Bill declares FREE breakfast, lunch for ALL students … even if they’re rich

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

House Education 03/17/2025 3:00 PM , HR B on HB 3435 Phases in the requirement that school districts offer lunch and breakfast to students at no charge, regardless of household income.  It will cost at least $5 million from the State of Oregon and possibly more from the Federal side.

#1. Government hand-outs should be based on needs — not guarantees written with a blank check.
#2. Forces taxpayers to subsidize some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Oregon.
#3. This shoves children’s diet away from healthy home meals to less healthy mass meals.
#4. This creates separation between the child and the parents over having control over their children’s nutrition.  A parent may pack a lunch but it may be scrapped by the student for the less healthy lunch all the other students are eating or the child may secretly be eating a second breakfast.   Under this plan most meals that a child eats in a day will be out of control by the parents.  How is this good?
#5. This generous hand-out also has the unintended consequence of attracting families form other states when they realize that Oregon offers all kinds of benefits not offered in most places like (1) extended welfare benefits (2) free tuition for non-citizens (3) free hotels for non-citizens  (4) free $30,000 grants for non-citizen home-buyers and (5) free pre-k schooling (Multnomah County).

Taxpayers do not have a problem with the idea of helping give important food aid to financially disadvantaged children.  But expanding it to all children is a government waste of tax dollars that threatens the total cost of providing the meals in the first place.

HB 3435 summary reads, “Makes school meals available at no cost. Phases in the requirement that school districts offer lunch and breakfast to students at no charge, regardless of household income. Requires school districts that make breakfast accessible at a school site to make breakfast accessible at the school site after the beginning of the day. Provides exceptions. Prescribes nutrition standards for reimbursable meals that are paid for by state sources. Directs the Department of Education to apply for statewide participation in federal programs and projects that expand the availability of free or reduced price meals. Appropriates moneys to the Department of Education from the General Fund for the purposes of paying any costs owed by parents or guardians for costs previously incurred for a reimbursable meal and assisting school districts in purchasing or upgrading equipment necessary to comply with the expanded provision of free lunches and breakfasts. Declares an emergency, effective July 1, 2025.”

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