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NM To Enroll Children In Lunch Program Monthly

By KRWG News

New Mexico – The state Human Services Department will begin automatically signing up students for free and reduced lunches each month.

Human Services Department Secretary-designate Kathryn Falls said Wednesday children enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance or the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs qualify for the National School Lunch Program.

Falls says checking for new children participating in those federal programs each month will allow more students to get free and reduced lunches.

Since 2003, the department had checked for eligible children once a year.

But with the number of families seeking federal assistance growing, the department says it must increase the search for students who have just become eligible.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.