Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.6227 | Sponsor: Rep. Levin, Mike (D-CA)
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Military Dependents School Meal Eligibility Act of 2021
This bill allows certain dependent children in households of active duty members of the Armed Forces to qualify for free and reduced-price school meals through a direct certification process.


To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to allow 
 direct certification of children in households of active duty members 
 of the Armed Forces for certain Federal school meal programs, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Military Dependents School Meal 
Eligibility Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. DIRECT CERTIFICATION FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN OF ACTIVE DUTY 
              MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

    (a) In General.--Section 9 of the Richard B. Russell National 
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraph (5)--
                            (i) by striking ``certification.--Subject 
                        to paragraph (6), any local educational 
                        agency'' and inserting the following: 
                        ``certification.--
                    ``(A) Free lunches or breakfasts.--Subject to 
                paragraph (6), any local educational agency or, in the 
                case of a school that is operated by the Department of 
                Defense Education Activity, the administration of such 
                school,'';
                            (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 
                        through (D) as clauses (i) through (iv) and 
                        adjusting the margins accordingly;
                            (iii) in clause (iv), as so redesignated, 
                        by striking ``or'' at the end;
                            (iv) by inserting after clause (iv), as so 
                        redesignated, the following:
                            ``(v) a member of a household in which a 
                        child is a dependent of an active duty member 
                        of the Armed Forces and such active duty member 
                        has a military income (as defined in paragraph 
                        (16)(C)) that does not exceed 130 percent of 
                        the poverty line (as defined by the Office of 
                        Management and Budget).'';
                            (v) in subparagraph (E)--
                                    (I) by redesignating such 
                                subparagraph as clause (vi) and 
                                adjusting the margins accordingly; and
                                    (II) by redesignating clauses (i) 
                                and (ii) of such subparagraph as 
                                subclauses (I) and (II) and adjusting 
                                the margins accordingly; and
                            (vi) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Reduced price lunches or breakfasts.--Subject 
                to paragraph (6), any local educational agency may 
                certify any child who is not eligible for free school 
                lunch or breakfast as eligible for reduced price 
                lunches or breakfasts, without further application, by 
                directly communicating with the appropriate State or 
                local agency to obtain documentation of the status of 
                the child as a member of a household in which a child 
                is a dependent of an active duty member of the Armed 
                Forces and such active duty member has a military 
                income (as defined in paragraph (16)(C)) that does not 
                exceed 185 percent of the poverty line (as defined by 
                the Office of Management and Budget).'';
                    (B) in paragraph (6)(A)--
                            (i) in clause (iv)(II), by striking ``and'' 
                        at the end;
                            (ii) in clause (v), by striking the period 
                        at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(vi) a person directly connected with the 
                        administration or enforcement of the Department 
                        of Defense Integrated Personnel and Pay 
                        System.''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(16) Direct certification for dependent children of 
        active duty members of the armed forces.--
                    ``(A) Agreement.--
                            ``(i) In general.--For purposes of making 
                        eligibility determinations with respect to 
                        certifying children under subparagraph (A)(v) 
                        or (B) of paragraph (5), a State agency shall 
                        enter into an agreement with the Secretary of 
                        Defense.
                            ``(ii) Without further application.--
                        Subject to paragraph (6), the agreement 
                        described in clause (i) shall establish 
                        procedures for certifying children under 
                        subparagraph (A)(v) or (B) of paragraph (5), 
                        without further application (as defined in 
                        paragraph (4)(G)).
                    ``(B) Access to data.--For purposes of carrying out 
                this paragraph and subparagraph (A)(v) or (B) of 
                paragraph (5), the Secretary of Defense shall provide 
                the Secretary with access to non-classified income 
                information as may be necessary to determine the 
                military income of an active duty member of the Armed 
                Forces.
                    ``(C) Military income.--
                            ``(i) Military income defined.--For 
                        purposes of this subsection, the term `military 
                        income' means, with respect to an active duty 
                        member of the Armed Forces, the basic pay, 
                        basic allowance for subsistence, bonuses, and 
                        special and incentive payments of such member, 
                        as reported by the Department of Defense 
                        Integrated Personnel and Pay System.
                            ``(ii) Special rule.--In the case of a 
                        child who is the dependent of one or more 
                        active duty members of the Armed Forces, the 
                        Secretary, in determining eligibility under 
                        subparagraph (A)(v) or (B) of paragraph (5), 
                        shall use the lesser of the military incomes of 
                        such members.''; and
            (2) in subsection (d)(2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (F)(ii), by striking the ``or'' 
                at the end;
                    (B) in subparagraph (G), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; or''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(H) documentation has been provided to the 
                appropriate local educational agency or administration 
                of a school that is operated by the Department of 
                Defense Education Activity showing the status of the 
                child as a member of a household described in 
                subparagraph (A)(v) or (B) of subsection (b)(5).''.
    (b) Clarification.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall provide a process for a 
parent or guardian whose child is directly certified under subparagraph 
(A)(v) or (B) of section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell National School 
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)), as added by this section, to remove such 
certification.
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