[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 7, Volume 4]
[Revised as of January 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 7CFR210.9]

[Page 19-21]
 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
    CHAPTER II--FOOD AND NUTRITION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 
PART 210_NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM--Table of Contents
 
     Subpart C_Requirements for School Food Authority Participation
 
Sec.  210.9  Agreement with State agency.


    (a) Application. An official of a school food authority shall make 
written application to the State agency for any school in which it 
desires to operate the Program. Applications shall provide the State 
agency with sufficient information to determine eligibility. The school 
food authority shall also submit for approval a Free and Reduced Price 
Policy Statement in accordance with part 245 of this chapter.
    (b) Agreement. Each school food authority approved to participate in 
the program shall enter into a written agreement with the State agency 
that may be amended as necessary. Nothing in the preceding sentence 
shall be construed to limit the ability of the State agency to suspend 
or terminate the agreement in accordance with Sec.  210.25. If a single 
State agency administers any combination of the Child Nutrition 
Programs, that State agency shall provide each school food authority 
with a single agreement with respect to the operation of those programs. 
The agreement shall contain a statement to the effect that the ``School 
Food Authority and participating schools under its jurisdiction, shall 
comply with all provisions of 7 CFR parts 210 and 245.'' This agreement 
shall provide that each school food authority shall, with respect to 
participating schools under its jurisdiction:
    (1) Maintain a nonprofit school food service and observe the 
limitations on the use of nonprofit school food service revenues set 
forth in Sec.  210.14(a) and the limitations on any competitive school 
food service as set forth in Sec.  210.11(b);
    (2) Limit its net cash resources to an amount that does not exceed 3 
months average expenditures for its nonprofit school food service or 
such other amount as may be approved in accordance with Sec.  210.19(a);
    (3) Maintain a financial management system as prescribed under Sec.  
210.14(c);
    (4) Comply with the requirements of the Department's regulations 
regarding financial management (7 CFR part 3015);
    (5) Serve lunches, during the lunch period, which meet the minimum 
requirements prescribed in Sec.  210.10;
    (6) Price the lunch as a unit;
    (7) Serve lunches free or at a reduced price to all children who are 
determined by the school food authority to be eligible for such meals 
under 7 CFR part 245;
    (8) Claim reimbursement at the assigned rates only for reimbursable 
free, reduced price and paid lunches served to eligible children in 
accordance with 7 CFR part 210. Agree that the school food authority 
official signing the claim shall be responsible for reviewing and 
analyzing meal counts to ensure accuracy as specified in Sec.  210.8 
governing claims for reimbursement. Acknowledge that failure to submit 
accurate claims will result in the recovery of an overclaim and may 
result in the withholding of payments, suspension or termination of the 
program as specified in Sec.  210.25. Acknowledge that if failure to 
submit accurate claims reflects embezzlement, willful mis ap pli ca tion 
of funds, theft, or fraudulent activity, the penalties specified in 
Sec.  210.26 shall apply;
    (9) Count the number of free, reduced price and paid reimbursable 
meals

[[Page 20]]

served to eligible children at the point of service, or through another 
counting system if approved by the State agency;
    (10) Submit Claims for Reimbursement in accordance with Sec.  210.8;
    (11) Comply with the requirements of the Department's regulations 
regarding nondiscrimination (7 CFR parts 15, 15a, 15b);
    (12) Make no discrimination against any child because of his or her 
eligibility for free or reduced price meals in accordance with the 
approved Free and Reduced Price Policy Statement;
    (13) Enter into an agreement to receive donated foods as required by 
7 CFR part 250;
    (14) Maintain, in the storage, preparation and service of food, 
proper sanitation and health standards in conformance with all 
applicable State and local laws and regulations;
    (15) Accept and use, in as large quantities as may be efficiently 
utilized in its nonprofit school food service, such foods as may be 
offered as a donation by the Department;
    (16) Maintain necessary facilities for storing, preparing and 
serving food;
    (17) Upon request, make all accounts and records pertaining to its 
school food service available to the State agency and to FNS, for audit 
or review, at a reasonable time and place. Such records shall be 
retained for a period of 3 years after the date of the final Claim for 
Reimbursement for the fiscal year to which they pertain, except that if 
audit findings have not been resolved, the records shall be retained 
beyond the 3 year period as long as required for resolution of the 
issues raised by the audit;
    (18) Maintain files of currently approved and denied free and 
reduced price applications, respectively, and the names of children 
approved for free lunches based on documentation certifying that the 
child is included in a household approved to receive benefits under the 
Food Stamp Program, Food Distribution Program for Households on Indian 
Reservations (FDPIR) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families 
(TANF).If the applications and/or documentation are maintained at the 
school food authority level, they shall be readily retrievable by 
school;
    (19) Retain the individual applications for free and reduced price 
lunches and meal supplements submitted by families for a period of 3 
years after the end of the fiscal year to which they pertain or as 
otherwise specified under paragraph (b)(17) of this section.
    (20) No later than March 1, 1997, and no later than December 31 of 
each year thereafter, provide the State agency with a list of all 
elementary schools under its jurisdiction in which 50 percent or more of 
enrolled children have been determined eligible for free or reduced 
price meals as of the last operating day the preceding October. The 
State agency may designate a month other than October for the collection 
of this information, in which case the list must be provided to the 
State agency within 60 calendar days following the end of the month 
designated by the State agency. In addition, each school food authority 
shall provide, when available for the schools under its jurisdiction, 
and upon the request of a sponsoring organization of day care homes of 
the Child and Adult Care Food Program, information on the boundaries of 
the attendance areas for the elementary schools identified as having 50 
percent or more of enrolled children certified eligible for free or 
reduced price meals.
    (c) Afterschool care requirements. Those school food authorities 
with eligible schools (as defined in Sec.  210.10(n)(1)) that elect to 
serve meal supplements during afterschool care programs, shall agree to:
    (1) Serve meal supplements which meet the minimum requirements 
prescribed in Sec.  210.10;
    (2) Price the meal supplement as a unit;
    (3) Serve meal supplements free or at a reduced price to all 
children who are determined by the school food authority to be eligible 
for free or reduced price school meals under 7 CFR part 245;
    (4) If charging for meals, the charge for a reduced price meal 
supplement shall not exceed 15 cents;
    (5) Claim reimbursement at the assigned rates only for meal 
supplements served in accordance with the agreement;

[[Page 21]]

    (6) Claim reimbursement for no more than one meal supplement per 
child per day;
    (7) Review each afterschool care program two times a year; the first 
review shall be made during the first four weeks that the school is in 
operation each school year, except that an afterschool care program 
operating year round shall be reviewed during the first four weeks of 
its initial year of operation, once more during its first year of 
operation, and twice each school year thereafter; and
    (8) Comply with all requirements of this part, except that, claims 
for reimbursement need not be based on ``point of service'' meal 
supplement counts (as required by Sec.  210.9(b)(9)).

[53 FR 29147, Aug. 2, 1988, as amended at 54 FR 12581, Mar. 28, 1989; 56 
FR 32941, July 17, 1991; 58 FR 42488, Aug. 10, 1993; 60 FR 31208, June 
13, 1995; 62 FR 901, Jan. 7, 1997; 63 FR 9104, Feb. 24, 1998; 64 FR 
50740, Sept. 20, 1999; 64 FR 72471, Dec. 28, 1999; 65 FR 26912, May 9, 
2000]