Amends TCA Title 49, Chapter 6 and Title 49, Chapter 1.

BREAKFAST AND LUNCH PROGRAM<br /> <br /> Present law requires each school board to establish a school lunch program in every school under its jurisdiction. Each school board must establish a school breakfast program in the following schools based on the cumulative analysis of school lunch participation for the month of April of the preceding year:<br /> <br /> (1) In every school that contains grades K-8 in which 25 percent or more of the students participated in the school lunch program at a free or reduced price; and<br /> <br /> (2) In every school that does not contain grades K-8 in which 40 percent or more of the students participated in the school lunch program at a free or reduced price.<br /> <br /> Present law provides that the above provisions apply unless a waiver is granted pursuant to existing law, and only to the extent federal funds are available for free or reduced price meals.<br /> <br /> Present law also requires that each local education agency ("LEA") operating a school breakfast program pursuant to the Tennessee School Nutrition Standards Act must be reimbursed by the state for any additional expenses to that agency that are incurred as a result of implementing the above provisions. However, existing law requires the school breakfast program to automatically terminate if federal funding for such program ceases.<br /> <br /> This bill removes the existing law above, and provides, instead, the following:<br /> <br /> (1) This bill requires each local school board and governing body of a public charter school to establish a school lunch program and a school breakfast program to provide a free breakfast and lunch to each student enrolled in each school under the board's or body's jurisdiction in accordance with rules promulgated pursuant to existing law;<br /> <br /> (2) This bill requires this state to reimburse each LEA and public charter school the cost of providing a free breakfast and lunch to each student enrolled in the LEA or public charter school after all federal funds available pursuant to the national school lunch program, the school breakfast program, or another federal program have been applied; and<br /> <br /> (3) This bill authorizes reimbursement paid by this state pursuant to this bill for meals provided to students enrolled in a public charter school to be paid directly to the public charter school or to the public charter school's LEA for distribution to the public charter school in accordance with existing law.<br /> <br /> WAIVER OF BREAKFAST REQUIREMENTS<br /> <br /> Present law requires the commissioner to recommend and the state board of education to adopt rules that allow the local school board to waive the requirements of establishing a school breakfast program, for any individual school for each year that the board determines the following:<br /> <br /> (1) That the implementation of a school breakfast program would cause an unavoidable and unreasonable disruption of schedule that would substantially impair the ability of the school to maintain a proper education program;<br /> <br /> (2) The cumulative annualized participation in the school breakfast program is less than 50 students and the school has complied with the requirements of establishing a school breakfast program; or<br /> <br /> (3) That the implementation of the program would cause the expenditure of state of local education funds for which reimbursement under the federal Child Nutrition Act of 1966 is unavailable or inadequate.<br /> <br /> This bill deletes these provisions entirely.<br />