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HB 1475

Schools; COVID-19; prohibiting student discrimination based on vaccination status; penalties; effective date; emergency.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Stacy Adams

The bill would create a statewide program to provide free breakfast and lunch to all K–12 students in participating districts and schools, funded by a $140M general fund appropriat

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Bill Summary · HB 1475

HB 1475 — Healthy School Meals for All Students (North Dakota)

Status: Second reading — failed to pass (yeas 39, nays 54)
Introduced: November 26, 2024
Origin/ Sponsors: Introduced in the Sixty‑ninth Legislative Assembly by Representatives Hatlestad, Conmy, Hager, Ista, Jonas, Novak, Schreiber‑Beck, Holle; and Senators Cleary and Mathern. (Bill would create a new section in NDCC chapter 15.1‑07.)

Purpose / Intent

The bill would create a statewide program to ensure that students K–12 in participating entities (school districts, nonpublic schools, and tribal schools) receive both breakfast and lunch at no cost to the student. The program is intended to remove financial barriers to school meals and to support school participation in federal child nutrition programs.

Key provisions

  • New statutory section titled “Healthy school meals for all students.”
  • Definition: “Participating entity” = school district, nonpublic school, tribal school.
  • Reimbursement: The Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) would reimburse participating entities for meals served. Reimbursement equals the applicable federal free reimbursement rate × number of meals served, minus any other federal or state reimbursements the entity receives for those meals.
  • Participation requirements: To participate, an entity must apply to the SPI and meet these conditions:
    • Participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the federal School Breakfast Program (SBP).
    • Provide both breakfast and lunch at no charge to students through an entity-operated program.
    • Submit data on the number of breakfasts and lunches served.
    • Maximize federal reimbursement by operating under the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) if eligible.
    • Comply with applicable federal and state nutrition and program standards.
    • Encourage families to supply income information needed for federal eligibility and other benefits.
    • Provide medically necessary meal accommodations for students with documented disabilities/medical needs.
  • Rulemaking: The SPI may adopt rules under chapter 28‑32 to implement the section.
  • Appropriation: The bill included a specific appropriation of $140,000,000 from the general fund to the SPI for reimbursing participating entities for the biennium July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027.

Who would be affected

  • Directly affected: public school districts, eligible nonpublic schools, tribal schools that choose to participate; K–12 students (who would receive free breakfast and lunch).
  • State agencies: Superintendent of Public Instruction (administration, application/reimbursement processing); implications for state budget and appropriations.
  • Federal program interaction: NSLP/SBP reimbursements and CEP participation would be relevant; federal reimbursement rates determine the payment baseline.

Fiscal and operational impacts (as written)

  • The bill specifies a $140 million general‑fund appropriation for the 2025–27 biennium to fund reimbursements.
  • Participation would shift administrative work to schools (meal counts, CEP enrollment, reporting) and to the SPI (application approval, reimbursements, rulemaking).
  • Potential offsets: federal reimbursements under NSLP/SBP and CEP could reduce net state cost per meal; schools maximizing CEP may recover more via federal funds.
  • Broader impacts (not quantified in the bill): increased meal participation, potential improvements in student nutrition and attendance, and administrative costs to implement systems for nonpublic/tribal participants.

Procedural / timeline notes

  • The bill would add a new section to NDCC chapter 15.1‑07 and authorize SPI rulemaking to implement it.
  • Appropriation tied to the 2025–2027 biennium (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027).
  • Outcome: On second reading the measure failed to pass the House (39–54), so it did not advance into law in the form presented.

If you want, I can:
- Compare this bill to existing federal/state meal programs (CEP, NSLP, SBP) and outline how reimbursement interaction would work; or
- Draft a short one‑page explainer for school districts on administrative steps to participate if a similar program were enacted.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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