methods for deriving estimates of eligible students for schools and groups of schools.

Finally, the panel will consider how to obtain participation-based claiming percentages from estimates of eligible students. This will rely on a review of existing research—including analyses conducted by states and school districts and evaluations of pilot studies—and the collection and analysis of administrative data from school districts that have adopted Provision 2. In the development and evaluation of methods, as described in this chapter and the next, the panel will consider the operational feasibility of potential approaches, as discussed in Chapter 7, and prioritize our work accordingly.

Chapters 2 and 3 review basic features of the school meals programs and the ACS and sketch how ACS data might be used to determine federal reimbursements for a school, a group of schools, or an entire district that provides universal free meals under a new Provision 4. In Chapter 2, the potential role of ACS data in implementing Provision 4 was characterized by the following two reimbursement formulas:

and

where

• G_e⁴_t is the government outlay for reimbursable meals served in month t in Provision 4 schools, based on eligibility estimates, in dollars;

• G_p⁴_t is the government outlay for reimbursable meals served in month t in Provision 4 schools, based on eligibility and participation estimates, in dollars;

• R^f, R^r, and R^p are reimbursement rates for free meals, reduced-price meals, and full-price meals, respectively;

• M_t is the total number of reimbursable meals served in month t;

• E^f is the estimated number of enrolled students who are eligible for free meals based on ACS and other sources;

• E^r is the estimated number of enrolled students who are eligible for reduced-price meals based on ACS and other sources;

• E is the estimated number of enrolled students in Provision 4 schools based on ACS and other sources;