Overview
The
Baltimore County Public Schools serve meals each school day, which may be
purchased at the published school prices. Meals are available at no cost for
students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals. For students attending a
Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) school, meals are available to all
students at no cost. For students attending schools that provide breakfast
meals under the Maryland Meals for Achievement (MMFA) Program, breakfast meals
are available to all students at no cost.
All
meals served meet nutrition standards established by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA).
Qualifications
• Most children in households that
receive Food Supplement Program (FSP – formerly known as the Food Stamp
Program) benefits or temporary cash assistance (TCA) are eligible to receive
meals at no cost.
• Foster children who are the legal
responsibility of the Department of Social Services or court are eligible to
receive meals at no cost.
• Children certified as homeless,
runaway, or migrant are eligible to receive meals at no cost.
• If your total household income is
the same or less than the amounts on the Income Eligibility Chart below, your
child(ren) are eligible to receive meals at no cost.
•
ALL
students attending a CEP school will receive meals at no cost.
Income
Eligibility Chart (Effective July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023)
|
Household
Size
|
Year
|
Month
|
Twice
Per Month
|
Every
Two Weeks
|
Weekly
|
|
1
|
$25,142
|
2,096
|
1,048
|
967
|
$
484
|
|
2
|
33,874
|
2,823
|
1,412
|
1,303
|
652
|
|
3
|
42,606
|
3,551
|
1,776
|
1,639
|
820
|
|
4
|
51,338
|
4,279
|
2,140
|
1,975
|
988
|
|
5
|
60,070
|
5,006
|
2,503
|
2,311
|
1,156
|
|
6
|
68,802
|
5,734
|
2,867
|
2,647
|
1,324
|
|
7
|
77,534
|
6,462
|
3,231
|
2,983
|
1,492
|
|
8
|
86,266
|
7,189
|
3,595
|
3,318
|
1,659
|
|
For each additional
family member add:
|
$
8,732
|
$728
|
$364
|
$336
|
$
168
|
How
To Apply (online
or by mail)
Apply
Online
To
apply online and expedite processing for free or reduced-price meal benefits
click Online Meal Benefit Application.
Apply
by Mail
To
request a paper copy of the Household Meal Benefit Application (HMBA), contact
the Office of Food and Nutrition Services (OFNS) at 443-809-7855. A copy of the
HMBA will be mailed to your home address via the U. S. Postal Service.
The
paper copy HMBA has both a front and back page, both pages are required for
processing. Once you complete the HMBA, please mail to:
Baltimore
County Public Schools
Office of
Food and Nutrition Services
9610
Pulaski Park Drive
Suite 219
Baltimore,
MD 21220
To
view/download instructions for completing a paper copy of the HMBA, as well as
a Parent/Guardian Question and Answer letter regarding the meal application
process, click instructions and Parent Letter. A Notification of Eligibility
Determination letter will be mailed to your home address notifying you of the
eligibility status of your child(ren). Some students are pre-approved to receive
meals at no cost. Students in households that are receiving Food Supplement
Program (food stamps) or Temporary Cash Assistance (TCA) benefits as well as
students that are foster, homeless, migrant, and runaway may be pre-approved to
receive meal benefits at no cost. Students that are pre-approved will receive a
notification letter via U. S. Postal Service stating they are approved for meal
benefits for the school year without the requirement to submit a HMBA. If you
did not receive a pre-approved notification letter for all of your children in
your household, please contact the OFNS at 443-809-7855.
Children
attending a CEP school will not need to apply for meal benefits as meals are
provided at no cost to all students. If there are students in the household
attending a non CEP school, the household will need to submit a HMBA.
Translations
The
paper copy of the HMBAs is available in Arabic, Burmese, Chinese (simplified),
Nepali, Spanish, Urdu, and Yoruba. Please contact the OFNS at 443-809-7855 to
obtain a copy.
The
online HMBA is also available in Spanish.
Verification
Your
child’s(ren’s) eligibility may be verified at any time during the school
year. School officials may request you
to send income documentation confirming that your child(ren) should receive
free or reduced-price meals.
Appeal
Call
the OFNS at 443-809-7855, if you have questions or disagree with your
child’s(ren’s) eligibility determination.
If a determination cannot be resolved with the OFNS, you may proceed by
appealing the decision in writing to: Dr. Myriam Yarbrough, Deputy Superintendent, Department of Business Services Operations, Baltimore County Public
Schools, 9610 Pulaski Park Drive, Suite 219, Baltimore, MD 21220.
Duration
of Eligibility
Your
child’s(ren’s) eligibility is in effect from the date of eligibility for the
current school year and for up to 30 operating days in the subsequent school
year. Meal benefit eligibility determinations made in the current year
supersedes the previous year meal benefit level. However, this does not apply
when the initial eligibility determination was incorrect or when verification
of household eligibility does not support the level of benefits for which the
household was approved.
Confidentiality
School
officials will use the information on the application to determine eligibility
of your child(ren). Please be advised
that the name and eligibility status of your child(ren) may be:
• Given to local Title I officials
for allocation and evaluation purposes.
• Used for the National Assessment of
Educational Progress analyses or other authorized purposes.
• Given to other federal and state
education or state health programs.
No
other use of this information is permitted without parental consent.
Reapplication
You
may apply for free and reduced-price meals at any time during the school year. If you are not eligible now but have a change
such as a decrease in household income, an increase in household size, become
unemployed, or receive FSP or TCA for your children, you may fill out an
application at that time.
Non-Discrimination
Statement:
In
accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from
discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including
gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or
retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program
information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with
disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program
information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language),
should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the
program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact
USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To
file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should
complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can
be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf,
from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter
addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address,
telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory
action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
(ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The
completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil
Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410
Fax: 202-690-7442; or
Email: [email protected]
This
institution is an equal opportunity provider.
The Maryland State Department of Education does not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry/national origin, color, disability, gender identity/expression, marital status, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation in matters affecting employment or in providing access to programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. For inquiries related to Department policy, please contact Agency Equity Officer,
Equity Assurance and Compliance Office, Office of the Deputy State
Superintendent for Finance and Administration, Maryland State Department of
Education, 200 W. Baltimore Street - 6th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21201-2595,
410-767-0426 – voice, 410-767-0431 – fax, 410-333-6442 - TTY/TDD.
5/5/2022