Introduction and Overview

Eligible Local Educational Agencies

Public and private schools that accept full administrative and financial responsibility are eligible to participate in the programs. All public schools are eligible to participate. Private schools must qualify according to USOE rules and have nonprofit status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

Meal Requirements

School meals must comply with the "Dietary Guidelines for Americans," as periodically updated. Schools have the option of choosing a menu-planning system. The systems include Nutrient Standard Menu Planning, Assisted Nutrient Standard Menu Planning, Food-Based Menu Planning (traditional or enhanced), and "any other reasonable approach."

Lunch Requirements. School lunches must meet one-third of the U.S. recommended dietary allowances (USRDA) for protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, and calcium, as well as one-third of the recommended energy intake (calories). Lunches must also contain no more than 30 percent calories from fat and less than 10 percent calories from saturated fat. Levels of sodium, cholesterol, and fiber are monitored, but there are no specific federal requirements. Compliance is measured over a school week. (See A Menu Planner for Healthy School Meals.)

Breakfast Requirements. School breakfasts must meet one-quarter of the USRDA for protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, and calcium as well as one-fourth of the recommended energy intake. Breakfasts must also contain no more than 30 percent calories from fat and less than 10 percent calories from saturated fat. Levels of sodium, cholesterol, and fiber will be monitored, but there are no specific federal requirements. Compliance is measured over a school week. (See A Menu Planner for Healthy School Meals.)

Free and Reduced-Price Benefits

All children enrolled in the school are eligible to participate in the program and to apply for free and reduced-price benefits. Both free and reduced-price meals must be offered. No child may be denied benefits if he or she has submitted a properly completed valid application that has been approved by the LEA or has been directly certified as eligible as a recipient of food stamps, or assistance from the Family Employment Program (FEP) or the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR).

In school settings, there is no age restriction for participation as long as students are working toward graduation or a General Educational Development (GED) certificate, not just upgrading skills. RCCIs are limited to enrollees age 21 or younger. Participation in the SMP is limited to those under age 19. In a case where mentally or physically disabled students are participating in a school program, there is no age limit.

Utah has a prototype Free and Reduced-Price Meal Policy, which is the model for the document required for all LEAs. This policy states the institution's administrative procedures and duties in offering free and reduced-price meals or free milk to children. If LEAs do not adopt the prototype, they must design their own policy statement for USOE approval.

Schools must ensure that there is no overt identification of children who receive free or reduced price meals or milk in collecting applications or payments or in serving meals or milk. There can be no physical segregation of any child, nor any other discrimination, because of inability to pay full price for meals or milk. The names of children eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals or free milk shall not be published, posted, or announced, and these children cannot be overtly identified by special tokens, tickets, or other means. Eligible children shall not be required to work for meals or milk, use a separate service area, go through a separate serving line, enter the service area through a separate entrance or at a different time, or be served meals or milk that vary from what is sold to children paying the full price. Access to the information provided by households on their applications or through direct certification is limited to certain local, state, and federal officials.

LEAs cannot charge students who receive reduced-price meals more than 40 cents for lunch or 30 cents for breakfast, and the charge must always be less than the full price. The reduced price may be as low as zero for the student; however, the reimbursement rate remains the same. The reduced-price meal charge must be the same in high schools and elementary schools to ensure that all children from the same household receive equal benefits. (The charge for a full-price meal may be different in secondary and elementary schools.)

By November 15, LEAs must verify the eligibility information of a sample of approved households whose applications were on file as of October 1. Verification is not required for households whose eligibility has been directly certified by state or local agencies.

Information to help determine student eligibility for free and reduced-price meals and to conduct verification is found in the supplementary booklet, Eligibility Guidance for School Meals Manual (FNS-274). A description of the procedures for verification are included in Eligibility Guidance for School Meals Manual, in the Supplementary Materials binder.

Meal Accountability

Schools must maintain auditable records of meals and milk claimed for reimbursement. Records must include point-of-service and kitchen participation counts and complete meal production information.

Meal Count. An accurate meal count by eligibility category must be taken daily at the point of service. To show that the system is accurate, records must contain two types of meal counts by different individuals and methods. These are usually the point-of-service (office) count (by eligibility category) and the kitchen count (by food, plates, or trays). The point-of-service count must follow the procedures detailed in the LEA's approved free and reduced-price meal policy statement.

Meal Production Records. Records must show meal compliance. A copy of the Food Production Record form is included in the Supplementary Materials section of this manual. The format differs depending on which menu-planning system a school chooses (Nutrient Standard Menu Planning, Assisted Nutrient Standard Menu Planning, Food-Based Menu Planning, or any other reasonable approach).

Competitive Food Service

Competitive food means any food sold which is not part of the reimbursable meal. Prohibited competitive foods are called "foods of minimal nutritional value" and may not be sold in any meal service or dining area during the breakfast or lunch periods. Competitive foods that are not foods of minimum nutritional value may be sold during meal periods as long as income from the sale accrues to the nonprofit food service, the school, or student organizations approved by the school.

Meal Service

Reimbursable Meals. A reimbursable meal is one (a) served to children enrolled in the educational program of the school who are in attendance at the time of the meal service (including kindergarten or Head Start children), (b) claimed by an approved eligibility category, and (c) meeting the minimum meal-pattern requirements.

Children enrolled in any school within the LEA but visiting in another school may be claimed as though they were in their own school. Children visiting from a school in another LEA may also be claimed at the paid rate. Eligible children's meals may be claimed in free or reduced-price categories if copies of the children's free and reduced-price applications are filed with the host LEA/school.

Nonreimbursable Meals. Reimbursement is available only for approved children's meals which meet program requirements. No other meals or food items are reimbursable.

Adult meals and meals served to children who are not enrolled in the school are not eligible for federal or state reimbursement, and income from such meals must go to the program. Meals served to adults directly involved in the administration and operation of the program may, at the option of the LEA, be furnished without charge. In this case, meal cost is part of program operation and supported by revenues to the program. The cost of meals served to adults not directly involved in the operation of the food service program may not be financed by children's payments or state or federal reimbursements. Costs must be offset by adult payments or revenue from other sources. The price must be enough to cover the full cost of the meal, plus the value of any USDA commodities used. USDA commodities may be used in adult meals only when the same foods are included in reimbursable children's meals.

It is the intent of the program to plan and prepare one lunch and/or breakfast per child per day. Second meals may not be claimed for reimbursement. Schools are cautioned not to plan and prepare second meals for children unless they are prepared to absorb the cost.

Exceptions to the Meal-Pattern Requirements. The meal-pattern requirements may be varied only for medical exceptions for individual dietary problems, special exceptions granted by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) for experimental study, emergencies as a result of disaster recognized by the FNS, and exceptions for religious reasons.

Records

All accounts and records for the NSLP, SBP, ASSP, and SMP must be available to the USOE and/or the USDA for audit or review at any reasonable time and place. Records must be retained for three years after the end of the fiscal year to which they apply unless an audit finding makes it necessary to hold them longer.

Financial Administration Requirements

All food service programs must operate on a nonprofit basis. LEAs must maintain income and expense records to document the nonprofit operation of their food service programs. All income to the program must be used to reduce the cost to the paying child, improve the quality of the food, purchase supplies, and maintain services and equipment used in storing, preparing, or serving food and/or milk to children.

Claims and Reimbursement

Claim for Reimbursement. The CNP Claim for Reimbursement form must be submitted to the USOE on or before the fourth working day of the month following the month being claimed. Reimbursement is paid for the number of meals claimed by category.

Federal Funds. General cash assistance (Section 4) is disbursed for all eligible school meals. In addition, special assistance (Section 11) funds are paid for meals served free or at a reduced price to eligible children.

State Funds. Utah law provides a 13 percent tax on the sale of wine and distilled liquor to administer a school lunch program in the public school districts. Funds are disbursed according to the number of lunches claimed in each district. No state funds are available for the SBP or SMP.

Severe Need Reimbursement. Schools may receive severe need payments for free and reduced-price breakfasts when 40 percent or more of the lunches at the school in the second preceding year were served to students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals. These payments are in addition to the regular reimbursement. An additional two cents per lunch is available to LEAs which served 60 percent or more free or reduced-price lunches district-wide during the second preceding year.

Civil Rights Compliance

A variety of laws protect the civil rights of various categories of people and prohibit discrimination against them. These laws require that federal assistance programs be operated so no one is discriminated against on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. The LEA must develop and retain a description of its civil rights compliance program, which must contain at least the following elements.

Public Notification Program. All forms of communication and printed program information, including the free and reduced-price notification letters and public press releases, must include the following statement:

In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability.

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TTY). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

If the full statement cannot be accommodated in the material, at a minimum, the following statement, in print no smaller than the main text, must be included:

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

At all food service sites, the nondiscrimination poster developed by the USDA, or an alternative approved by the FNS, must be displayed in a prominent place, visible to the public.

Data Collection and Reporting System. The LEA must develop a method for collecting and reporting data on the number of children applying for free and reduced-price meals by racial/ethnic category. The data may be collected by a school official through observation or personal knowledge, or by voluntary self-identification by the applicant on the free and reduced-price application form.

Compliance Reviews. The USOE will conduct civil rights compliance reviews before awarding funding and as part of the ongoing monitoring process. LEAs must conduct similar compliance reviews in sites they sponsor.

Complaint Handling Procedures. Civil rights complaints are written or verbal allegations of discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. Any person claiming discrimination has a right to file a complaint within 180 days of the alleged discrimination. All complaints, whether written or verbal, must be accepted by the LEA and forwarded to the USOE. An anonymous complaint must be handled the same way as any other.

Resolution of Noncompliance Issues. Probable noncompliance is a factual finding, based on a review or other monitoring process, that certain civil rights requirements are not being met by an individual or agency. Once probable noncompliance is found, steps must be taken immediately to obtain voluntary compliance. If corrective action has not been completed within 60 days of the finding, a noncompliance report must be submitted through the USDA Regional Office to the Civil Rights Division (or through the USOE if locally identified). Continued noncompliance may result in legal action.

Reviews by the State Education Agency

The USOE visits each LEA to review and assess local program operations and provide technical assistance and training.

Coordinated Review Effort (CRE). The CRE is a federally required monitoring system. Critical areas of the review include the LEA's certifying benefit eligibility, counting, claiming, and consolidating process and compliance with meal components. Violation of performance standards requires that an acceptable corrective action plan be submitted to the USOE, and may include action to recover funds. A CRE is conducted at least once every five years.

School Meals Initiative (SMI) Monitoring. SMI monitoring assesses whether meals comply with the "Dietary Guidelines for Americans" through nutrient analysis using approved USDA procedures. Specific goals for improvement are recorded as part of the monitoring visits. SMI monitoring is conducted at least once every five years.

State Technical Assistance Review (STAR). Technical assistance reviews may be conducted prior to the SMI and CRE reviews (STAR-S and STAR-C). They may also include monitoring specific programs such as the SBP, or the SMP.

Glossary

ADA - American Dietetic Association
ADP - Average Daily Participation
AMS - Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA)
ANC - Annual National Convention for SNA (formerly ASFSA)
ANSMP - Assisted Nutrient Standard Menu Planning
ARPA - Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000
ASFSA - American School Food Service Association, now known as the School Nutrition Association (SNA)
ASSP - After School ("At Risk") Snack Program
CA - Corrective Action
CACCI - Child and Adult Care Center Institution
CACFP - Child and Adult Care Food Program
CAP - Corrective Action Plan
CCC - Child Care Center
CFR - Code of Federal Regulations
CNA - Child Nutrition Act
CNP - Child Nutrition Programs
CPA - Certified Public Accountant
CRE - Coordinated Review Effort
CTV - Consulting Team Visit
DA - Distributing Agency
DGA - Dietary Guidelines for Americans
DHS - Department of Human Services (Utah)
DOH - Department of Health (Utah)
DWS - Department of Workforce Services (Utah)
EdNet - Education Network
EdPAC - Education Purchashing Advisory Committee
F/RP - Free/Reduced-Price (meal eligibility)
FBMS - Food-Based Menu System
FDCH - Family Day Care Home
FDP - Food Distribution Program
FDPIR - Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
FEP - Family Employment Program (Utah term for TANF)
FNS - Food and Nutrition Service (USDA)
FNSRO - Food and Nutrition Service Regional Office (Mountain Plains, Denver)
FS - Food Stamps
FSA - Farm Service Administration (USDA)
FSIS - Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA)
FSMC - Food Service Management Company
FY - Fiscal Year
GAAP - Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
GAO - Government Accounting Office
HACCP - Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point
IEF - Income Eligibility Form
KCCO - Kansas City Commodity Office (USDA)
LAC - Legislative Action Conference (ASFSA/SNA)
LEA - Local Education Agency
ME - Management Evaluation
NET - Nutrition Education and Training
NFSMI - National Food Service Management Institute
NRC - National Research Council
NSLA - National School Lunch Act
NSLP - National School Lunch Program
NSMP - Nutrient Standard Menu Planning
OANE - Office of Analysis, Nutrition and Evaluation (USDA)
OCR - Office of Civil Rights (USDA)
OIG - Office of Inspector General (USDA)
OMB - Office of Management and Budget
OVS - Offer vs. Serve
PAL - Planned Assistance Level (commodities)
PNP - Private Nonprofit
POS - Point of Service
RA - Recipient Agency
RBRNSLA - Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act
RCCI - Residential Child Care Institution
RDA - Recommended Dietary Allowance
RDI - Recommended Dietary Intake
SA - State Agency (the USOE and equivalents in other states)
SAE - State Administrative Expense
SBP - School Breakfast Program
SD - Serious Deficiency (or Seriously Deficient)
SEA - State Education Agency
SFA - School Food Authority (also see Local Educational Agency or LEA)
SFNS - School Foodservice and Nutrition Specialist (ASFSA/SNA credential)
SFSP - Summer Food Service Program
SIS - Student Information System
SK/FB - Soup Kitchens/Food Banks
SMI - School Meals Initiative
SMP - Special Milk Program
SNA - School Nutrition Association (formerly ASFSA)
SNAU - School Nutrition Association of Utah (formerly USFSA)
SNP - School Nutrition Programs
STAR - State Technical Assistance Review
SY - School Year