Nebraska lawmakers are considering possible changes to the school lunch program

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – There are many students in the state of Nebraska who receive free or reduced lunch and breakfast.

The state education commission is investigating school meal programs and the barriers that keep some districts from participating.

Currently, every student in the Omaha Public School District can eat breakfast and lunch for free. They don’t know what lawmakers are talking about: numbers from the IRS or the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) to determine the poverty level in their schools.

Anyway, they just know they can have lunch.

“Serving free meals to students across the board means fewer students who are considered poor in the lunchroom,” said Eric Savaiano of Nebraska Appleseed. “That means that the stigma surrounding those poor students becomes much less.”

Lawmakers and educators are also discussing formulas for getting reimbursement from the federal government for the burgers that lunchroom workers put on their plates.

“Participation in CEP could result in an increase in state aid to schools,” said Shane Rhian of Omaha Public Schools. “That’s what happened to our neighborhood this year.”

Testimony from the legislative debate shows that the federal government reimburses schools for their breakfast and lunch programs at different rates depending on how much the student pays.

The average cost for a school lunch across the state is about $3.50. For students who pay full price, schools will get $0.42 back. For a reduced price lunch, they will be reimbursed $4.03; for students receiving free lunch, it is $4.33.

School lunch reimbursement rate in Nebraska.(WOW)

The average cost of breakfast in Nebraska schools is about $2.50. At full price, schools get $0.39 back, while $2.07 comes back for reduced rates and $2.37 for students who eat free.

School breakfast reimbursement rate in Nebraska.(WOW)

Lawmakers want to ensure that every eligible student in the state receives breakfast and lunch, but not every school district in the state participates in the program.

“According to the most recent data shared by the Nebraska Department of Education, which was 2024-2025 data, there are 156 districts in Nebraska where at least one school is eligible to participate in the CEP,” said Senator Jana Hughes of the state of Nebraska. “Of those with eligible schools, only 21 have chosen CEP, meaning 87 percent of eligible districts still have schools where student hunger could be addressed by increased federal reimbursement through CEP.”

Lawmakers say this is concerning because more students are getting free meals — which means more students need them.

“That’s important because poverty has not fallen recently, it has actually increased,” said Senator Hughes. “We’ve seen our food banks, and certainly our school districts, recognize that there are students who are hungry, and this is a tool that allows them to serve free meals to students across the board.”

The state education commission will conduct an investigation and report its findings and recommendations to the legislature.