FNS invites state agencies that administer the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program to apply to participate in demonstration projects that will evaluate the effectiveness of conducting direct certification with the Medicaid program.
This report responds to the requirement of PL 110-246 to assess the effectiveness of state and local efforts to directly certify children for free school meals. Direct certification is a process conducted by the states and by local educational agencies to certify eligible children for free meals without the need for household applications.
The National School Lunch Program Afterschool Snack Service is a federally-assisted snack service that provides cash reimbursement to encourage or assist schools in serving snacks to children after the regular school day. The afterschool snack component of the NSLP helps children fully engage in afterschool programming by filling the hunger gap many children face in the afternoon and early evening. Children participating in an approved afterschool care program age 18 and under, and participating children who turn 19 during the school year, are eligible to receive reimbursable snacks through the NSLP.
The interim rule entitled Direct Certification and Certification of Homeless, Migrant and Runaway Children for Free School Meals was published on April 25, 2011.
The attached Q&As are issued in follow-up to Policy Memorandum SP 50-2013, Release of the new state agency Direct Certification Rate Data Element Report.
This memo is to inform you of recent changes related to data exchanges for the purposes of direct certification for NSLP with SNAP. Please share this information with state agencies administering SNAP and continue to encourage them to fully cooperate with their NSLP counterparts to improve the direct certification of children in SNAP households.
The Food and Nutrition Service published a final rule entitled, National School Lunch Program: Direct Certification Continuous Improvement Plans Required by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, on Feb. 22, 2013.
The Food and Nutrition Service published an interim final rule entitled "Certification of Compliance with Meal Requirements for the National School Lunch Program under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010'' on April 27, 2012.
The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 and the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as amended by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 require that children living in households receiving assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program be directly certified for free school meals under the National School Lunch Program and/or the School Breakfast Program.
