BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 290
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 290 (Alejo)
As Amended September 3, 2013
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |77-0 |(April 29, |SENATE: |38-0 |(September 6, |
| | |2013) | | |2013) |
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Original Committee Reference: HUM. S.
SUMMARY : Requires training for child development programs to
include one hour of childhood nutrition training. Specifically,
this bill :
1)States findings and declarations regarding obesity health
risks and need for additional nutritional training for child
care providers, as specified.
2)Amends the California Child Day Care Facilities Act (CDCFA) to
require any child day care facility seeking to be licensed
under this act, on or after January 1, 2016, to include
elementary training in childhood nutrition and practices that
support the overall health of children.
3)As a condition of meeting this additional elementary training,
at least one director or teacher employed by a child
development agency shall have at least one hour of childhood
nutrition training in addition to the 15 hours of training
already required under law.
4)Requires the training to include content on age-appropriate
meal patterns, based upon Dietary Guidelines for Americans,
and inform providers on reimbursement for the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) Child and Adult Care Food
Program (CACFP).
5)Directs child care providers to the CACFP Unit of the
California Department of Education's Nutrition Services
Division for detailed information on CACFP eligibility and
enrollment.
The Senate amendments :
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1)Delay implementation to January 1, 2016.
2)Add additional language stating the Legislature's intent to
provide sufficient time for childhood nutrition training to be
developed using existing processes to avoid increased costs
and workload.
3)Exempt the Emergency Medical Services Authority from the
Administrative Procedures Act to establish standards for
childhood nutrition training requirements, until regulations
are adopted.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Amended CDCFA to require any child day care facility seeking
to be licensed under this act, on or after January 1, 2015, to
include elementary training in childhood nutrition and
practices that support the overall health of children.
2)As a condition of meeting this additional elementary training,
at least one director or teacher employed by a child
development agency shall have at least one hour of childhood
nutrition training in addition to the 15 hours of training
already required under law.
3)Requires the training to include content on age-appropriate
meal patterns, based upon Dietary Guidelines for Americans,
and inform providers on the eligibility, enrollment and
reimbursement for participation in USDA CACFP.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee:
1)The Emergency Management Services Agency (EMSA): Significant
one-time workload to create new standards, notify training
providers of new requirements, and to receive and review
updated curriculum from those providers.
2)Regulations: Likely minor workload for EMSA to re-open and
revise regulations, with a flexible timeframe.
COMMENTS :
Need for the bill : According to the Centers for Disease Control
(CDC), obesity rates among children and adolescents have almost
AB 290
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tripled since 1980. Approximately 17%, or 12.5 million children
and adolescents nationwide, two to 19 years of age, are
considered obese. Further, it is estimated that one in three
children are obese or considered overweight by their fifth
birthday.
The health risks of obesity in young children are substantial,
which places their overall health at greater risk. Obesity can
lead to Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, and other
adverse health conditions. Longitudinal studies have also
demonstrated that eating habits learned at an early age are more
likely to be practiced throughout a person's lifetime.
Current law allows the California Department of Social Services
(DSS) to utilize existing federal Dietary Guidelines for
Americans, developed by the HHS and USDA. It additionally
permits DSS to include childhood nutrition in its training
regimen for child care agencies. However, because the training
is permitted but not required, there is no assurance that
licensed child care agencies have knowledge of or are providing
good quality and healthy, nutritious meals to the children they
serve.
This bill would add one hour of specific childhood nutrition
training to the state's existing 15-hour training requirement
for licensure under the CDCFA. Although all Title 5 of the
California Code of Regulations (CCR) programs must already
provide nutritional standards development opportunities in order
to meet their childhood nutritional requirements, it is unknown
whether some or all CCR, Title 22 programs do the same.
This measure is a follow-up to AB 1872 (Alejo) from 2012, which
passed the Legislature but was vetoed by the Governor.
According to the Governor, he vetoed AB 1872 because:
The bill would require family child care homes to
serve food in conformance with the federal Child and
Adult Care Food Program, which offers reimbursement
for meals that meet certain criteria.
I can support a measure that helps family child care
providers learn about nutrition and serve healthier
foods at a lower cost, but this bill goes beyond that.
Small businesses such as family day care providers
don't need another confusing mandate that adds to
their struggles to stay afloat.
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By limiting this measure to adding one hour of training related
to childhood nutrition, it appears to be responsive to the
Governor's message to help "family child care providers learn
about nutrition and serve healthier foods at a lower cost? "
Analysis Prepared by : Chris Reefe / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089
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0002530