PROVIDENCE, RI — The Rhode Island General Assembly gave its final approval to legislation sponsored by state Senate President Valarie J. Lawson and Rep. Justine Caldwell to limit transaction and processing fees for school meals.
“Data shows that well-fed kids do better in school, so we should remove any barriers that might cause students to go hungry, especially in times of rising costs and acute food insecurity,” Lawson, D-East Providence, said in a media release.
“There should always be a way to pay for meals without a processing fee and any fees that are charged should be limited and exist only to cover the actual costs, not profit the vendor,” Lawson said.
The proposed legislation would require all public schools and districts to provide at least one no-fee method to pay for school meals, according to the release.
"The Rhode Island Department of Education would set the rules and regulations to ensure uniform statewide standards for no-fee payment access," the release said.
“Providing our kids with breakfast and lunch is an essential part of a quality public education, and vendors shouldn’t profit off of that service by charging unavoidable and expensive processing fees,” Caldwell, D-East Greenwich and West Greenwich, said in the release.
“Cutting down or eliminating these fees is an important step to make sure that children aren’t hungry at school, allowing them to focus on learning both in and out of the classroom,” Caldwell said.
"The legislation would also require that, for any payment methods that charge fees, those fees would not exceed the actual costs of collecting or processing payments," according to the release. "These fees could not exceed two percent of each transaction amount, and fees for any other purpose would be prohibited."
The bill now heads to the governor.
See also:
Sign up for free local newsletters and alerts for the
Across Rhode Island Patch
Patch.com is the nationwide leader in hyperlocal news.
Visit Patch.com to find your town today.