H.R. 7259

Summary

H.R. 7259, the Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2026, was introduced in the House on Jan 27, 2026 by Rep. Mike Levin (D) with 2 co-sponsors. It was referred to Education and Workforce, and last saw action on Jan 27, 2026: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

Record

Text

H.R. 7259 has 2 co-sponsors.

119 HR 7259 IH: Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2026
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2026-01-27
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  2d Session  H. R. 7259  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   January 27, 2026   Mr. Levin  (for himself and  Mr. Mackenzie ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Education and Workforce    A BILL
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to exclude certain military housing allowances from the calculation of household income, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2026  .
2.
Direct certification for children who are members of a household of a member of a uniformed service
(a)
Report
(1)
In general
Not later than October 1, 2026, the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall submit to Congress a report on the feasibility and cost of establishing procedures under which children who are members of a household of a member of a uniformed service may be certified as eligible for free or reduced price lunches under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq. ) and free or reduced price breakfasts under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 ( 42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq. ), without further application.
(2)
Contents
The report required under paragraph (1) shall evaluate a range of options for implementing direct certification, including—
(A)
the use and sharing of data collected for the calculation of the basic needs allowance under section 402b of title 37, United States Code, and other assistance programs for members of a uniformed service; and
(B)
the exclusion of non-service member income from the calculation of household income under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq. ).
(b)
Exclusion of basic allowance for housing from income calculation
Section 9(b)(13) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(13) ) is amended by striking  , on behalf of  and all that follows through  related provision of law .

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to exclude certain military housing allowances from the calculation of household income, and for other purposes.

Sponsors

Rep. Mike Levin (D) sponsors H.R. 7259, and 2 members have co-sponsored it, 1 of them from the day it was introduced.

Mike Levin

Rep. · D–CA-49 · Sponsor

Introduced Jan 27, 2026

Ryan Mackenzie

Rep. · R–PA-7 · Co-sponsor

Joined Jan 27, 2026 · Original

Maggie Goodlander

Rep. · D–NH-2 · Co-sponsor

Joined Mar 27, 2026

Show 3 of 3 rows

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Committees

H.R. 7259 went before 1 committee: Education and Workforce.

Education and Workforce

Education and Workforce

Referred To · Jan 27, 2026 · 824 Bills

Actions

H.R. 7259 has taken 2 actions since Jan 27, 2026.

Votes

H.R. 7259 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

H.R. 7259 goes by 3 titles, 1 of them short titles.

• Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2026 — Display Title
• Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2026 — Short Title(s) as Introduced
• To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to exclude certain military housing allowances from the calculation of household income, and for other purposes. — Official Title as Introduced

Lobbying

2 clients hired 2 firms and 10 registered lobbyists who named H.R. 7259 in 4 quarterly filings, 2026. Reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; a filing’s income covers everything its registrant worked that quarter, so the amounts below are the filings’, not this bill’s.

Filed under Budget/Appropriations, Civil Rights/Civil Liberties, Defense, Education, Government Issues, Immigration, Labor Issues/Antitrust/Workplace, Taxation/Internal Revenue Code.

Clients

Who paid to be heard, by how many filings named the bill.

Firms

Registrants who filed on the bill, by filings.

Lobbyists

Named on the filings that cite the bill.

Filings

The documents themselves, on the Senate’s Lobbying Disclosure site, largest reported first.

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 7259 under Agriculture and Food, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 7259’s is Agriculture and Food.

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 7259, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 19 (Tuesday, January 27, 2026)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Mr. LEVIN:H.R. 7259.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:Article I, Section 8[Page H1916]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com