Relating to free school meals for children attending a public or accredited nonpublic primary or secondary school, and establishing a standing appropriation

This bill relates to free school meals to children attending a public or accredited nonpublic primary or secondary school, and establishes a standing appropriation. The bill adds providing for the healthy development of Iowa’s students by supplying state schools with locally grown and processed, nutritionally adequate meals in accordance with guidelines established by the department of education (DE) as a goal of the local food and farm program. The bill adds the director of the DE or the director’s designee as a voting member of the local food and farm program council. The bill also adds a representative of an organization with the primary purpose of promoting school nutrition in Iowa as a voting member of the local food and farm program council that the secretary of agriculture will appoint. Code chapter 283A (school meal programs) governs the administration of school meal programs and the allocation of moneys received for school meals. Under Code chapter 283A, the director of the DE may enter into agreements with any agency of the federal government, with any school board, or with any other agency or person, adopt rules, employ personnel, and take other action as the director may deem necessary to provide for the establishment, maintenance, operation, and expansion of any school breakfast or lunch program, and to direct the disbursement of federal and state funds, in accordance with any applicable provisions of federal or state law. Code chapter 283A also allows the authorities of a nonpublic school to opt out of school breakfast and lunch programs. The bill establishes a standing appropriation in an amount determined by the DE by rule to supplement federal funds to allow free school breakfast and lunch to each student of a public school, including a charter school, or accredited nonpublic school whose family chooses to receive such meals for the student. Moneys appropriated must be sufficient to procure food grown and processed in Iowa, or grown and processed within miles of Iowa for schools and accredited nonpublic schools in a county bordering another state, for the purpose of achieving goals of the local food and farm program. Any such funds appropriated for this purpose that are not used or encumbered by June of each year shall revert back to the general fund of the state.