ANOKA, Minn. – (Oct. 22, 2015) – The Anoka-Hennepin School District now plans to start using a collection agency to collect debts from families who have fallen substantially behind on their school lunch bills. The district has about $160,000 in unpaid lunch debt, and plans to start the collections process at the beginning of the new year. While it’s less than 1 percent of students who are behind on their bills, the highest debt a family owes more than $4,000.
The district says that debt collection will be used a last resort in a long process. They start trying to receive unpaid debts by making phone calls, sending letters and creating payment plans for families. Students do continue to receive regular meals even if their parents are behind on their payments.
