States could lose millions in federal reimbursements due to block grant

Members of Congress and several advocacy groups gathered on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to highlight the potential loss of millions in state funding because of a Child Nutrition Reauthorization block grant introduced last month, and to call upon legislators to squash the bill.

The Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016 houses a statute that would provide three unannounced pilot states with block grant funding. Participating states would be exempt from federal nutrition regulations and would no longer qualify for the 6-cent reimbursement per lunch garnered by certified meal programs.

If chosen for the pilot, California could lose $78 million in federal reimbursements in the first year, Texas could lose $72 million and Georgia would be out $30 million, according the School Nutrition Association, which represents more than 56,000 school feeding professionals.

“The proposed block grant funding cuts would cripple school meal programs and compromise the quality of meals for students,” said SNA President Jean Ronnei in a news release. “Worse yet, funding caps will eliminate annual adjustments necessary to manage higher food costs or increased student demand for school meals due to rising enrollment and economic downturns.”

Local districts could stand to lose a lot of funding, as well. For instance, Solana Beach School District in California projects a loss of $52,267. “Our new speed scratch menu has increased our food cost by 30% this school year," said Siri Perlman, director of child nutrition for the district. “Block grants would eliminate a significant source of funding that could limit the sustainability of these efforts.”

Related:Child nutrition bill jeopardizes school lunch funding

Several members of Congress also called attention to the impact the bill might have on child nutrition. Ranking member Bobby Scott, D-Va., said establishing block grants only erodes the value of programs over time, which will have a real impact on children’s health and education. Scott is joined in opposition to the bill by several Democrats. Last week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi promised that the this version of the House’s Child Nutrition Reauthorization bill “never sees the light of day on the House floor,” according to Politico.

Lynn Harvey, chief of school nutrition services for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, said states are not equipped to shoulder the costs of lost funding. “North Carolina's legislature, to date, has rejected requests to include funds in the annual state budget to help cover the shortfall school nutrition programs are already experiencing,” said Harvey. “Under the proposed block grant, we would lose another $24 million annually. North Carolina would struggle to meet the nutritional needs of our students in the face of further cuts.” 

In addition to the block grant, the bill also would raise the threshold to qualify all students in a school or district for free or reduced-price meals. Currently, only 40% of students in a school or group of schools need to qualify for free or reduced-price meals for free luch to be offered to all students. The new legislation would raise the standard to 60%.