Bill Text: NY A07376 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Relates to providing for the rights of students and responsibilities of schools participating in free or reduced fee meal programs; ensures proper information is disseminated and that no student is discriminated against or stigmatized for the use of such programs.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 21-2)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - referred to education [A07376 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A07376-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         7376--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                     April 25, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. SIMON, HARRIS, SEPULVEDA, TITONE, ORTIZ, WALKER,
          D'URSO, GOTTFRIED, GALEF, PALUMBO, RIVERA -- Multi-Sponsored by --  M.
          of  A.   BRONSON, CAHILL, COOK, JONES -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Education -- committee discharged, bill amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  education law, in relation to providing for the
          rights of students and responsibilities of  schools  participating  in
          free or reduced-price meal programs
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 908 to
     2  read as follows:
     3    § 908. Hunger free schools. 1.  For  purposes  of  this  section,  the
     4  following terms shall have the following meanings:
     5    (a)  "meal application" shall mean an application for free or reduced-
     6  price meals pursuant to the national school  lunch  program  and  school
     7  breakfast program; and
     8    (b) "school" shall mean any institution within the state that provides
     9  primary or secondary education.
    10    2. (a) A school shall provide:
    11    (i)  a free, printed meal application in every school enrollment pack-
    12  et, or if the school chooses to  use  an  electronic  meal  application,
    13  provide  in  school  enrollment packets an explanation of the electronic
    14  meal application process and instructions for how parents  or  guardians
    15  may request a paper application at no cost; and
    16    (ii) meal applications and instructions in a language that parents and
    17  guardians  understand. If a parent or guardian cannot read or understand
    18  a meal application, the school shall offer assistance in completing such
    19  application.
    20    (b) If a school becomes aware that a student who has not  submitted  a
    21  meal application is eligible for free or reduced-price meals, the school
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11059-03-7
        A. 7376--A                          2
     1  shall complete and file an application for the student under the author-
     2  ity  granted  by  Title 7, Section 245.6(d) of the Code of Federal Regu-
     3  lations.
     4    (c)  Paragraphs  (a)  and  (b)  of  this subdivision do not apply to a
     5  school that provides free meals to all students in a year in  which  the
     6  school does not collect meal applications from students.
     7    3.  (a)  Regardless of whether or not a student has money to pay for a
     8  meal or owes money for earlier meals, a school:
     9    (i) shall provide a United States department of agriculture reimbursa-
    10  ble meal to a student who requests one, unless the student's  parent  or
    11  guardian  has  specifically provided written permission to the school to
    12  withhold a meal; and
    13    (ii) shall not throw away a meal after it has been served  because  of
    14  the student's inability to pay for the meal or because money is owed for
    15  earlier meals.
    16    (b) If a student owes money for five or more meals, a school shall:
    17    (i)  check  the state list of students categorically eligible for free
    18  meals to determine if the student is categorically eligible; and
    19    (ii) contact the student's parent and guardian with written  and  oral
    20  communications,  not  including the application or instructions included
    21  in a school enrollment packet, to encourage meal application  submission
    22  and offer assistance in completing the application.
    23    4. A school shall not:
    24    (a)  publicly  identify,  shame,  stigmatize,  or  treat differently a
    25  student who cannot pay for a meal or who owes a meal debt;
    26    (b) require a student who cannot pay for a meal or  who  owes  a  meal
    27  debt to do chores or other work to pay for meals;
    28    (c)  deny  any  student  from participating in afterschool programs or
    29  other extracurricular activities because the student cannot  pay  for  a
    30  meal or owes a meal debt; and
    31    (d)  take  disciplinary  action  that  directly  results in denying or
    32  delaying a student the same meal that is available to other students and
    33  substituting it with an alternate meal because a student cannot pay  for
    34  a meal or owes a meal debt.
    35    5. A school shall direct communications about a student's meal debt to
    36  a  parent  or  guardian  and  not  the  student. Nothing in this section
    37  prohibits a school from sending a student home with a  letter  addressed
    38  to  a parent or guardian provided that it is done in a way that does not
    39  stigmatize the student such as in an unmarked envelope.
    40    6. A school shall not require a parent or  guardian  to  pay  fees  or
    41  costs from collection agencies hired to collect a meal debt.
    42    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.