(INDIANAPOLIS) – The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) announced today the 2019-2020 income eligibility guidelines for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). Each year, based on federal poverty levels, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) updates income eligibility guidelines for meals served at day care facilities and adult day care centers.
Administered by IDOE, the mission of CACFP is to improve the diets of young children and older and impaired adults, and to increase the opportunity for people within these age groups to eat a variety of nutritious foods. The meals and snacks served meet nutritional standards set by the USDA. The income guidelines began July 1, 2019, and will remain in effect until June 30, 2020. The guidelines apply to participants eligible for free or reduced-price meals served in CACFP participating daycare facilities, family day care homes, and adult day care centers.
Based on family circumstances, several groups are automatically eligible for free or reduced-price meal benefits. Those groups include the following participants/programs:
- Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or Food Stamps in Indiana)
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI) (adult day care)
- Medicaid participants (adult day care)
- Foster Children
- Children enrolled in Head Start, at-risk afterschool centers, or an emergency shelter
Day care facilities typically provide applications for free or reduced price meals during registration and throughout the beginning weeks of the “school” year. However, applications may be submitted anytime and only one application is required per household. All information is confidential. Please note: most CACFP participating day care facilities and adult day care centers provide meals to all enrolled participants without any separate charge. Reimbursement to the facility is based on household income of those enrolled for care.
For more information regarding CACFP, please visit: www.doe.in.gov/nutrition/child-and-adult-care-food-program. To view a list of Indiana CACFP facilities, please visit: www.doe.in.gov/sites/default/files/nutrition/copy-cacfp-public-contact-list-41750.xls.
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.
To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:
- Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; - Fax: (202) 690-7442; or
- Email: program.intake@usda.gov.
