SB 708, signed by Gov. Brown, sets new standards for online school meal applications
Published: November 18, 2015
All applicants, all school districts and National School Lunch Program providers will need to be compliant with Senate Bill 708 by Jan. 1, 2016. School districts or school food authorities that optionally chose to use an online application, must now:
- Include a link to translations of school meal applications made available online by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. SB 708 also codifies existing regulations that School Food Authorities participating in the NSLP “must accept the Food and Nutrition Services' prototype application if submitted by an applicant.”
- Limit “required fields” on an online application to only those required to make an eligibility determination.
- Protect privacy of applicant households by complying with the privacy rights and disclosure protections established by the federal Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (Public Law 113-79) and the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-277).
- Include links to online applications for:
Finally, SB 708 reinforced existing guidance and law that online and paper applications must have clear instructions for parents whose families are homeless or migrant workers, including instructions that an address is not required to be reported for these families. For technical assistance in implementing this new law, please contact Jessica Bartholow of the Western Center on Law and Poverty by email or at 916-282-5119
916-282-5119.