Printed on recycled paper
131st MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2023
Legislative Document No. 1183H.P. 755House of Representatives, March 14, 2023
An Act to Establish the School Meal Equipment and Program
Improvement Fund
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative SALISBURY of Westbrook.
Cosponsored by Representatives: BRENNAN of Portland, CROCKETT of Portland,
PLUECKER of Warren, SARGENT of York. Page 1 - 131LR1044(01)
1
2 is enacted to read:
3
4 The School Meal
5 Equipment and Program Improvement Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is
6 established in the department to issue grants to eligible school administrative units to
7 improve school meal equipment and programs. The fund consists of money received as
8 appropriations, allocations and contributions from private and public sources. The fund
9 must be held separate and apart from all other money, funds and accounts. Eligible
10 investment earnings credited to the assets of the fund become part of the assets of the fund.
11 Any unexpended balances remaining in the fund at the end of any fiscal year do not lapse
12 and must be carried forward to the next fiscal year. The fund may be used to provide grants
13 to eligible school administrative units to:
14 A. Purchase school kitchen and cafeteria equipment needed to serve healthy meals that
15 meet federal nutrition standards;
16 B. Improve food safety in school kitchens and cafeterias;
17 C. Support the maintenance and expansion of the National School Lunch Program and
18 the School Breakfast Program within the school administrative unit; and
19 D. Reimburse food costs related to medically necessary dietary restrictions of students.
20 For the purposes of this subsection, "eligible school administrative unit" means a school
21 administrative unit that participates in the National School Lunch Program under 7 Code
22 of Federal Regulations, Part 210 and the School Breakfast Program under 7 Code of Federal
23 Regulations, Part 220 and that meets federal compliance requirements established by the
24 United States Department of Agriculture for those programs.
25
26 for the purposes of this section.
27 The department shall adopt routine technical rules as defined in Title 5,
28 chapter 375, subchapter 2-A to carry out the purposes of the fund.
29
30 This bill establishes the School Meal Equipment and Program Improvement Fund in
31 the Department of Education to issue grants to eligible school administrative units to
32 purchase school kitchen and cafeteria equipment needed to serve healthy meals, to improve
33 food safety in school kitchens and cafeterias, to support the maintenance and expansion of
34 the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program and to reimburse food
35 costs related to medically necessary dietary restrictions of students. It also requires the
36 department to apply for federal grants available to support these purposes.
30
31
32
33
34
35
36