Wisconsin state legislators recently introduced a series of bills to help working families across the state. Among these proposals is one that calls for providing free breakfast and lunch for all schoolchildren.
At first glance, the initiative seems straightforward and compassionate — after all, who would oppose ensuring children have enough to eat?
However, a closer look reveals that this measure is yet another push by advocates of expansive government to fund assistance programs for households that likely do not need them.
Already available
Before diving into the legislative details, it is important to understand what policies exist to help low-income families with children afford food.
Wisconsin schools already provide free or reduced-price school meals to children with low incomes through the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program. According to data from the state Department of Public Instruction, public and private schools across Wisconsin served in total 61.8 million lunches in the 2019-20 school year (the most recent year of data available). Approximately 60 percent of those public school lunches were free or at reduced price (a maximum price of 40 cents per meal) and 70 percent were free or reduced price in private schools.
Wisconsin schools served the remaining approximately 24 million, or roughly 38 percent of lunches, to “non-needy” students at full cost to the student.
Another 21.7 million breakfasts were served, with an even larger share (80 percent) either free or at reduced price. Additionally, many students bring meals from home or purchase food outside of these programs.
Funded through the National School Lunch Program, students from households with income below 130 percent of the federal poverty level can receive free meals, and students from households with income between 130 and 185 percent of the poverty level can receive reduced-price meals. That is, for a family of three, an annual income of $33,500 or less means free meals, and $47,700 or less qualifies for reduced-price meals.
In addition to free and reduced-price school meals, low-income Wisconsin families also receive federal food benefits to help them buy groceries. In the average month in 2024, approximately 125,000 households with children received benefits from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), called FoodShare in Wisconsin. Households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty line ($51,640 for a family of three) are eligible for SNAP in Wisconsin, and this year the maximum benefit for a household of three is $768 per month, with the amount of assistance decreasing as income rises. Many low-income households receive FoodShare benefits on top of free school meals, meaning that many of Wisconsin’s low-income families receive help feeding their children through free school meals and groceries.
The Democrats’ proposed legislation does not target low-income children who already benefit from these other programs. Instead, it expands government-funded benefits further up the income scale.
This is the latest in a long line of attempts by Wisconsin Democrats to expand the free meals program in Wisconsin. During the pandemic, the federal government funded free school meals across the country regardless of household income. Washington Democrats tried, but failed, to extend this pandemic-era program beyond 2022. Instead, President Biden’s Food and Nutrition Service passed a rule in September 2023 to administratively expand access to free meals for some schools.
Wisconsin took advantage of this rule change, meaning that already hundreds of schools in Wisconsin provide government-subsidized meals to all schoolchildren at the expense of federal and local government. This raises the question — what additional schoolchildren would be covered by the Democrat’s new bill?
The answer: middle- and high-income children.
At what cost?
Proponents acknowledge that the bill would primarily benefit higher-income students. But they argue that expanding government-provided meals to higher-income children is needed to increase participation and decrease stigma among lower-income students. State School Superintendent Jill Underly argued in 2023 that some families do not participate in the free school meals program because they do not want to provide income information to schools, saying, “If we eliminated that application process and just provided meals to all kids, it’s not only making sure that families who would qualify are getting the meals, it just means that the kids are going to be eating and they’re going to be successful.”
If advocates are correct that expanding free school meals to include children from middle- and high-income families will boost participation and reduce stigma for students from low-income families, the key question becomes: At what cost, and what alternatives are available?
Governor Tony Evers estimated in his 2023-25 budget that, atop what is now being spent, universal free school meals would cost the state approximately $120 million more in the biannual budget, while Underly projected a higher added cost, $294 million.
Ensuring that low-income schoolchildren have access to meals at school is an important public policy goal. And thankfully, there are already many programs designed to help low-income schoolchildren in Wisconsin. To better serve those children, we should focus resources on those most in need.
Angela Rachidi, a Badger Institute visiting fellow, is also a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), based in Washington, D.C. In her work, Rachidi studies the impact of safety net programs on low-income families and individuals. She researches the effects of government policies and programs on employment, child wellbeing, family income and economic mobility.
Any use or reproduction of Badger Institute articles or photographs requires prior written permission. To request permission to post articles on a website or print copies for distribution, contact Badger Institute President Mike Nichols at mike@badgerinstitute.org or 262-389-8239.
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