S. 222 would allow schools participating in the National School Lunch Program to serve students different types of milk, including whole, reduced-fat, or low-fat milk, flavored or unflavored, and either organic or nonorganic. Under current law, schools must offer milk that is fat-free or low-fat and may only offer flavored milk if it is fat-free or low-fat. The bill would exclude the saturated fat in milk from calculations of the amount of such fat that is allowed under the program for an average meal.
The bill also would require the Secretary of Agriculture to train food service personnel on food allergies.
CBO expects that enacting the bill would not affect reimbursement rates or participation in the program, so there would be no effect on the cost of benefits. CBO estimates that the administrative costs to update the dietary regulations would be insignificant; any spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
On February 28, 2025, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 649, the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, as ordered reported by the House Committee on Education and Workforce on February 12, 2025. Both bills would allow schools participating in the National School Lunch Program to serve flavored or unflavored, whole and reduced-fat milk to students. The estimated budgetary effects of the bills are the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Susan Beyer. The estimate was reviewed by Christina Hawley Anthony, Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel
Director, Congressional Budget Office