Community Eligibility Provision Evaluation. Nutrition Assistance Program Report

Section 104(a) of the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010 made the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) available to Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) and schools in high poverty areas. Under the CEP, families are not required to submit applications for free or reducedprice (FRP) meals, and schools must provide free lunch and breakfast to all students. Schools are reimbursed for meals using a formula based on the percentage of students identified as eligible without an application (the identified student percentage, or ISP), using direct certification and other lists of eligible students. The potential benefits are to increase low income students' access to nutritious meals, and to reduce the administrative burden LEAs experience with the school meals programs. The CEP is being phased in by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over a four-year period, beginning with three States selected to participate in the CEP during School Year (SY) 2011-12 (referred to hereafter as Year 1 States): Illinois, Kentucky, and Michigan. FNS chose four additional States for SY 2012-13 (Year 2 States): the District of Columbia, New York, Ohio, and West Virginia. FNS has selected four more States for SY 2013-14: Florida, Georgia, Maryland, and Massachusetts. The CEP will be available to all LEAs nationwide in SY 2014-15. As mandated by the HHFKA, the CEP Evaluation examined the implementation and impacts of this new framework for providing free meals to all students in high-poverty schools. The overall purpose of the evaluation was to obtain a better understanding of: (1) The acceptability of the Community Eligibility Provision to LEAs; (2) The incentives and barriers for LEAs adopting the provision; (3) Operational issues that State agencies encounter in administrating this provision; and (4) Implications and impacts of opting for this provision, including impacts on: NSLP and SBP participation and revenues, LEA and school administrative costs and staffing, errors in certification for FRP meals, counting reimbursable meals, and claims for reimbursement, and meal quality and choices. This Final Report presents the methods and results of the CEP Evaluation. It includes descriptive information on the implementation of the CEP from the State and LEA perspectives, and analytic findings on the factors affecting LEA participation in the CEP and its impacts on LEAs. Community Eligibility Provision Evaluation Glossary is included