Govwatch

Introduced

In Committee

3

Passed One Chamber

4

Passed Both

5

Signed into Law

Sponsor

Josh Gottheimer

Democrat · NJ · Representative

Votes with party: 90.9% (474 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/G000583

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (45)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

2025-04-07

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

Currently in

House Committee on Education and WorkforceReferred To · 2025-04-07

Previously

Education and Workforce CommitteeReferred To · 2025-04-07

Plain-English Summary

Expanding Access to School Meals Act of 2025 This bill increases student access to free school lunches and breakfasts under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program of the Department of Agriculture (USDA). Specifically, the bill expands program eligibility to include students in households with income at or below 224% of the federal poverty level. (Currently, students in households with income at or below 130% are eligible.) The bill also eliminates the reduced price school lunch and breakfast programs and prohibits USDA from providing reimbursements for reduced price programs. States may use Medicaid participation data to directly certify students for free school meals. (Direct certification allows schools to approve meals without the need for a separate application for children who receive assistance under other programs.) Under current law, states may apply to participate in a USDA demonstration project to directly certify children for free and reduced price meals based on household income data acquired through Medicaid. Further, the bill increases the number of free meals a school in a high-poverty area may be reimbursed for at the free-meal rate under the Community Eligibility Provision. (This provision allows eligible schools, groups of schools, and school districts to offer free meals at no cost to all enrolled students without collecting separate applications.) Specifically, the bill increases from 1.6% to 2.5% the reimbursement multiplier, which is used to calculate how many meals USDA will reimburse the school for at the free meal rate.

Plain-English rewrite of the Congressional Research Service summary published on Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed.

Subjects

Agriculture and Food

Full bill text is not yet cached locally.

Open text view Read on Congress.gov

Related legislation

Bills by the same sponsor or covering overlapping subjects.

HR9059To direct the Assistant Attorney General to award grants to the National Police Athletic/Activities League to improve academic and social outcomes for youth and reduce both juvenile crime and the risk that youth will become victims of crime by providing productive activities conducted by law enforcement personnel during non-school hours.
Referred to Committee · 2026-05-29
HR8927To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the doxxing of law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges, and for other purposes.
Referred to Committee · 2026-05-20
HR8895No Rigged Grocery Prices Act
Referred to Committee · 2026-05-19
HCONRES75Directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers Resolution, to remove the United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Passed House · 2026-05-14