House passes Kinkead bill to alleviate school meal debt

PA students currently owe $80 million in unpaid lunch debt

Rep. Emily Kinkead    July 1, 2024 | 4:47 PM

HARRISBURG, July 1 – The state House today passed a bill authored by Rep. Emily Kinkead to provide school meal debt relief for public school students in Pennsylvania.

House Bill 2180 would establish a School Meal Debt Fund within the state Department of Education providing $80 million to assist public schools in discharging school meal debt held by students in the Commonwealth beginning in the 2024-25 school year.

The bill would also prohibit schools from engaging in lunch debt shaming practices including providing students with alternative meals, requiring them to wear hand stamps, wristbands or other articles identifying the student as having school meal debt. It would prohibit schools from taking punitive actions against students, like suspension or detention, for eating meals they cannot afford. It further would prohibit threatening families with collections, lawsuits or reports to children and youth services.

“Food insecurity is worse in this Commonwealth now that it was during the pandemic and one in six children are food insecure,” said Kinkead, D-Allegheny. “When students are hungry at school, it negatively impacts their outcomes and the overall learning environment. Eliminating school lunch debt would allow every child to access consistent meals. Prohibiting debt shaming acknowledges that it's hard enough to be a kid without being singled out in front of your peers.”

Kinkead said the legislation encourages school districts to work with families who accumulate lunch debt to connect them to assistance and resources as needed.

The bill passed the House 118-84 and now heads to the state Senate for consideration.