The Legislature has gradually increased Washington’s free school meal program over the past four years. (Getty Images)
This story originally published in the Washington State Standard on Oct. 16.
Nearly 800,000 kids are eating free meals in school after the Legislature expanded access — but the state will need to come up with more money if it wants to continue the program.
That’s according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, which announced on Tuesday that 70% of Washington’s kids now have access to school meals at no cost to students or families.
But the state underestimated how many students would participate — leading Superintendent Chris Reykdal to request an additional $17.6 million a year in the 2025-2027 budget cycle to continue feeding this many kids.
The office’s request says that the gap in funding can also be attributed to adjustments in how much the federal government reimburses for its free meal program and an increase in students who meet the income requirements. About 50.1% of students are designated as low-income this year, up from 46.8% in the 2019-2020 school year.