School MEALS Act of 2023

The School MEALS Act of 2023 aims to increase access to free school meals by improving "direct certification," which automatically enrolls eligible students (based on existing government benefit data) without requiring separate applications. It creates $28 million in grants for states and tribal organizations to upgrade technology, provide technical assistance, and revise systems - prioritizing those with the lowest enrollment rates of automatically enrolled students. The bill specifically targets a 20% direct certification rate (up from 10%) and allocates $2 million for tribal schools under the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations. These changes directly affect schools serving low-income students, particularly in states or tribal communities with historically low enrollment in free meal programs.