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Advocacy Profile

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Lawmakers need to hear which policies are a priority for their constituents. Together, we’ll advocate that every child in every school experiences the joy and power of food.

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Engagement with media is an essential tool for advocacy efforts. If you're interested in being a media spokesperson on behalf of FoodCorps, sharing your personal story, developing your public speaking skills, or engaging with the press, please share a few sentences about yourself, how you became familiar with FoodCorps, what issues you care about, and how your experiences inform your advocacy (e.g., lived experiences with school meals, food education, hunger, SNAP/WIC, etc).

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Temporary legislation

Illinois

Policy Snapshot

Passed School Meals for All legislation

While SMFA passed, it did not receive the required funding to make it a reality. The General Assembly must include an appropriation to fund school meals for all kids in the FY2025 budget.

100%

of students have access to free school breakfast and lunch.

Policy Landscape and Our Work

In 2023, Illinois passed the “Healthy School Meals for All” bill, establishing the Healthy School Meals for All program, but it did not receive the funding needed to be fully implemented. There are currently two legislative proposals under consideration to allocate the necessary funds, with the goal of enabling the program to become effective in the near future. One bill proposes appropriating $67 million from the General Revenue Fund to the Illinois State Board of Education and another bill proposes appropriating $209 million from the General Revenue Fund to the Illinois State Board of Education to fund free meals for students.

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Tell your Senators to extend School Meals for All

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Dig Deeper

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Bill Status of HB2471

103rd General Assembly
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February 12, 2024

Illinois rallies for budget appropriation to enable healthy school meals for all

KHQA | Mackenzie LaPorte
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Healthy School Meals for All Kids

Illinois Healthy School Meals for All Kids

Legislative & Advocacy Resources

Legislative profile

Governor

General Assembly

Have feedback or recommendations for this page? Email us at advocacy@foodcorps.org.

FoodCorps is a non-partisan, non-profit organization. No federal funds were used to prepare or distribute advocacy content.

Last updated July 09, 2025