BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2449
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 9, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 2449 (Bocanegra) - As Introduced: February 21, 2014
Policy Committee: EducationVote:5-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill requires a school district or county office of
education (COE) to ensure there is adequate time to eat lunch
after the meal is served to students.
FISCAL EFFECT
Unknown GF/P98 state mandated costs, potentially in excess of $1
million. There are 9,919 schools in California. Cost claims
could include additional points of service, equipment and system
upgrades, staffing or expanding the school day to meet an
adequate time goal. Actual costs will depend on the size and
types of claims districts submit to the Commission on State
Mandates to implement this measure. As an illustration, if 10%
of districts installed new point of sale terminals, costs would
be approximately $1.2 million.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose . According to the author, lunch periods provide a
much-needed time for students to take a break and refuel their
bodies. For many low-income students, school lunch may be the
most nutritious meal of the day. However, California students
frequently miss out on the full benefits of school lunch
because they don't have enough time to eat. This bill seeks
to remedy this issue be requiring districts and COEs to ensure
there is adequate time to eat lunch.
2)Defining "adequate time. " In a 2006 report, CDE provided that
one strategy for increasing student participation in school
lunch is, "scheduling sufficient time to enable students to
eat after being served-no less than 10 minutes for breakfast
AB 2449
Page 2
and no less than 20 minutes for lunch." Federal regulation
requires schools to offer lunches between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00
p.m.
This bill would set a required goal that schools provide
students with adequate time to eat, but does not require any
specific approach that schools must take to meet this goal.
Without a definition of "adequate time," school districts and
COEs could claim state mandated costs for time and resources
they deem necessary to meet a locally determined definition of
"adequate time." For example, districts could claim time and
resources associated with the 20 minute recommendation from
CDE or the entire four hour federal time frame.
3)Background. The California Department of Education (CDE)
administers the National School Lunch Program, a federally
assisted meal program operating in over 100,000 public and
nonprofit private schools and residential child care
institutions.
Federal funds currently provide the majority of funding for
school nutrition programs in California. According to a
recent state audit of child nutrition funding, in fiscal year
201112, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provided 92%
of the funding for the child nutrition programs, or $1.7
billion, and the state provided the remaining 8%, or $148
million. The National School Lunch Program is the largest
component of the child nutrition programs, accounting for more
than $1.3 billion-or roughly 77%-of the $1.7 billion in
federal funds spent in fiscal year 2011-12. While federal
cafeteria funds could provide a source of funding for LEAs to
meet the requirements of this bill, there is no requirement
that schools use these funds for this purpose.
Analysis Prepared by : Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081