Looking for your opinions on this. Basically there are a lot of school districts all across the country and a ton in Alabama, including my kids school, that have free lunches for all students. This is achieved through the CEP funding from the USDA that funds local school districts with funds that allows students to not pay for school meals. Currently, there is a 25% over current free and reduced lunches that make the entire district qualify. This expires this summer. Trumps proposal would increase this to 60%. This would mean only the absolute poorest districts would qualify. Our district number is around 40% qualify for free/reduced meals. If the proposal passes, then no one will qualify. My thing is, sure, it will save money, but it would be taking away sometimes the only meal these kids get to eat in a day. You guys have to remember, there are kids that have virtually no one to help them. There isn’t a mom and dad, it’s the grandparents on a fixed income or an aunt, or in foster care. I have no idea what those kids are going to do. Our district can’t afford to pay the difference. I will say, it cost me $2,453 the last year we had to pay for meals, we even packed lunches. My kids are hogs. One personal issue with this is my wife is a teacher and just received her national board certification. Currently she would receive a $5,000 stipend due to the CEP funding qualifier. If this proposal passes, she receives $0 for her near two years of work. So, this will cost me over $7,000.

Also, you guys need to look at the rest of the proposals. Middle class folks get ready…it ain’t pretty. Exception being no tax on tips and no fed tax on overtime.
Budget proposals

Blanket policies are going to adversely affect a whole bunch of people. I do not believe it will go well and blame will be deflected by those responsible.

VIABILTY... Is that single word formally defined, understood, and being used correctly.?

That word has Multi-directional meaning and application (its a loaded word).

That is the most highlighted word in the Proposal. In any proposal (coming from a pro-grant-writer) VIABILITY and VIABLE and FEASIBLE AND FEASIBILITY are big money words.

Alabama has 67 counties with 140 school districts. Every district has a school superintendent with an average salary of $180,000 per year.
Each district has a board of education which can function effectively without a superintendent. That's a $25,000,000 annual budget increase.

I know it’s a big money saver, which is why it’s getting looked into,but it’s a direct cost to the people, all people at that point. A “tax” in another form.

Budget cuts suck, but drastic changes are a necessity when you’ve had decades of fiscal incompetence and general disregard for Americans’ long term welfare.

If we DOGE'd Alabama , that would be adjusted to serve population to correct service ratio; Walmart formulas, that do work great. Walmart always knows how to have the amount of product for their right amount of customers, its not hard at all these days.

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Yup, it means people have to move to a useful position where they can do useful stuff . Try using the idea of DOGE to explain how DOGE actually makes that happen. Thats sorta my actual job.

Like all government programs, it's growth from what it started as, into something it was never intended to be. People became reliant on it as a crutch. They tried to put my adopted daughter on it in one of the wealthiest school districts in the state. It's top heavy, overloaded and needs cut back just like every other government program. The reason government is out of control is everyone is scared to do what's needed. Damn what's good for the country. What's good for me is all that matters.

I have a soft spot for kids. There are some that truly need a free meal. I have no problem with them getting it. But the reality is most on the program don't need free. They have an abundance of food at home and parents too lazy to step up and care for their child.

I agree there in lies some of the problem

48 News just mentioned school lunch programs would not be effected by the federal grant money freeze

This you have to start cutting the fat somewhere. We have 4 districts in our county with commissioners. These 4 have vehicles and salaries. A year a so ago the county wanted to hire a manager to oversee them at a good salary, which I have no problem with but if that would have been done then the county commissioner’s position should be eliminated.

Carter, these funds have already been spent. This is just a proposal for next fiscal year. I would agree that exuberant salaries for education superintendents are out of line but that is a drop, not even a drop in the bucket for expense savings. Those are mostly funded at the state and local level anyway.

May be state and local but where do “those” funds originate?

Also, if the children come from extremely poor households, they should all be getting SNAP. The average monthly payment for a family of 4 on SNAP is $713.

How in the world is school their only meal?! I know groceries are expensive, but $713 will cover 3/4 of my monthly groceries and I have 3 kids under 6.

I'm single and $713 wouldn't cover my monthly food bill.

I scrolled through some of those and you're going to have to point out the ones that "ain't pretty"

As others have stated, it's a problem when they are trying to put every kid in the state on free lunch. I already buy groceries. that I pay taxes on with money that was taxed when I earned it. I don't need them funneling that tax money to pay to for a bloated program that puts a $10 crustable in the grungy paw of every kid in the state.

I suspect that you may choose different groceries at the store. You may be buying ribeye and he is buying ground beef. Those choices definitely make a difference in the total spent at the grocery store.

Most folks buy the same proportion of the same stuff. I may buy 3lbs of ground for 1lb of steak. They are getting more of the same proportions.