USDA and HHS Notice: CNPs and Head Start as Federal Public Benefit
July 14, 2025
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) each released a notice on July 10 and July 14 respectively, stating that many programs under the jurisdiction of both departments are now interpreted as “Federal Public Benefits,” including all CNPs and Head Start. Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), “federal public benefits” are restricted to U.S. citizens and “qualified aliens.” The notices, therefore, aim to address whether citizenship or qualified immigration status must be verified in order for a child to participate in these federal programs.
Why It Matters
Child Nutrition Programs are not impacted by their interpretation as a Federal Public Benefit. Head Start, on the other hand, could be impacted should this interpretation move forward and the verification of citizenship or immigration status be enforced. Nearly 800,000 children participate in Head Start programs and each of them would have to verify their eligibility. HHS estimates that the eligibility verification process would cost $21 million annually – mostly caused by time burden on Head Start programs and parents.
Child Nutrition Programs
Although CNPs are interpreted to be Federal Public Benefits, provisions of PRWORA exclude CNPs from being required to verify citizenship or immigration status.
National School Lunch and School Breakfast
PRWORA specifically states that individuals cannot be considered ineligible for NSLP or SBP on the basis of citizenship, alienage, or immigration status unless there are local or State laws that say differently.
Notwithstanding any other provision of [PRWORA], an individual who is eligible to receive free public education benefits under State or local law shall not be ineligible to receive benefits provided under the school lunch program under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 USC 1751, et seq.) or the school breakfast program under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 USC 1773) on the basis of citizenship, alienage, or immigration status.
All Other CNPs (CACFP and SFSP)
PRWORA also prevents the federal government from requiring States to restrict eligibility for meals based on citizenship or immigration status. However, States maintain the ability to implement these restrictions if they choose.
Nothing in [PRWORA] shall prohibit or require a state to provide to an individual who is not a citizen or a qualified alien, as defined in section 1641(b) of [Title 8], benefits under programs established under the provisions of law described in paragraph (2).
Head Start
HHS has identified Head Start as Federal Public Benefit and it would therefore be restricted to U.S. citizens and qualified aliens.
- “Qualified aliens” include lawful permanent residents; asylees; refugees; those paroled into the U.S. for at least one year; those withholding deportation; conditional entrants prior to April 1, 1980; Cuban or Haitian entrants; and Compact of Free Association (COFA) residents.
- A “qualified alien” excludes Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, and undocumented immigrants.
PRWORA does not mandate that a program must verify the immigration status of a person applying for benefits, however HHS states that there is nothing in the statute prohibiting programs from conducting verification.
Although PRWORA leaves room for HHS to enforce citizenship and immigration status verification in Head Start, PRWORA does exclude nonprofit charitable organizations from having to verify immigration status. Meaning nonprofit Head Start programs may not be required to verify immigration status of participants.
The Office of Head Start has not yet released guidance on the implementation of the new interpretation.
Read the full HHS and USDA notices. NCA will continue to monitor all federal government actions that might affect participation in the CACFP and SFSP.