BANGOR, Maine (AP) — A federal proposal designed to prevent lunch shaming has moved ahead thanks to a vote in the U.S. Senate.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Democratic Sen. Tom Udall of New Mexico added an amendment to a funding bill that would ban schools from singling out children because their parents or guardians haven't paid school lunch bills. The proposal would also encourage schools to find new ways that shield children from such embarrassment.
Collins says the funding bill passed the Senate by a wide margin recently.
Some states, including Maine and New Mexico, have state laws designed to protect children from lunch shaming. Shaming sometimes comes in the form of making children wear hand stamps or perform extra chores because of their lunch debts.