skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

School Food Program Popular in WV Under Threat

play audio
Play

Thursday, July 14, 2016   

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A bill in Congress could cut a program West Virginia has used to dramatically increase the number of students eating breakfast and lunch at school.

The Community Eligibility Provision lets schools in high poverty areas make meals available to all, without individual eligibility paperwork.

Supporters say it means more poor children eat, which leads to better test scores and fewer discipline problems.

But Zoe Neuberger, a senior policy analyst for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, says part of House Bill 5003 would knock thousands of schools out of the program, and keep many more from joining it.

"Seven thousand of the schools that are already using Community Eligibility would no longer be able to use it, and there are another 11,000 or so schools that are eligible now, that would lose their eligibility," she points out.

The bill's sponsor argues Community Eligibility is too generous now, and the government could save money by narrowing it.

The program's supporters counter that much of the savings would be eaten up by the additional paperwork.

According to Jessie Hewins, a senior child nutrition analyst at the >Food Research and Action Center, more than 400 West Virginia schools, and nearly 140,000 students, would lose access to Community Eligibility. She says the program has had a lot of success in Appalachia, and she doesn't think it should be rolled back.

"Both Kentucky and West Virginia were early adopters of the program, and both have had really strong leadership to implement the program and roll it out to as many schools as possible,” she stresses. “So, they would stand to lose a lot under this provision."

The Community Eligibility Provision has only been in place since the 2014-2015 school year, but has spread very quickly and is popular, both with parents and educators.

Neuberger says the Senate version of the bill doesn't have the same provision.

"The Senate bill does not include the change to Community Eligibility, and we know that the administration doesn't support that change, either," she states.








get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021