Funding Description
These funds allow school food authorities (SFA) to purchase food service equipment to serve healthier meals that meet the meal pattern requirements, replace outdated or worn equipment, improve procurement of goods, improve food safety, improve the lunchroom to be more appealing to the students, implement changes to promote adequate time to eat, and help support the maintenance of an existing kitchen or the establishment of a new school kitchen or School Nutrition Program. It gives priority to those SFAs that have not received an Equipment Assistance Grant in the last four grant cycles.
Eligibility
| Eligible Applicants |
Local educational agencies
|
| Required Eligibility Criteria |
Public school districts, county offices of education, directly funded charter schools, private schools, and residential child care institutions that participate in the NSLP or School Breakfast Program can apply for this grant. The Nutrition Services Division (NSD) will give priority to those sites that did not receive funds from the 2021, 2022, 2023 or 2024 NSLP Equipment Grants. |
| Other Eligibility Considerations |
The CDE will award competitive grants of up to $100,000 per SFA. Each SFA may apply for no more than five sites. The NSD will give priority to those SFAs that have not received an EAG since 2021. The NSD will also give priority to those SFAs that can explicitly document how the equipment purchased will reflect the intent of the grant with specific emphasis on impacting nutrition quality, serving healthier meals, and meeting nutritional standards as well as how the SFA will sustain these improvements in the years to come. |
| Eligible Grade Level(s) |
Not applicable
|
| Eligible Age Level(s) |
Not applicable
|
Funding
| Legal Authority |
2026 Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extension Act, 2025 (P.L. 119-4), and Continuing Appropriations, Agriculture, Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Extensions Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-37). |
| Source / Type |
Federal / Grant
|
| State Fiscal Year |
2026-27
|
| SACS Resource / Revenue Codes |
5314 / 8290
|
| Total Available |
$2,114,203
|
| Recipient Amount |
$100000 per LEA
|
| Match Requirement |
No
|
| Allocation Formula |
Recipients will receive up to 90 percent of the funding at the time of award with the remaining 10 percent awarded upon approval of all invoices. The CDE will recover funds from agencies that do not submit invoices for approved budget items within the award time frame.
|
Important Dates
| Date Application Available |
November 9, 2026
|
| Due Date |
December 18, 2026
|
| Expected Notification Date |
March 1, 2027
|
Additional Information
Contacts
Last Modified:
November 9, 2026
