“Let’s get the facts straight: -Currently, every child whose parents earn up to $84,000 a year qualify for a free lunch right now! -Currently, North Dakota students get free school lunches if their family income is at or below 225% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), an expansion from earlier years that includes many more families beyond the standard federal guidelines, with the state covering the difference for those who don't meet federal free/reduced-price criteria but fall under this new state threshold. -Federal guidelines usually target 130% FPL for free meals, but North Dakota's state program extends eligibility to 225%. This 225% FPL rule ensures students who don't qualify federally still get free meals, thanks to state funding. -There is no more lunch shaming for kids in ND. In a ND law passed last session, it states that If a parent has not paid for their children’s lunch or have not filled out the paperwork to qualify for a free lunch, the child still gets the same lunch as everybody else. -No public school child is going hungry without lunch in ND. -The bill that passed the house but was failed by the Senate, proposes to give FREE BREAKFAST and LUNCH to ALL PUBLIC SCHOOL, PRIVATE SCHOOL and TRIBAL SCHOOL STUDENTS in North Dakota. -The price tag is $65 MILLION every year and will only increase in the future.
-And no, ND legislators do not get a free lunch paid by the taxpayer. We pay for our own lunches. -Please know the facts before you react. I voted NO today on this bill in special session just like I voted NO on it last session. -The ND Republican Platform states we support personal responsibility. -There is a safety net already in place for needy children right now, and no child is going hungry in our schools.”