# 119-hr-8728: Feed Our Kids Act of 2026

119-hr-8728, Feed Our Kids Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Gottheimer, Josh [D-NJ-5] (D-NJ); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-15).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8728
- As of: 2026-10-15
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-8728
- Congress: 119
- Title: Feed Our Kids Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-11
- Sponsor: Rep. Gottheimer, Josh [D-NJ-5] (D-NJ)
- Cosponsors: 3
- Policy area: Agriculture and Food
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-15

## Summary

**Universal free school meals** for every child in participating schools. The bill removes income checks for breakfast and lunch, sets national meal payments, creates local-food bonuses, bans meal debt and shaming, and expands afterschool and childcare feeding programs. - Families and students: All enrolled children at participating schools get free breakfast and lunch and broader access to summer and afterschool meals. This removes reduced-price and paid categories. - Schools and food authorities: Federal payments are set at $2.80 per free breakfast and $4.63 per free lunch with annual inflation adjustments. States will distribute any local-food premium to eligible school food authorities. - Local farms and states: A local-food premium is available when a state certifies at least 25% of meals used locally sourced products. “Locally sourced” means in-state or within 250 miles of the school food authority. - Meal debt and dignity: Collection of unpaid meal charges and all forms of meal shaming are prohibited. A delinquent-debt reimbursement program will reimburse schools for owed meal debt and requires timely federal payment. - Afterschool, childcare, and summer programs: The Child and Adult Care Food Program expands to private nonresidential afterschool care and guarantees free meals; afterschool meals and summer feeding rules are revised and limits are set at up to 3 meals and 1 supplement per child per day. - Reporting and oversight: The Secretary must report within 1 year on program effects, and the Comptroller General must review the delinquent-debt reimbursement program within 2 years.

## Cosponsors (3)

- Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9] (D-FL), 2026-05-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7] (D-CO), 2026-05-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large] (D-DC), 2026-05-29T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Free school meals and payments: benefit, high. If enacted, all children enrolled at participating schools would get free breakfast and free lunch. The bill would set the national payment at $2.80 per free breakfast and $4.63 per free lunch. It would add a local-food bonus for eligible schools of $0.21 per breakfast, $0.30 per lunch or supper, a…
- Ban meal shaming and pay old debt: benefit, medium. If enacted, schools would be banned from shaming or publicly identifying children over unpaid meal charges. The ban on collections and shaming for breakfast and afterschool would start on the date of enactment; the lunch shaming ban would start one year after enactment. The bill would also require…
- More free afterschool and care meals: benefit, medium. If enacted, afterschool meals and supplements would be free and reimbursed at $4.63 per afterschool meal and $1.20 per supplement (both adjusted for food CPI). The Child and Adult Care Food Program would expand to more private nonresidential child care providers and pay breakfasts at $2.80 and lunc…
- Targeted pilots, training, and state rules: mixed, low. If enacted, pilot projects would have to mainly serve students who are economically disadvantaged as defined under ESEA section 1113(a)(5). Training and technical assistance would be focused on schools that serve economically disadvantaged students. State education agencies would be required to dis…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-8870: BUILD America 250 Act
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026

## Sources
- [119-hr-8728 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8728)

## Related
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151)
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-8870: BUILD America 250 Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8870)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8728 (as of 2026-10-15).