OH HB97

School districts must provide a meal to any student who requests one, regardless of ability to pay or existing meal debt

Districts are prohibited from requiring students to discard served meals due to inability to pay, making students do chores to pay off meal debt, refusing meals as discipline, or publicly identifying/stigmatizing students with meal debt

Communications about student meal debt must be directed to parents or guardians, not to students directly

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce must publish guidance on student meal debt collection, including best practices and information on online payment systems

Requirements apply to traditional school districts, community schools (charter schools), STEM schools, and college-preparatory boarding schools