of school meal applications, as well as sample instructional documents intended to assist state and local officials in the design and distribution of their own application materials.
This webinar provided state agencies and school districts instructions on how to navigate the USDA Foods Database to access vendor-specific product information, including nutrients, allergens, ingredients and certifications.
Households with a child approved to receive free or reduced price meals under the National School Lunch Program or the School Breakfast Program during the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year are eligible for the Federal Communication Commission’s Emergency Broadband Benefit. EBB is a federal program to help eligible families pay for internet service during the pandemic.
The findings described in this webinar are based on two analyses. One that estimated the percentage of daily and weekly lunch menus that met the updated nutrition standards, and another that examined the nutritional quality of the lunches using the Healthy Eating Index-2010.
This webinar details guidance and best practices for incorporating integrity-oriented design features into web-based school meal applications.
This memorandum details guidance on the annual Community Eligibility Provision notification and publication requirements and provides information on the USDA-developed reporting template.
Getting to Know USDA's Web-Based Prototype Application for Free and Reduced Price School Meals