ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) New Mexico is getting an extra year to file required paperwork to continue participating in a federally funded program that provides free meals to 77,000 children at schools with high percentages of low-income students.
The state's continued participation had been a risk because the U.S. Department of Agriculture had concluded that the state had provided required eligibility data. The USDA ordered the collection of new data for the 348 New Mexico schools that provide the free meals.
Expressing concerns about whether schools could meet a deadline to collect the data, schools and Democratic members of the state's congressional delegation had requested a delay.
USA regional administration Bill Ludwig told the Albuquerque Journal that he's not sure why New Mexico lacked the required eligibility documentation.
