Assembly Bill 626 (Skinner) Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act

ISSUE The federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) has set a new set of nutritional standards for elementary, middle, and high schools. The HHFKA also aims at increasing access for students and improving oversight of nutritional programs. HHFKA authorizes funding and sets policy for USDA's core child nutrition programs, which includes: the National School Lunch Program, the School Breakfast Program, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the Summer Food Service Program, and the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Improving child nutrition is one of the focal points of the HHFKA. Across the country, schools serve meals on a daily basis to more than 31 million children. Unfortunately, one out of every three children is now considered overweight or obese. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) represents the nation's continued commitment to provide all children with nutritious food in schools, with an emphasis on foods that are healthy. In addition to setting nutritional standards, the HHFKA also regulates how nutritional programs operate. For example, the HHFKA sets policies on what expenses are allowable using cafeteria funds and limits the amount of reserves in cafeteria funds. The HHFKA also sets improved oversight policies that will ensure that students are being provided with nutritious meals. AB 626 (SKINNER) AB 626 makes the following changes in order to comply with the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010: 1. Allows afterschool programs the option to serve either supper or lunch. 2. Limits excess cafeteria funds to an amount that does not exceed three months average expenditures for its nonprofit school food service. 3. Clarifies the nutritional definition of an elementary school, middle school, and high school. 4. Clarifies what food items can be sold before school and after school at an elementary school, middle school, and high school. For example, items may include full meals, individually sold dairy or whole grain foods, and individually sold portions of nuts, nut butters, seeds, eggs, cheese packaged for individual sale, fruit, vegetables that have not been deep fried, and legumes. 5. Clarifies what beverages can be sold before school and after school at an elementary school, middle school, and high school. For example, beverages may include fruit-based drinks that are composed of no less than 50 percent fruit juice and have no added sweetener, drinking water with no added sweetener, two-percent-fat milk, one-percent-fat milk, nonfat milk, soy milk, rice milk, and other similar nondairy milk. 6. Restricts the sale of food items and beverages that do not meet federal standards. The sale of those items must take place off and away from school premises or take place on school premises at least one-half hour after the end of the school day. 7. Prohibits the sale of items containing artificial trans-fat. 8. Restricts the use of cafeteria funds to purchase land or buildings or to build buildings.

Staff Contact: Tony Bui (916) 319-2015; Tony.Bui@asm.ca.gov Sponsor: State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson