CO HB1274

Summary of HB 25-1274: Healthy School Meals for All Program

• Refers two ballot issues to Colorado voters in November 2025: one to retain $12.4 million in Proposition FF revenue that would otherwise be refunded under TABOR, and another to increase annual state taxes by $95 million by further limiting tax deductions for individuals earning $300,000+ (reducing deduction limits from $12,000/$16,000 to $1,000/$2,000 for single/joint filers).

• Expands funding for the Healthy School Meals for All Program, which provides free breakfast and lunch to all K-12 public school students, with all 190 eligible school food authorities currently participating and meal participation up more than 30% since the program began in 2023-24.

• Establishes a tiered funding formula based on fund reserve levels (ranging from less than 10% to 50%+) that adjusts local food purchasing grants (6-25 cents per lunch), wage/stipend distributions for food service workers (6-12 cents per lunch), and technical assistance grants ($250,000-$5 million annually).

• Creates a new account within the program fund to receive transfers from the State Education Fund for local food purchasing grants, worker wage increases, and technical assistance, with annual transfers based on revenue generated by the new deduction limits.

• Requires participating school food authorities to establish advisory committees of students and parents reflecting the district's demographics to advise on culturally relevant, healthy meal selections and local food purchasing decisions.