New York Gov. Kathy Hochul unveiled her latest initiative to reduce the cost of living in the state: free meals in schools.
“A free lunch, a free breakfast gives families a fighting chance,” Hochul said to a crowd of educators, nutrition advocates and lawmakers at a school in Nassau County on Friday. “We’re finding every way possible to put money back in the parents of New Yorkers.”
Currently, 90% of students already have access to free school meals. The additional funding would expand that to 300,000 more students, bringing the total number to 2.7 million, according to the governor’s office. The initiative would cost about $340 million for the 2025-26 school year, the office also said.
This is the latest part of Hochul's "affordability agenda," which she has rolled out along with her executive budget priorities in the days leading up to her Jan.14 State of the State speech.
If the governor's budget proposal is approved, the majority of students who would start getting free meals would be those at schools in Long Island, western New York and the Hudson Valley. The meal program would save families up to $165 each month for each child, according to the governor's office.
For years, a growing number of lawmakers and state leaders have been pushing for universal school meals.
State Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas and state Sen. Michelle Hinchey introduced the Universal School Meals initiative in 2022. In 2023, the state expanded the program to 86% of all students across the state. Through changes to federal initiatives, the program expanded to 90% of students last year.
“We know that we can't teach a hungry child, and when children have access to a healthy free breakfast and a healthy free lunch, we know that reduces any barriers to their academic success, their performance,” said González-Rojas, a Queens Democrat. “And it helps relieve families in a moment where families across the state are trying to make ends meet, given the affordability crisis that we're facing.”
School meals have been funded mainly through a mix of state support and a federal initiative called the Community Eligibility Provision program. Under the program, school districts with a certain percentage of students whose families are enrolled in SNAP or other public benefits would be eligible for free school meals.
Food and child wellness advocates have praised the governor for the initiative.
“The governor should be commended for this move," said Eamonn Scanlon, who is the director of impact for The Children’s Agenda, an advocacy group based in Rochester. "It really makes sure no kids fall through the cracks."
Liz Accles, director of Community Food Advocates, said making meals free for all students would remove stigmas about food insecurity in schools.
“It means that every child can go into the cafeteria without fear of being labeled as ‘the poor kid,’” Accles said. “Universal free school meals also means when children are getting school meals, they thrive in schools. And that is a pretty fundamental act for the government to be doing to make sure that children have exactly what they need.”
Eight states currently provide free lunch and breakfast to all students in public schools: California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Vermont.
