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(II) the national average payment for free breakfasts, as specified in subparagraph (B).
(B) Payment amounts
(i) In general
The national average payment for each free breakfast shall be $3.28, adjusted annually for inflation in accordance with clause (ii) and rounded in accordance with clause (iii).(ii) Inflation adjustment
(I) In general
The annual inflation adjustment under clause (i) shall reflect changes in the cost of operating the free breakfast program under this section, as indicated by the change in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for all urban consumers.(II) Basis
Each inflation annual adjustment under clause (i) shall reflect the changes in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for the most recent 12-month period for which that data is available.(iii) Rounding
On July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the national average payment rate for free breakfast shall be—(I) adjusted to the nearest lower-cent increment; and(II) based on the unrounded amounts for the preceding 12-month period.
(c) State disbursement to schools
Funds apportioned and paid to any State for the purpose of this section shall be disbursed by the State educational agency to schools selected by the State educational agency to assist those schools in operating a breakfast program.
(d) No collection of debt
A school participating in the free breakfast program under this section shall not collect any debt owed to the school for unpaid meal charges.
school—(1) that has a free breakfast program under section 4 or seeks to initiate a free breakfast program under that section; and(2) of which not less than 40 percent of the students are economically disadvantaged students (as identified under a measure described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6313(a)(5))).
(f) Prohibition on breakfast shaming
A school or school food authority shall not—(1) physically segregate for the purpose of debt shaming or otherwise discriminate against any child participating in the free breakfast program under this section; or(2) overtly identify a child described in paragraph (1) by a special token or ticket, an announced or published list of names, or any other means.
(2) Payment amounts
(A) In general
The national average payment for each free lunch shall be $5.42, adjusted annually for inflation in accordance with subparagraph (C) and rounded in accordance with subparagraph (D).(B) Additional payment for local food
(i) Definition of locally-sourced farm product
In this subparagraph, the term locally-sourced farm product means a farm product that—(I) is marketed to consumers—(aa) directly; or(bb) through intermediated channels (such as food hubs and cooperatives); and(II) with respect to the school food authority purchasing the farm product, is produced and distributed—(aa) in the State in which the school food authority is located; or(bb) not more than 250 miles from the location of the school food authority.(ii) Additional payment eligibility
During a school year, a school food authority shall receive an additional payment described in clause (iii) if the State certifies that the school food authority served meals (including breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and supplements) during the last school year of which not less than 25 percent were made with locally sourced farm products.(iii) Payment amount
(I) In general
The additional payment amount under this subparagraph shall be—(aa) $0.30 for each free lunch and supper;(bb) $0.21 for each free breakfast; and(cc) $0.08 for each free supplement.(II) Adjustments
Each additional payment amount under subclause (I) shall be adjusted annually in accordance with subparagraph (C) and rounded in accordance with subparagraph (D).(iv) Disbursement
The State agency shall disburse funds made available under this clause to school food authorities eligible to receive additional reimbursement.(C) Inflation adjustment
(i) In general
The annual inflation adjustment under subparagraphs (A) and (B)(iii) shall reflect changes in the cost of operating the free lunch program under this Act, as indicated by the change in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for all urban consumers.(ii) Basis
Each annual inflation adjustment under subparagraphs (A) and (B)(iii) shall reflect the changes in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for the most recent 12-month period for which that data is available.(D) Rounding
On July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the national average payment rate for free lunch and the additional payment amount for free breakfast, lunch, supper, and supplement under subparagraph (B) shall be—(i) adjusted to the nearest lower-cent increment; and(ii) based on the unrounded amounts for the preceding 12-month period.
(b) Eligibility
All children enrolled in a school that participates in the school lunch program under this Act shall be eligible to receive free lunch under this Act.
(7) provide safeguards which restrict the use or disclosure of information concerning applicants and recipients to purposes directly connected with the administration of the plan;
(d) No collection of debt
A school participating in the school lunch program under this Act shall not collect any debt owed to the school for unpaid meal charges.
(C) Waiver
If the Secretary determines that a program requirement under this section limits the access of children to meals served under this section, the Secretary may waive that program requirement.(D) Eligibility
All children shall be eligible to participate in the program under this section.
(c) Payments
(1) In general
Payments shall be made to service institutions for meals served—(A) during the months of May through September;(B) during school vacation at any time during an academic school year;(C) during a teacher in-service day; and(D) on days that school is closed due to a natural disaster, building repair, court order, or similar cause, as determined by the Secretary.(2) Limitation on payments
A service institution shall receive payments under this section for not more than 3 meals and 1 supplement per child per day.
(iii) for calendar year 2026, in an amount equal to $60, which may be proportionately higher consistent with the adjustments established under section 12(f) for each eligible child in the eligible household per month during the summer operational period; and(iv) for calendar year 2027 and each year thereafter, in an amount equal to the unrounded benefit amount from the prior year, adjusted to the nearest lower dollar increment to reflect changes to the cost of the diet described in section 3(u) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2012(u)) for the 12-month period ending on November 30 of the preceding calendar year and rounded to the nearest lower dollar increment; and
(2) Eligible child
The term eligible child means any child residing in a State or on land under the jurisdiction of a covered Indian Tribal organization that participates in the program established under this section.
(B) any other private organization providing nonresidential child care or day care outside school hours for school children;
(c) Free meals
Notwithstanding any other provision of law—(1) all meals and supplements served under the program authorized under this section shall be provided for free to participants of the program; and(2) an institution that serves those meals and supplements shall be reimbursed—(A) in the case of breakfast, at the rate established for free breakfast under section 4(b)(1)(B)(i) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773(b)(1)(B)(i));(B) in the case of lunch, at the rate established for free lunch under section 4(b)(2)(A); and(C) in the case of a supplemental meal, $1.28, adjusted for inflation in accordance with section 4(b)(2)(C).
(B) Limitation to reimbursements
An institution may claim reimbursement under this paragraph for not more than 3 meals and 1 supplement per day per child.
for—(i) not more than 1 meal and 1 supplement per child per day served on a regular school day; and(ii) not more than 3 meals and 1 supplement per child per day served on any day other than a regular school day.
(c) Reimbursement
(1) In general
(A) Meals
A free meal provided under this section to a child shall be reimbursed at a rate of $5.42, adjusted annually for inflation in accordance with paragraph (3)(A) and rounded in accordance with paragraph (3)(B).(B) Supplements
A free supplement provided under this section to a child shall be reimbursed at the rate at which free supplements are reimbursed under section 17(c)(2)(C).(2) Limitation to reimbursements
An institution may claim reimbursement under this section for not more than 1 meal and 1 supplement per day per child served on a regular school day.(3) Inflation; rounding
(A) Inflation adjustment
(i) In general
The annual inflation adjustment under paragraph (1)(A) shall reflect changes in the cost of operating the program under this section, as indicated by the change in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for all urban consumers.(ii) Basis
Each inflation annual adjustment under paragraph (1)(A) shall reflect the changes in the Consumer Price Index for food away from home for the most recent 12-month period for which that data is available.(B) Rounding
On July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the reimbursement rate for a free meal under this section shall be—(i) adjusted to the nearest lower-cent increment; and(ii) based on the unrounded amounts for the preceding 12-month period.
(B) serve a high proportion of economically disadvantaged students (as identified under a measure described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6313(a)(5)));
(2) Outreach to high-need schools
Prior to making decisions regarding school participation in the program, a State agency shall inform high-need schools (as defined in section 2211(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6631(b))), including Tribal schools, of the eligibility of the schools for the program.
(D) Identification of children from low-income backgrounds
(i) In general
A local educational agency or State agency, for the purpose of identifying children from low-income backgrounds enrolled in a school served by a local educational agency, may—(I) maintain a record, with respect to each student for whom the local educational agency provides a free public education that contains the information collected from the survey described in clause (iii);(II) distribute and collect a student survey based on the template developed under clause (iii) to identify children from low-income backgrounds; and(III) utilize direct certification data described in clause (iv)(I) to identify children from low-income backgrounds.(ii) Privacy
(I) In general
All individual data collected under this subparagraph shall be protected by the local educational agency or State agency in a manner consistent with all applicable local, State, and Federal privacy laws.(II) Reporting data
Only aggregated data, which may include data disaggregated at the school, local educational agency, or State level, shall be reported to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may reasonably require.(iii) Survey
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall develop a template survey—(I) to identify children from low-income backgrounds that contains only the information necessary to identify a child as a child from a low-income background by using the criteria of eligibility for a free or reduced priced lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as such criteria were in effect on September 30, 2022; and(II) that shall be designed to be easily accessible and in a user-friendly manner.(iv) Transition authority from FRPL to ESEA measures
The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall have the authority to take such steps as are necessary to provide for the orderly transition to, and implementation of—(I) activities that are necessary for the continuity of direct certification carried out by local educational agencies and State agencies specified in paragraphs (4), (5), and (15) section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as in effect on September 30, 2022, for the purposes of identifying any child eligible for free or reduced priced lunch under such Act, as in effect on such date, as a child from a low-income background;(II) procedures for verification of information collected under this subparagraph, which may include procedures modeled on the requirement specified in section 9(b)(3) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as in effect on September 30, 2022; and(III) data privacy provisions for information collected under this subparagraph, in accordance with the requirements specified in section 9(b)(6) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, as in effect on September 30, 2022.(v) Special rule
For the purposes of subparagraph (A), a local educational agency may determine the number of children from low-income backgrounds enrolled in a school served by such agency using one or more of the following methods:(I) Results from surveys specified in clause (i)(II).(II) Direct certification data specified in clause (i)(III).(III) Utilization of both methods described in subclauses (I) and (II).
(1) an individual eligible for benefits under this Act;
(A) In general
The term high-need school means a school that is in the highest quartile of schools in a ranking of all schools served by a local educational agency, ranked in descending order by percentage of students from low-income families enrolled in such schools, as determined by the local educational agency based on one of the following measures of poverty:(i) The percentage of students aged 5 through 17 in poverty counted in the most recent census data approved by the Secretary.(ii) The percentage of students in families receiving assistance under the State program funded under the program of block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families established under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).(iii) The percentage of students eligible to receive medical assistance under the program of medical assistance established under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.).(iv) A composite of two or more of the measures described in clauses (i) through (iii).
(A) provide services under this chapter to at least one grade level of students, beginning not later than 7th grade, in a participating school—(i) that has a 7th grade; and(ii) in which—(I) at least 50 percent of the students enrolled are economically disadvantaged students (as identified under a measure described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965); or(II) if an eligible entity determines that it would promote the effectiveness of a program, an entire grade level of students, beginning not later than the 7th grade, reside in public housing, as defined in section 3(b)(1) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(1)).
(bb) has an enrollment of children described in subsection (a)(1) that constitutes a percentage of the total student enrollment of the agency that is not less than 30 percent; and
(3) Economically disadvantaged students factor
In this subsection, the term economically disadvantaged students factor means the ratio of the number of children in the State who are economically disadvantaged students (as identified under a measure described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6313(a)(5))) to the number of such children in all the States as determined annually by the Secretary of Education.
(3) Economically disadvantaged students factor
In this subsection, the term economically disadvantaged students factor means the ratio of the number of children in the State who are economically disadvantaged students (as identified under a measure described in section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6313(a)(5))) to the number of such children in all the States as determined annually by the Secretary of Education.
(i) Free school lunches for incarcerated juveniles
(1) In general
A juvenile who is incarcerated in an eligible juvenile detention center is eligible to receive free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.).(2) Guidance
Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of the Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026, the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, shall provide guidance to States relating to the options for school food authorities in the States to apply for reimbursement for free lunches under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) for juveniles who are incarcerated.(3) Eligible juvenile detention center defined
In this subsection, the term eligible juvenile detention center does not include any private, for-profit detention center.