Why a Lexington Republican senator wants SC to provide free lunches for all K-12 students

A Lexington County state senator wants every kindergarten through 12th grade student to have access to free lunch at school.

State Sen. Katrina Shealy, a Republican, filed the proposal Nov. 30, ahead of legislators’ return to the State House Jan. 10.

“Kids learn better if they’re not hungry,” Shealy said. “Teachers teach better if the kids aren’t hungry.”

When schools closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, districts provided free lunches to all students. The service continued until the end of the 2021-22 school year after it was paid for by the federal government.

But, earlier this year, Congress ceased those payments and reinstated the income requirements for students to qualify for free lunch.

In October, nearly 480,000 of the more than 752,000 students, or 64% of students, in South Carolina were eligible for free or reduced lunch, according to the state Department of Education.

To expand free lunches to all K-12 students, Shealy said she has requested an estimate from the education department, what may be an expensive proposition.

A department spokeswoman said Monday staff are still working on an estimate.

“It’s something I’d like to study and understand the reasons for it,” Gov. Henry McMaster told reporters Thursday. “I know during the pandemic that’s what we did with a lot of federal money coming in at that time. It would be more expensive. I’d like to know more about it to make a decision.”

In October, South Carolina schools received $27 million in meal reimbursements from the federal government for providing free or reduced lunches to students who qualify because they come from low-income families.

In schools with high levels of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch, all students get a free lunch without an application requirement. More than 500 schools in the state participate in this program, according to the Food and Research Action Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that works to poverty-related hunger.

“A lot of it is federally funded anyway, and we need to make sure everybody gets lunch and kids aren’t shamed into needing to get a bag lunch or no lunch,” Shealy said.