An intensive lobbying campaign to make Oregon the ninth state to offer free breakfast and lunch to all students regardless of income levels has fizzled out, for now. Oregon is already very close to offering universal free school meals thanks to recent income eligibility changes. Those meals are currently served at 94% of the state’s schools and funded mainly by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Eligibility Provision program. That’s a huge jump from just seven years ago, when only 25% of schools across the state offered free meals for all students. But House Bill 3435 would have required all of the state’s 1,274 schools to offer free meals by the start of the 2026-2027 school year. Read more at the link in our bio. 📸: Beth Conyers/Portland Public Schools #portland #portlandoregon #oregon #portlandpublicschools #pps #freelunch #freebreakfast #theoregonian #education #oregonpol #oregonpolitics #orpol