Pennsylvania Children at Risk of Losing Free School Meals as SNAP Cuts Take Effect

8/26/26, 8:00 AM

PENNSYLVANIA — Tens of thousands of Pennsylvania children have already lost SNAP benefits after Reps. Ryan Mackenzie, Rob Bresnahan and Scott Perry voted for the Republican Tax Law, which made the largest cuts to SNAP in the program's history while providing tax breaks to billionaires. The law has already resulted in at least 210,000 Pennsylvanians losing SNAP, including nearly 60,000 children. The loss of SNAP doesn't just mean less food on the table at home. For children, it can also put access to free school meals at risk.

Children in households receiving SNAP are automatically eligible for free school meals. SNAP participation also helps schools in communities with high numbers of low-income students provide free breakfast and lunch to every student without requiring families to fill out individual applications. As thousands of Pennsylvania children lose SNAP, schools serving many of those children could face greater challenges maintaining universal free meals.

The potential impact is especially significant in the communities represented by Reps. Mackenzie, Bresnahan and Perry:

In PA-07, more than 14,000 Allentown students are identified as low-income. All 24 schools in the district currently participate in the Community Eligibility Provision, providing free school meals to every student.
In PA-08, more than 7,800 students in Scranton, nearly 6,800 in Wilkes-Barre Area and more than 3,600 in Wyoming Valley West are identified as coming from low-income families. Each district currently participates in CEP, providing free meals to every student.
In PA-10, more than 5,500 students in Harrisburg City, more than 5,000 in York City and more than 1,200 in Steelton-Highspire are identified as coming from low-income families. These districts also currently participate in CEP.

60,000 Pennsylvania children have already lost SNAP. Many of those children attend schools where free meals are currently available to everyone. If SNAP participation falls far enough, those schools could lose access to the program that allows them to provide universal free meals — potentially putting another food source at risk for children who are already losing food assistance at home. In Pennsylvania, almost 1.1 million children are eligible to receive free or reduced school lunch.

“I work hard to keep things steady for my kids, but some months that feels harder than others,” said Aidalis, a PA-07 parent. “School meals have been one thing I could count on. No matter what was happening at home or how much I was having to juggle, I knew my kids would have a good meal at school and wouldn’t have to worry about whether there was enough food that day. Losing that support takes away something that made them feel safe and secure. Kids shouldn’t have to carry the weight of their family’s financial struggles into the cafeteria. Rep. Mackenzie voted for a tax law that makes it harder for families to afford the basics, and our children shouldn’t be the ones paying the price.”

Pennsylvania families cannot afford to lose another source of food for their children. Reps. Mackenzie, Bresnahan and Perry voted to cut SNAP while giving tax breaks to billionaires. Now they owe families an answer: How does making it harder for Pennsylvania children to get enough to eat make life more affordable? Reps. Mackenzie, Bresnahan and Perry, you must take action to ensure children do not go hungry in Pennsylvania.

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