Assemblyman Matt Slater (R,C-Yorktown) joined in on today's press conference in support of free universal school meals. There has been an exponential rise in support from both Minority and Majority members for including this bill in the final budget. Slater has been a leader amongst Minority lawmakers in making this a bipartisan issue which is now sponsored by more than 80 members of the Assembly.

“Every community, whether urban, suburban or rural is impacted by hunger in some way. With hundreds of billions of dollars being spent in New York State there is no excuse for Governor Hochul not to support this initiative. Our kids must be our priority and making sure every child has access to a healthy meal ensures they have an opportunity to succeed in school,” said Slater.

Members of the Assembly and Senate included the $260 million in funding as part of their respective one-house budgets. Governor Hochul did not include this initiative, which started in January, in her budget proposal for New York State. The Governor has not indicated her support as New York’s late budget negotiations continue