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During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress authorized spending that allowed schools to serve free meals for all students.

Those funds are not authorized to continue for the 2022-23 school year.

As a result, Little Cypress-Mauriceville Consolidated Independent School District is returning to charging for school meals and offering free and reduced-price meals based on student eligibility.

Starting today (July 12), the district is beginning to distribute letters and applications to the households of the children in the district about eligibility benefits.

Families are encouraged to complete the Application for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals available at lcmcisd.org and return the completed form to the administration building or to any school office.

The application determines a child’s eligibility for free and reduced-price meals and may assist in the determination of eligibility for other state or federal benefits.

Only one application needs to be completed per household.

Schools will notify the household of the child’s eligibility.

The Texas Department of Agriculture administers school nutrition programs in Texas and offers an eligibility calculator at SquareMeals.org/ProgramEligibility.

Decisions regarding payment for school meals are made at the national-government level, not by the school nutrition team or TDA, district officials stress.

“The dedicated staff at LCMCISD is looking forward to serving healthy, balanced meals to students in the new school year. These meals, whether paid, free or reduced-price, offer a good source of nutrition for children,” a district release said.