2021 General Session

State of Utah

S. ___________

A bill to amend the execution of The Richard B. Russell School Lunch Act of 1946 in Utah
elementary schools. This bill will prevent stigmatization of children who can't afford meals and
make sure each child gets a nutritious meal at school.

IN THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF UTAH

January 1, 2021

Chief Sponsor: _____________

Senate Sponsor: ___________

___________________________________________________________________________

A BILL
to amend the execution of The Richard B. Russell School Lunch Act of 1946 in Utah elementary
schools. This bill will prevent stigmatization of children who can't afford meals and make sure
each child gets a nutritious meal at school.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE SENATE OF UTAH ASSEMBLED,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This act may be cited as the ¨Early Equal Opportunity Bill of 2021.¨

SECTION 2. PURPOSE.

This bill is made to ensure that elementary school students are free to focus on their education
without being hampered by hunger or stigmatization based on their socioeconomic status, status
of their ability to receive free or reduced lunch, or amount of money present in their lunch
account. The bill will provide funding to ensure that lunch debt will be settled without involving
the students.

SECTION 3. DEFINITIONS.
 (a) ¨Public Schools” means the same as that term defined in bill HB0222 and includes
(i) A school under the control of a school district;
(ii) Charter schools; and
(iii) The Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind.
(b) ¨Lunch Debt Coordinator¨ means a part-time position at every school.
(c) ¨Elementary Schools¨ means public schools that include any grades kindergarten through
fifth grade.
(d) ¨Intermediate Grades” means schools containing seventh grade or eighth grade. In the
event the school also contains sixth or ninth grade, those students will be considered to be
in an intermediate grade.
(e) ¨In conjunction with,¨ as used in the bill, requires that the parties meet once every ten
years to define the actions they will change or continue to take.
(f) ¨Stigmatization¨ means the act of marking or distinguishing

SECTION 4. EARLY EQUAL OPPORTUNITY BILL OF 2021.

(a) Program Leaders-- The Utah State Board of Education, hereafter referred to as the
USBE, will be responsible for coordinating with all public school districts to ensure the
standards proclaimed in this bill are adhered to by all public school districts and charter
schools in the State of Utah.

(b) Lunch Debt Coordinator--

(i) Every elementary school in Utah will be required to employ a Lunch Debt
Coordinator.
(1) Elementary schools in the same district with less than 400 students may be
allowed to share one employee with responsibilities as Lunch Debt
Coordinator, given that is the employees only responsibility.
(2) Elementary schools must employ (1) Lunch Debt Coordinator for every
800 students in their school.
(3) Elementary schools may assign the Lunch Debt Coordinator
responsibilities to an existing employee, along with their regular
responsibilities, given they receive a raise of at least $10,000 a year.
(4) In schools that include both elementary and intermediate grades, Lunch
Debt Coordinators must work with students in grades Kindergarten-Sixth.
They are not required to work with upper-grades.

(ii) Responsibilities of the Lunch Debt Coordinator are--

(1) Contacting parents to ensure that lunch debt is resolved.
(2) Being familiar with state welfare programs that offer aid to pay for school
lunch.
 (3) Ensuring parents understand which programs they qualify to receive aid
from.
(4) Working to overcome language barriers that prevent payment for school
lunches.
(5) Avoiding stigmatizing contact with students who have accrued lunch debt.

(iii) Payment for the lunch coordinator will be determined by each district, or charter
school board, in conjunction with the USBE. Payment will be fair.

(iv) Lunch Coordinators, in conjunction with their school district, shall explore
innovative ways to use technology (as stated in The United States Congress Bill
S.1119 and S.1064) to improve and coordinate communications with parents and
guardians with respect to functions, such as—
(1) Prepayment for meals;
(2) Checking balances for school meals;
(3) Adding funds to accounts for meals;
(4) Addressing outstanding debt for school meals; and
(5) Sending automatic emails when an account balance is low.

(c) Avoidance of Stigmatization-- In respect to a child's lack of ability to pay for their own
breakfast or lunch, due to Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the student will not be held
responsible and will not be stigmatized for their lunch balance.
(i) Types of stigmatization that will be avoided include---
(1) Physical ways of marking a child including:
a) Stamps;
b) Wrist bands;
c) Perform chores not normally required;
d) Less Recess Time;
e) An inferior or different lunch that is known to be for students with
negative lunch balance;
f) Throwing away a child's lunch after they have received it; and
g) Any other physical marking that can be seen as a distinguisher.
(2) Emotional targeting of children with low or negative lunch balances
including:
a) Threatening;
b) Yelling; and
c) Any other emotional targeting that can be seen as a distinguisher.

SECTION 5. EFFECTIVE DATE

This act shall take effect on August 1, 2021.
 Sources:
Booker, and Cory A. “Text - S.2307 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): World Language

Advancement and Readiness Act of 2019.” Congress.gov, The United States of

America, 29 July 2019, www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/2307/text?

q={"search":["school"]}&r=2&s=2.

(I chose to model my fourth section after national congress bill S. 2307´s third section)

Glavin, Chris. “Current Challenges.” Current Challenges | K12 Academics, 19 Oct. 2016,

www.k12academics.com/Federal Education Legislation/National School Lunch

Act/current-challenges.

Johnson, Dan N., and Lyle W. Hillyard. “START SMART UTAH BREAKFAST

PROGRAM.” HB0222, 24 Mar. 2020, le.utah.gov/~2020/bills/static/HB0222.html.

Udall, and Tom. “Text - S.1064 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): Anti-Lunch Shaming Act of

2017.” Congress.gov, The United States of America, 8 May 2017,

www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/1064/text.

Udall, and Tom. “Text - S.1119 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Anti-Lunch Shaming Act of

2019.” Congress.gov, The United States of America, 10 Apr. 2019,

www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/1119/text.

“Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act.” U.S. Department of Labor, The United States of
America, www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/flsa.