Massachusetts has joined a growing number of states in passing legislation to grant free meals to all public school kids.
The new program was signed into law Wednesday by Gov. Maura Healey (D) as part of an overdue budget of nearly $56 billion, which also included spending on child care, workforce development, housing, public transit and other areas.
From that budget, approximately $172 million in permanent funding will be put toward free school meals for students in kindergarten through high school.
Rebecca Wood, who has an 11-year-old, told WBZ-TV in Boston that there were times in the past when she wasn’t sure if she could afford school lunch for her kid.
“It’s awful,” Wood said. “She’d come home and say, ‘Mom, you have to give money to the cafeteria again.’ I didn’t want her to know we were struggling, and she had strangers telling her that we were.”
Wood added that the high cost of housing and medical bills made it tougher to save money. But the new meals program will save families about $1,200 per student each year, according to state Senate President Karen Spilka.
Gunner1Cav on August 12nd, 2023 at 21:09 UTC »
This is what our taxes should be paying for.
GougeAwayIfYouWant2 on August 12nd, 2023 at 20:43 UTC »
Funds are coming from the 4% millionaires tax that Massachusetts voters passed last year in a referendum.
lcl1qp1 on August 12nd, 2023 at 20:11 UTC »
School lunches are often are the most nutritious meals a child has access to. Research shows school meals led to a decrease in obesity among children in poverty. Less childhood obesity benefits society on multiple levels, as it prevents disease in later life.
Free school meals helps children academically, physically, and mentally.
No wonder Republicans hate it.