Lampasas ISD recognizes the important link between proper nutrition and academic success.  The purpose of this policy is to establish a consistent district procedure for charging meals when students do not have money to pay, preventing meal charges, and ensuring eligible children are certified for free and reduce-price school meals.

Students’ meal accounts can be funded through multiple methods:
•    Cash or check
•    Credit card, debit card, or electronic check using E-Funds
•    Elementary and Middle School Students:  A “no cash back policy will be followed when students pay for their lunch while in the serving line.  All monies paid will be deposited into the student’s account.
At the end of a school year, a student’s positive balance will follow them to the next school year.   Refunds of a positive balance for students leaving or graduating may be issued by making a request to the Cafeteria Manager or the Nutrition Services Office Director.
It is recommended that parents/guardians make meal payments in advance.  If you are unable to pay for school meals due to your economic situation, please contact the Nutrition Services Office at 207 E. Ave A, Lampasas, TX 76550 or 512-556-8948 ext. 2955.  Assistance may be available, and eligible recipients will receive the regular breakfast/lunch at a free or reduced cost.
Charging meals:
Hunger is an impediment to learning.  No child shall be denied a school meal because of an inability to pay.  Children will be served a meal that meets the U.S. Department of Agriculture nutrition standards for school meals.  LISD will provide an invoice or statement each month to allow parents the ability to pay all charges on a timely manner and prevent all large delinquent accounts.
Overt identification of children with unpaid meal debt in the cafeteria are prohibited.  Additionally, children with unpaid meal debt shall not be required to work off their deb, including, but not limited to, wiping down tables or cleaning the cafeteria.  No meals can be charged during the last two weeks of school.
Preventing meal charges:
To ensure that all eligible families are certified for free and reduce-price meals, the Nutrition Services Office shall:
•    Provide all households with school meal applications prior to the start of the school year and or include instructions for completing online school meal applications.
•    Provide school meal applications in the primary language of the parent or guardian and aid with completing an application for any household that request assistance.
•    Promptly utilize data provided by the state or other school district officials to certify eligible children without an application.
•    Assure that any child for which the school district is not able to obtain a completed school meal application but becomes aware of their eligibility for free or reduced-price school meals shall be certified based on an application submitted by the appropriate school official, as permitted by USDA guidance.
To ensure that households are aware of negative account balances and the potential to accrue meal debt, the Nutrition Services Office will:
•    Direct the cashiers to gently remind the student that their account is low.
•    Send out low balance notices or call parents/guardians weekly, prior to students needing to charge meals.
•    Notify and work with principals, school counselors, and /or teachers to understand the student and parent’s situation and if a school meal application is needed.
•    Use mass notification system Connect, email, and/or text alerts daily to notify parents of negative balances.
•    Provide an invoice each month to parents/guardians for all delinquent accounts to be paid upon receipt.
Collecting unpaid meal debt:
Communications regarding unpaid meal debt shall be directed at parents or guardians.  Schools may send students home with a letter regarding the unpaid meal debt.  Adults are not allowed to charge.
Prior to contacting households regarding unpaid meal debt, the school district will ensure that the student is not participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, or other federal programs, which allow them to be certified without an application as (Direct Cert).
Any household with a negative school lunch account balance shall be contacted immediately by the Nutrition Services Office by email, phone, or letter home to provide information on how to add funds to the lunch account or how to apply for free or reduced-price school meals. 
For households that cannot afford to pay their school meal charges, the school district will work with them to establish a payment plan.  Households that are subsequently certified for free or reduced-price school meals at a point later in the school year shall not immediately be required to repay school meal debt accrued in that school year.  The school district will submit retroactive claims for any meals charged to the household from the date of application to the date of certification, to the extent allowed by USDA guidance.