Federal Formula Grant Award Summary

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) received an $8.15 million formula grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service under the State Administrative Expenses for Child Nutrition program (CFDA 10.560) effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2027. This funding supports ISBE's administrative expenses in supervising and providing technical assistance to local schools, school districts, and institutions administering federal child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Special Milk Program, and Child and Adult Care Food Program.

The grant enables ISBE to manage critical state-level food service functions including meal reimbursement processing, commodity distribution oversight, and technical support delivery to local nutrition service providers across Illinois's 850+ school districts. As a formula grant, the allocation is determined annually based on predetermined methodologies tied to prior-year child nutrition program expenditures within the state. ISBE is required to maintain a written agreement with the Food and Nutrition Service, execute annual single audits, and keep detailed accounting records documenting fund authorizations, obligations, expenditures, and carryover balances, with authority to carryover up to 20 percent of allocated funds to the succeeding fiscal year.