What income is counted in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals?
For the most part, all income received by the household is counted. This includes salary, public assistance benefits, social security payments, pensions, unemployment compensation and the like. For complete information, contact the school or the food service director of the district your child attends.
For the most part, all income actually received by the household is counted. This includes salary, public assistance benefits, social security payments, pensions, unemployment compensation and the like. The only exceptions are benefits under Federal programs which, by law, are excluded from consideration; in-kind benefits, such as military on-base housing (but not military housing allowances); certain kinds of assistance for students and irregular income from occasional small jobs such as baby-sitting or lawn mowing. For complete information, contact the school or the agency that administers the school nutrition programs in your State. (To view the PDF version of the notice announcing the Income Eligibility Guidelines, with further description of how “income” is defined, click here.
For the most part, all income actually received by the household is counted. This includes salary, public assistance benefits, social security payments, pensions, unemployment compensation and the like. The only exceptions are benefits under Federal programs which, by law, are excluded from consideration; in-kind benefits, such as military on-base housing (but not military housing allowances); certain kinds of assistance for students and irregular income from occasional small jobs such as baby-sitting or lawn mowing. For complete information, contact the food service office or the agency that administers the school nutrition programs in your State.
