5/20 INFORMATION LETTER FOR WEB-BASED APPLICATIONS Frequently Asked Questions About Free And Reduced Price School Meals

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Children need healthy meals to learn. Mormon Trail CSD offers healthy meals every school day. Breakfast cost $1.35; lunch costs $2.25. Your children may qualify for free meals/milk or for reduced price meals. Reduced price is $0.30 for breakfast and $0.40 for lunch. If you need assistance completing this web-based application contact Ashley Eslick, Secretary (641)877-2521 aeslick@mormontrailcsd.org.

Below are some common questions and answers to help you with the application process.

1. WHO CAN GET FREE OR REDUCED PRICE MEALS?

● All children in households receiving benefits from Food Assistance, the Family Investment Program (FIP) or a few specific Medicaid programs are eligible for free or reduced price meals.

● Foster children that are under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court are eligible for free meals.

● Children participating in their school’s Head Start program are eligible for free meals.

● Children who meet the definition of homeless, runaway, or migrant are eligible for free meals.

● Children may receive free or reduced price meals if your household’s income is at or below the limits on the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines below. (Requires submitting an Application for Free and Reduced Price Meals/Milk.)

FEDERAL INCOME ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES for School Year 2020-2021

Household Size Yearly Monthly Twice per Month Every Two Weeks Weekly 1 23,606 1,968 984 908 454 2 31,894 2,658 1,329 1,227 614 3 40,182 3,349 1,675 1,546 773 4 48,470 4,040 2,020 1,865 933 5 56,758 4,730 2,365 2,183 1,092 6 65,046 5,421 2,711 2,502 1,251 7 73,334 6,112 3,056 2,821 1,411 8 81,622 6,802 3,401 3,140 1,570 Each additional person: 8,288 691 346 319 160

2. SHOULD I COMPLETE OUT AN APPLICATION IF I RECEIVED A LETTER THIS SCHOOL YEAR SAYING MY CHILDREN ARE ALREADY APPROVED FOR FREE OR REDUCED PRICE MEALS? No, but please read the letter carefully and follow the instructions. If any children in your household were missing from your notification, contact: Ashley Eslick 403 S. Front St. PO Box 156 Humeston, Iowa 50123 (641)877-2521 immediately as eligibility for free or reduced price meals is extended to all school age children in a household. If you did not receive a letter from the school, but received a Free Lunch Notice from DHS, submit this letter to your children’s school. You may add any students living in your household who are not listed on the letter. Also, if someone in your household receives food assistance and you did not receive either of these letters, you may complete an application listing the case number as this will qualify all school age children in your household for free meals. If you were informed that your children will get reduced price meals automatically, see the income guidelines above and if you feel you would qualify for free meal benefits, complete an application for free and reduced price meals.

3. WHAT IF WE HAVE FOSTER CHILDREN? Households with foster and non-foster children may choose to include the foster child as a

household member, as this may help other children in the household qualify for benefits. If the foster family is not eligible for free or reduced price meal benefits, that does not prevent a foster child from receiving free meal benefits.

4. HOW DO I KNOW IF MY CHILDREN QUALIFY AS HOMELESS, MIGRANT, OR RUNAWAY? Do the members of your household lack a

permanent address? Are you staying together in a shelter, hotel, or other temporary housing arrangement? Does your family relocate on a seasonal basis? Are any children living with you who have chosen to leave their prior family or household? If you believe children in your household meet these descriptions and haven’t been told your children will get free meals, please contact: Mormon Trail CSD, Bridgette Stark (641)877-2521 bstark@mormontrailcsd.org.

5. DO I NEED TO FILL OUT AN APPLICATION FOR EACH CHILD? No. Complete the Web-based Application for Free and Reduced

Price School Meals for all students in your household. We cannot approve an application unless complete eligibility information is submitted, so be sure to complete all required information.

6. MY CHILD’S APPLICATION WAS APPROVED LAST YEAR. DO I NEED TO FILL OUT A NEW ONE? Yes.

5/20 Your child’s application is only good for that school year and for the first few days of this school year, through June 1, 2021. You must complete a new application unless the school told you that your child is eligible for the new school year. When the carry-over period ends, unless you are notified that your children will receive free meals or you submit an application that is approved, the children must pay full price for school meals. The school is not required to send a reminder or a notice of expired eligibility.

7. I GET WIC. CAN MY CHILDREN GET FREE MEALS? Children in households participating in WIC may be eligible for free or reduced

price meals. Please complete the web-based application.

8. MAY I APPLY IF SOMEONE IN MY HOUSEHOLD IS NOT A U.S. CITIZEN? Yes. You, your children, or other household members do

not have to be U.S. citizens to apply for free or reduced price meals.

9. WILL THE INFORMATION I GIVE BE CHECKED? Yes. We may also ask you to send written proof of the household income you

report. You are not required to provide proof with your web-based application.

10. IF I DON’T QUALIFY NOW, MAY I APPLY LATER? Yes, you may apply at any time during the school year. For example, children with a parent or guardian who becomes unemployed may become eligible for free or reduced price meals if the household income drops below the income limit, if your household size goes up, or if you start getting Food Assistance, FIP or other benefits.

11. WHAT IF I DISAGREE WITH THE SCHOOL’S DECISION ABOUT MY APPLICATION? You should talk to school officials. You also may

ask for a hearing by calling or writing to: Ashley Eslick 403 S. Front Street PO Box 156 Humeston, Iowa 50123 (641)877-2521.

12. WHAT IF MY INCOME IS NOT ALWAYS THE SAME? List the amount that you normally receive. For example, if you normally make

$1000 each month, but you missed some work last month and only made $900, put down that you made $1000 per month. If you normally get overtime, include it, but do not include it if you only work overtime sometimes. If you have lost a job or had your hours or wages reduced, use your current income.

13. WHAT IF SOME HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS HAVE NO INCOME TO REPORT? Household members may not receive some types of

income we ask you to report on the application, or may not receive income at all. Whenever this happens please type a 0 in the field. However, if any income fields are left empty or blank, those will also be counted as zeroes. Please be careful when leaving income fields blank, as we will assume you meant to do so.

14. WE ARE IN THE MILITARY. DO WE REPORT OUR INCOME DIFFERENTLY? Your basic pay and cash bonuses must be reported as

income. If you get any cash value allowances for off-base housing, food, or clothing, or receive Family Subsistence Supplemental Allowance payments, it must also be included as income. However if your housing is part of the Military Housing Privatization Initiative, do not include your housing allowance as income. There are currently no active Military Housing Projects in Iowa as found on Active Military Housing Projects. Any additional combat pay resulting from deployment is also excluded from income.

15. DO I NEED TO PROVIDE MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER? Only the last four digits of the Social Security Number of the household’s

primary wage earner or another adult household member (or an indication of “none”) is needed.

16. WHO CAN GET FREE MILK? If your school participates in the Special Milk Program for half day kindergarteners, your kindergarten

child may be eligible for free milk. Children who buy extra milk with a meal or if they eat breakfast or lunch and have an afternoon milk break, they are not eligible to receive free milk.

17. MY FAMILY NEEDS MORE HELP. ARE THERE OTHER PROGRAMS WE MIGHT APPLY FOR? To find out how to apply for Food

Assistance or other assistance benefits, contact your local assistance office or call 1-877-347-5678. Your children may be eligible for hawk-i (children’s health insurance) or a waiver of school fees. Read the information included in the web-based application for hawk-i information. A school waiver form may be part of the web-based application or available from your child’s school.

18. CAN CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES GET FOOD SUBSTITUTIONS? If a child has a disability, as determined by a licensed medical

professional, and the disability prevents the child from eating the regular school meal, the school will make substitutions prescribed by the licensed medical professional. If a substitution is needed, there will be no extra charge for the meal. Please note, however, that the school is not required to make a substitution for a food allergy, unless it meets the definition of disability. Please call the school for further information.

19. DO I NEED TO REPORT MY RACE AND ETHNICITY? It is optional to complete the racial/ethnic portion of the application however if

you do not select race or ethnicity, one will be selected for you based on visual observation.

5/20 20. If you decide you do not want to complete an application electronically, you can obtain a paper application by contacting Ashley

Eslick (641)877-2521 aeslick@mormontrailcsd.org.

21. Translated applications are available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/translated-applications.

If you have other questions or need help, call (641)877-2521 aeslick@mormontrailcsd.org.

Sincerely,

Ashley Eslick

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:

(1) Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410;

(2) Fax: (202) 690-7442; or

(3) Email: program.intake@usda.gov. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Iowa Non-Discrimination Statement:

“It is the policy of this CNP provider not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or religion in its programs, activities, or employment practices as required by the Iowa Code section 216.6, 216.7, and 216.9. If you have questions or grievances related to compliance with this policy by this CNP Provider, please contact the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, Grimes State Office building, 400 E. 14^th St. Des Moines, IA 50319-1004; phone number 515-281-4121, 800-457-4416; website: https://icrc.iowa.gov/.”

Information Statement

The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act requires the information on this application. You do not have to give the information, but if you do not submit all needed information, we cannot approve your child for free or reduced-price meals.

5/20 You must include the last four digits of the social security number of the adult household member who signs the application. The social security number is not required when you apply on behalf of a foster child or you list a Food Assistance (FA), Family Investment Program (FIP) or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) case number or other FDPIR identifier for your child or when you indicate that the adult household member signing the application does not have a social security number. We will use your information to determine if your child is eligible for free or reduced-price meals, and for administration and enforcement of the lunch and breakfast programs. We may share your eligibility information with education, health, and nutrition programs to help them evaluate, fund, or determine benefits for their programs, auditors for program reviews, and law enforcement officials to help them look into violations of programs rules