NY State Senate Bill 2025-S5057A

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 12, 2026	print number 5057a
Feb 12, 2026	amend and recommit to finance
Jan 07, 2026	referred to finance
Feb 18, 2025	referred to finance

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

2025-S5057 - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6619
Current Committee:: Senate Finance
Law Section:: Education
Laws Affected:: Amd §5, Chap 537 of 1976

2025-S5057 - Summary

Increases the state subsidy for school lunch meals based on the percentage of breakfast service, lunch service and reimbursable snack program food purchased from New York state farmers, growers, producers or processors.

2025-S5057 - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5057 - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5057
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HINCHEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance
 
 AN ACT to amend chapter 537 of the laws of 1976 relating to  paid,  free
   and  reduced  price  breakfast  for  eligible pupils in certain school
   districts, in relation to increasing  the  state  subsidy  for  school
   lunch meals
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision b of section 5 of chapter 537 of  the  laws  of
 1976  relating  to  paid,  free and reduced price breakfast for eligible
 pupils in certain school districts, as amended by section 32-a of part A
 of chapter 56 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
   b. Notwithstanding any monetary limitations  with  respect  to  school
 lunch  programs  contained  in  any  law or regulation, for school lunch
 meals served in the school year commencing July 1, 2022 and each July  1
 thereafter, a school food authority shall be eligible for a State subsi-
 dy  equal to [$0.1901] $0.25 per [free and paid] school lunch meal[, and
 $0.0519 per reduced-price lunch meal,] for any school lunch meal  served
 by  such  school food authority; provided that the school food authority
 certifies to the Department  of  Agriculture  and  Markets  through  the
 application  submitted  pursuant  to  subdivision c of this section that
 such food authority has purchased at least thirty percent of  its  total
 cost of food products for its school lunch service program from New York
 state  farmers, growers, producers or processors in the preceding school
 year.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09089-01-5

co-Sponsors

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6619
Current Committee:: Senate Finance
Law Section:: Education
Laws Affected:: Amd §5, Chap 537 of 1976

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5057A

SPONSOR: HINCHEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend chapter 537 of the laws of 1976 relating to paid, free
and reduced price breakfast for eligible pupils in certain school
districts, in relation to increasing the state subsidy for school lunch
meals

 
PURPOSE:

This bill makes several changes to the Farm to School incentive program
in order to streamline participation, incentivize school district
participation, and increase reimbursement.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one:

Currently, schools that source at least 30% of their lunch food
purchases from New York producers are eligible for additional State

reimbursement of 19.01 cents per lunch meal. This section:

- Changes the eligibility calculation to be determined based on a
school's total food purchases, including lunch, breakfast, and snacks;

- Increases the per- lunch meal reimbursement from 19.01 cents for
schools above 30%, to 26 cents for schools between 30% - 40%; 28 cents
for schools between 40% - 50%; and 30 cents for schools above 50%.

- Applies a 1.5% annual, increase to those rates going forward.

- Provides a hold harmless period in which any school eligible for the
program at the time the eligibility rules change shall continue to be
deemed eligible for three years.

Section two: Effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Farm to School incentive program provides additional per- lunch meal
reimbursement to schools that procure at least 30% of their lunch meal
products from New York farmers. This promotes local purchasing, helps
farmers expand their markets, and ensures our students have fresh, high
quality local food.

However, participation in this program remains far too low at just 83
out of 4,400 schools as of 2026. The State regularly appropriates around
$10M annually for this initiative, but the actual payout has been around
$3M maximum due to challenges participating in the program. This
includes outdated rules for calculating eligibility, reimbursement rates
that have not kept up with food inflation, and a single reimbursement
rate that discourages purchasing additional products once a school hits
the minimum threshold.

This bill makes several changes to the program intended to increase
participation, in order to provide our students access to local food,

help our farmers find new institutional purchasers, and ensure the State
actually expends closer to the regular $10M appropriation, including:

Expanding the eligibility calculation to include all food purchases, not
just lunch.  When schools purchase food, they do not necessarily
purchase separate items per meal. For example a school that buys apples
is not likely to invoice their lunch apples separately from breakfast or
snack apples. But since only lunch purchases are calculated towards the
30% threshold, this makes it onerous for schools to track their spending
in a way that allows them to seek eligibility. Including all purchases
in the eligibility calculation will simplify this process.

Increasing the per-meal reimbursement from 19 cents to at least 26
cents.  Base reimbursement has not been updated since the program began
in 2018. Food procurement costs have far surpassed the value of the
payment necessary to incentivize participation. This bill increases the
base payment, with ongoing inflation adjustments going forward, to
address rising food purchasing costs.

Adding tiered reimbursement.  Today, schools receive the same 19 cents
per lunch meal once deemed eligible whether they procure 30% or 50% of
their food from New York farms. For this reason, combined with the stag-
nant reimbursement, there is often an incentive for districts to stop
seeking New York products once they've hit the minimum eligibility
threshold. Tiered reimbursement, with higher payments kicking in at 40%
and 50%, will help New York farmers by incentivizing schools to continue
aiming higher rather than settling at the minimum number needed to qual-
ify.

Hold harmless provision.  Based on discussions with Agriculture and
Markets, there are some currently participating schools that would fall
below 30% if all meals are included in the eligibility formula and they
do not have time to adjust their purchasing to meet the new system. This
bill therefore includes a three-year hold harmless provision that those
schools eligible at the time of enactment shall continue to be deemed
eligible for the transition period provided they submit any documenta-
tion required by Ag and Markets.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None. The State has annually appropriated $1 OM for this program for
several years in a row, but has never actually disbursed more than $3M
annually due to the tow participation rates. This bill is intended to
increase participation and reimbursement in order to actually utilize
the regularly appropriated funding level.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately, provided that it shall apply to
purchases made on or after July 1, 2026,

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  5057--A
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HINCHEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance -- recommitted  to
   the  Committee  on Finance in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --
   committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
   recommitted to said committee

 AN  ACT  to amend chapter 537 of the laws of 1976 relating to paid, free
   and reduced price breakfast for  eligible  pupils  in  certain  school
   districts,  in  relation  to  increasing  the state subsidy for school
   lunch meals
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivisions  b  and c of section 5 of chapter 537 of the
 laws of 1976 relating to paid, free  and  reduced  price  breakfast  for
 eligible pupils in certain school districts, subdivision b as amended by
 section 32-a of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of 2024 and subdivision
 c  as  amended  by  section  22-b of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of
 2022, are amended and two new subdivisions b-1 and c-1 are added to read
 as follows:
   b. Notwithstanding any monetary limitations  with  respect  to  school
 lunch  programs  contained  in  any  law or regulation, for school lunch
 meals served in the school year commencing July 1, [2022] 2027 and  each
 July 1 thereafter, a school food authority shall be eligible for a State
 subsidy  equal  to  [$0.1901  per  free  and paid school lunch meal, and
 $0.0519 per reduced-price lunch meal,] AN AMOUNT PER SCHOOL  LUNCH  MEAL
 DETERMINED  PURSUANT  TO PARAGRAPHS (I), (II) AND (III) OF THIS SUBDIVI-
 SION for any school lunch meal served by  such  school  food  authority;
 provided  that  the school food authority certifies to the Department of
 Agriculture and Markets through the application  submitted  pursuant  to
 subdivision  c of this section that such food authority has purchased at
 least thirty percent of its total cost of food products for  its  school
 BREAKFAST  SERVICE,  lunch  service, AND REIMBURSABLE SNACK program from
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09089-02-6

 S. 5057--A                          2
 
 New York state farmers, growers, producers or processors in the  preced-
 ing school year. PAYMENTS PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE SEPARATE
 FROM  AND  SHALL  NOT  SUPPLANT  OR  OFFSET  ANY  OTHER STATE OR FEDERAL
 REIMBURSEMENT,  AID,  GRANT, OR PAYMENT FOR SCHOOL MEALS OR CHILD NUTRI-
 TION PROGRAMS, INCLUDING BUT NOT  LIMITED  TO  THE  STATE  REIMBURSEMENT
 AMOUNT  FOR  SCHOOL LUNCH MEALS.  WHERE THE SCHOOL FOOD AUTHORITY CERTI-
 FIES THAT IT HAS PURCHASED AT LEAST THIRTY PERCENT OF ITS TOTAL COST  OF
 FOOD  PRODUCTS PERMITTED TO BE COUNTED UNDER THIS SECTION FOR ITS SCHOOL
 BREAKFAST SERVICE, LUNCH SERVICE, AND REIMBURSABLE  SNACK  PROGRAM  FROM
 NEW  YORK STATE FARMERS, GROWERS, PRODUCERS OR PROCESSORS IN THE PRECED-
 ING SCHOOL YEAR, THE AMOUNT OF THE STATE  SUBSIDY  PAYABLE  PURSUANT  TO
 THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE:
   (I) TWENTY-SIX CENTS PER SCHOOL LUNCH MEAL WHERE SUCH PERCENTAGE IS AT
 LEAST THIRTY PERCENT BUT NOT MORE THAN FORTY PERCENT;
   (II) TWENTY-EIGHT CENTS PER SCHOOL LUNCH MEAL WHERE SUCH PERCENTAGE IS
 AT LEAST FORTY-ONE PERCENT BUT NOT MORE THAN FIFTY PERCENT; AND
   (III)  THIRTY  CENTS  PER  SCHOOL  LUNCH MEAL WHERE SUCH PERCENTAGE IS
 FIFTY-ONE PERCENT OR GREATER.
   B-1. EACH OF THE PER SCHOOL LUNCH MEAL SUBSIDY AMOUNTS  SET  FORTH  IN
 PARAGRAPHS (I), (II) AND (III) OF SUBDIVISION B OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE
 INCREASED  ANNUALLY  BY  ONE  AND ONE-HALF PERCENT OVER THE PRIOR SCHOOL
 YEAR'S APPLICABLE AMOUNT. THE COMMISSIONER OF  AGRICULTURE  AND  MARKETS
 SHALL  PUBLISH  THE ADJUSTED PER-MEAL AMOUNTS ON OR BEFORE JULY FIRST OF
 EACH SUCH SCHOOL YEAR.
   c. The Department of Agriculture and Markets in cooperation  with  the
 State Education Department, shall develop an application for school food
 authorities to seek an additional State subsidy pursuant to this section
 in  a  timeline and format prescribed by the commissioner of agriculture
 and markets. Such application shall include,  but  not  be  limited  to,
 documentation  demonstrating  the  school  food  authority's  total food
 purchases for its school BREAKFAST SERVICE, lunch service, AND REIMBURS-
 ABLE SNACK program,  and  documentation  demonstrating  its  total  food
 purchases  and  percentages  for such [program] PROGRAMS PERMITTED TO BE
 COUNTED UNDER THIS SECTION from New York State farmers, growers, produc-
 ers or processors in the preceding school year.  The  application  shall
 also include an attestation from the school food authority's chief oper-
 ating  officer  that  it  purchased at least thirty percent of its total
 cost of food products PERMITTED TO BE COUNTED UNDER THIS SECTION for its
 school BREAKFAST SERVICE, lunch service, AND REIMBURSABLE SNACK  program
 from  New  York  State  farmers, growers, producers or processors in the
 preceding school year in order to meet the requirements for  this  addi-
 tional State subsidy. School food authorities shall be required to annu-
 ally  apply  for  this subsidy. After reviewing school food authorities'
 completed applications for an additional State subsidy pursuant to  this
 section,  the Department of Agriculture and Markets shall certify to the
 State Education Department the school food authorities approved for such
 additional State subsidy and the State Education  Department  shall  pay
 such additional State subsidy to such school food authorities.
   C-1.  (I) FOR THREE SCHOOL YEARS COMMENCING JULY 1, 2027 (THE "TRANSI-
 TION PERIOD"), ANY SCHOOL FOOD AUTHORITY THAT HAS BEEN CERTIFIED BY  THE
 DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS AS APPROVED TO RECEIVE THE ADDI-
 TIONAL STATE SUBSIDY PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION FOR  SCHOOL  MEALS  SERVED
 DURING  THE  SCHOOL YEAR COMMENCING JULY 1, 2026, BASED ON SUCH AUTHORI-
 TY'S ELIGIBLE FOOD PURCHASES MADE DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR COMMENCING JULY
 1, 2026, SHALL BE  DEEMED  ELIGIBLE  DURING  THE  TRANSITION  PERIOD  TO
 RECEIVE  THE  SUBSIDY AMOUNT SET FORTH IN PARAGRAPH (I) OF SUBDIVISION B
 S. 5057--A                          3
 
 OF THIS SECTION, PROVIDED THAT SUCH PARTICIPANT SUBMITS SUCH  DOCUMENTA-
 TION  AS  DEEMED NECESSARY BY THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE OF MARKETS
 FOR PURPOSES OF PAYMENT PROCESSING AND PROGRAM INTEGRITY.
   (II)  NOTHING  IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO PROHIBIT A SCHOOL
 FOOD AUTHORITY FROM RECEIVING THE HIGHER PER SCHOOL LUNCH  MEAL  SUBSIDY
 PURSUANT  TO  PARAGRAPHS  (II) OR (III) OF SUBDIVISION B OF THIS SECTION
 DURING OR AFTER THE TRANSITION PERIOD, PROVIDED HOWEVER THAT ELIGIBILITY
 FOR SUCH HIGHER AMOUNTS SHALL BE  DETERMINED  BASED  ON  THE  PURCHASING
 PERCENTAGE CALCULATION SET FORTH IN SUCH SUBDIVISION B, INCLUDING SCHOOL
 BREAKFAST SERVICE, LUNCH SERVICE, AND REIMBURSABLE SNACK PROGRAMS.
   §  2.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
 the amendments related to eligible purchases counted toward  the  thirty
 percent  threshold  made  by  section  one  of  this  act shall apply to
 purchases made on and after July 1, 2026; and provided further, however,
 that the amendments relating to the  tiered  per-meal  subsidy  amounts,
 indexing,  and  hold harmless provisions made by section one of this act
 shall apply to school lunch meals served on and after July 1, 2027.

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Senate Bill S5057A

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Actions

Bill Amendments

2025-S5057 - Details

2025-S5057 - Summary

2025-S5057 - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5057 - Bill Text download pdf

co-Sponsors

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

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Sponsored By

Michelle Hinchey

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Actions

Bill Amendments

2025-S5057 - Details

2025-S5057 - Summary

2025-S5057 - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5057 - Bill Text download pdf

co-Sponsors

George M. Borrello

Bill Weber

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5057A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments