I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2803 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to improve 
paperless enrollment and efficiency for the national school lunch and 
school breakfast programs, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 10, 2009 
Mr. FATTAH (for himself, Ms. SCHWARTZ, and Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 
Act to improve paperless enrollment and efficiency for 
the national school lunch and school breakfast programs, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Paperless Enrollment 
for School Meals Act of 2009’’. 
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SEC. 2. DATA-BASED ELIGIBILITY FOR SCHOOL MEALS PRO-
GRAMS. 
(a) ELIGIBILITY.—Section 11(a)(1) of the Richard B. 
Russell 
National 
School 
Lunch 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
1759a(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(F) DATA-BASED ELIGIBILITY.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A school or local 
educational agency may elect to receive 
special assistance payments under clause 
(ii) in lieu of special assistance payments 
otherwise made available under this para-
graph based on applications for free and 
reduced price lunches if the school or local 
educational agency— 
‘‘(I) elects to serve all children in 
the school or local educational agency 
free lunches and breakfasts under the 
school lunch program and school 
breakfast program established under 
section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), during a pe-
riod of 5 successive school years; and 
‘‘(II) pays, from sources other 
than Federal funds, the costs of serv-
ing the lunches or breakfasts that are 
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in excess of the value of assistance re-
ceived under this Act and the Child 
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 
1771 et seq.). 
‘‘(ii) ALTERNATIVE DATA SOURCES.— 
Subject to criteria established by the Sec-
retary not later than December 31, 2010, 
special assistance payments under clause 
(i) may be based on an estimate of the 
number of children eligible for free and re-
duced 
price 
lunches 
under 
section 
9(b)(1)(A) derived from recent data other 
than applications, including— 
‘‘(I) a socioeconomic survey of a 
representative sample of households of 
students, which may exclude students 
who have been directly certified under 
paragraphs (4) and (5) of section 
9(b); 
‘‘(II) data from the American 
Community Survey of the Bureau of 
the Census; 
‘‘(III) data on receipt of income- 
tested public benefits by students or 
the households of students or income 
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data collected by public benefit pro-
grams, including— 
‘‘(aa) the supplemental nu-
trition assistance program estab-
lished under the Food and Nutri-
tion Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 
et seq.); 
‘‘(bb) the medical assistance 
program under the State Med-
icaid program under title XIX of 
the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); 
‘‘(cc) the supplemental secu-
rity income program established 
under title XVI of that Act (42 
U.S.C. 1381 et seq.); and 
‘‘(dd) the program of block 
grants to States for temporary 
assistance for needy families es-
tablished under part A of title IV 
of that Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et 
seq.); or 
‘‘(IV) other data, including State 
or local survey data and State or local 
tax records. 
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‘‘(iii) PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(I) FREE
MEALS.—For each 
month of the period during which a 
school or local educational agency de-
scribed in clause (i) serves free 
lunches or breakfasts to all enrolled 
children, special assistance payments 
at the rate for free meals shall be 
made for a percentage of all reimburs-
able meals served that is equal to the 
percentage of students estimated to be 
eligible for free meals. 
‘‘(II) REDUCED PRICE MEALS.— 
For each month of the period during 
which the school or local educational 
agency serves free lunches or break-
fasts to all enrolled children, special 
assistance payments at the rate for 
reduced price meals shall be made for 
a percentage of all reimbursable meals 
served that is equal to the percentage 
of students estimated to be eligible for 
reduced price meals. 
‘‘(III) OTHER MEALS.—For each 
month of the period during which the 
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school or local educational agency 
serves free lunches or breakfasts to all 
enrolled children, food assistance pay-
ments at the rate provided under sec-
tion 4 shall be made for the remain-
der of the reimbursable meals served. 
‘‘(iv) RENEWALS.— 
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—A school or 
local educational agency described in 
clause (i) may reapply to the Sec-
retary at the end of the period de-
scribed in clause (i), and at the end of 
each period thereafter for which the 
school or local educational agency re-
ceives reimbursements and assistance 
under this subparagraph, for the pur-
pose of continuing to receive the reim-
bursements and assistance for a sub-
sequent 5-school-year period. 
‘‘(II) APPROVAL.—The Secretary 
shall approve an application under 
this clause if available socioeconomic 
data demonstrate that the income 
level of the population of the school or 
local educational agency has remained 
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consistent with or below the income 
level of the population of the school or 
local educational agency in the last 
year in which reimbursement rates 
were determined under clause (ii). 
‘‘(III) DATA.—Not later than 
December 31, 2010, the Secretary 
shall establish criteria regarding the 
socioeconomic data that may be used 
when applying for a renewal of the 
special assistance payments for a sub-
sequent 5-school-year period. 
‘‘(G) HIGH-POVERTY AREAS.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A school or local 
educational agency may elect to receive 
special assistance payments under clause 
(ii) in lieu of special assistance payments 
otherwise made available under this para-
graph based on applications for free and 
reduced price lunches if the school or local 
educational agency— 
‘‘(I) during a period of 2 succes-
sive school years, elects to serve all 
children in the school or local edu-
cational agency free lunches and 
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breakfasts under the school lunch pro-
gram under this Act and the school 
breakfast program established under 
section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773); 
‘‘(II) pays, from sources other 
than Federal funds, the costs of serv-
ing the lunches or breakfasts that are 
in excess of the value of assistance re-
ceived under this Act and the Child 
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 
1771 et seq.); and 
‘‘(III)(aa) for a local educational 
agency, for the prior school year, di-
rectly certified under paragraphs (4) 
and (5) of section 9(b) at least 50 
percent of the enrolled students; 
‘‘(bb) for a school, for the prior 
school year, directly certified under 
paragraphs (4) and (5) of section 9(b) 
at least 60 percent of the enrolled stu-
dents; or 
‘‘(cc) for a school or local edu-
cational agency that received pay-
ments under this subparagraph for 
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the prior school year, directly certifies 
under paragraphs (4) and (5) of sec-
tion 9(b) at least 40 or 50 percent, re-
spectively, of the enrolled students. 
‘‘(ii) PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—For each 
month of the school year, special as-
sistance payments at the rate for free 
meals shall be made under this sub-
paragraph for a percentage of all re-
imbursable meals served in an amount 
equal to the product obtained by mul-
tiplying— 
‘‘(aa) 1.5; by 
‘‘(bb) the percentage of stu-
dents directly certified under 
paragraphs (4) and (5) of section 
9(b), up to a maximum of 100 
percent. 
‘‘(II) OTHER MEALS.—The per-
centage of meals served that is not de-
scribed in subclause (I) shall be reim-
bursed at the rate provided under sec-
tion 4. 
‘‘(iii) ELECTION OF OPTION.— 
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‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—Any school 
or local educational agency eligible for 
the option under clause (i) may elect 
to receive special assistance payments 
under clause (ii) for the next school 
year if the school or local educational 
agency provides to the State agency 
evidence of the percentage of students 
directly certified not later than June 
30 of the current school year. 
‘‘(II) STATE AGENCY NOTIFICA-
TION.—Not later than May 1 of each 
school year, each State agency shall 
notify— 
‘‘(aa) any local educational 
agency that appears, based on re-
ported 
verification 
summary 
data, to have directly certified at 
least 50 percent of the enrolled 
students for the current school 
year, that the local educational 
agency may be eligible to elect to 
receive special assistance pay-
ments under clause (ii) for the 
next school year and explain the 
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procedures for the local edu-
cational agency to make such an 
election; and 
‘‘(bb) any local educational 
agency that appears, based on re-
ported 
verification 
summary 
data, to have directly certified at 
least 40 percent of the enrolled 
students for the current school 
year, that the local educational 
agency may become eligible to 
elect to receive special assistance 
payments under clause (ii) for a 
future school year if the local 
educational agency directly cer-
tifies at least 50 percent of the 
enrolled students. 
‘‘(III) 
LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL 
AGENCY
NOTIFICATION.—Not 
later 
than May 1 of each school year, each 
local educational agency shall notify— 
‘‘(aa) any school that di-
rectly certified at least 60 per-
cent of the enrolled students for 
the current school year, that the 
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school is eligible to elect to re-
ceive special assistance payments 
under clause (ii) for the next 
school year and explain the pro-
cedures for the school to make 
such an election; and 
‘‘(bb) any school that di-
rectly certified at least 50 per-
cent of the enrolled students for 
the current school year, that the 
school may become eligible to 
elect to receive special assistance 
payments under clause (ii) for a 
future school year if the school 
directly certifies at least 60 per-
cent of the enrolled students. 
‘‘(IV) PROCEDURES.—Not later 
than December 31, 2010, the Sec-
retary shall establish procedures for 
State agencies, local educational agen-
cies, and schools to exercise the op-
tions provided under this clause.’’. 
(b) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENTS.—Section 
11(a)(1)(B) of the Richard B. Russell National School 
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