PETOSKEY — While the first day of school has come and gone, one question remains up in the air for Michigan schools: What will state funding look like this year?
A resolution isn’t expected to be made by the state legislature until the end of the month, meaning schools won’t know what their per pupil allowance will be or whether or not reimbursements will continue providing free breakfast and lunch for all students.
While the state operates on an Oct. 1 through Sept. 30 fiscal year, it is standard for state budgets to be mostly agreed upon by June 30, with a budget passed by July 1, allowing school districts to have an idea of what funding will look like for the year.
During the Tuesday, Sept. 16 Public Schools of Petoskey Board of Education meeting, director of finance Bill Melching explained what the lack of state budget means for the district, specifically in terms of student meals.
To participate in universal free lunch and breakfast, schools have to be part of the Community Eligibility Program (CEP), meaning every building has a free and reduced lunch percentage qualification at the federal poverty level of 25% or higher, based on income eligibility guidelines.
Even if the state ultimately decides not to fund free lunch and breakfast, the federal program will continue for families who qualify. The concern without the state funding is access for families who do not qualify, meaning most students would have to pay for school meals again.
Originally, the school board was meant to vote on a resolution setting new student meal prices during Tuesday’s meeting. The prices are determined through the use of the meal price calculator provided by the USDA Food and Nutrition Services Department. However, with no state budget and no determination on whether universal free lunch and breakfast will be offered, Melching said it would be best to wait on deciding prices.
He said setting prices would be an indicator that the district would be opting out of CEP, meaning the district would not get reimbursement from the state for free meals.
Melching added that the board would also have the option to pay for meals, covering the cost for all students, if the state decided not to offer universal free breakfast and lunch.
While no formal motion was made, all five board members spoke in support of the district paying for meals for a set amount of time to give schools a chance to communicate with families and let them know about upcoming changes in breakfast and lunch offerings.
If the district paid to cover meals through October, it would cost an estimated $82,500. If they covered November it would be around $57,000, and another $46,000 for December. There are variations in cost based on the number of school days in each month, Melching said, meaning time off for Thanksgiving and winter break would reduce the cost for those months.
Depending on state budget progressions, the school board may hold a special meeting to set future meal prices or determine payment. If the state budget allows for another year of universal free meals, no resolution would be needed.
The school board did approve an increase in cost for adult lunch prices. Breakfast meal prices for adults were set at $3.25, which is the same as last year, while lunch is $5.50 for adults, a 25 cent increase.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @KarlyGrahamJrn.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey school board tables lunch decision, awaiting state budget for funding plans
Reporting by Karly Graham, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
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