SENATE ECONOMIC GROWTH COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 1928

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JUNE 13, 2022

      The Senate Economic Growth Committee reports favorably Senate Bill No. 1928, with committee amendments.

      As amended and reported, the bill amends current law to require each school food authority that provides a food service to public school students in the State to, in the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of the students of the public school served by the school food authority:  (1) develop and implement a public education campaign that is designed to educate parents and guardians of students at schools served by the school food authority about the various school meals program options that are available to students in New Jersey and the availability of free and reduced price meals, thereunder, for students who satisfy federal or State-level eligibility criteria; and (2) develop promotional materials for the State’s school meals programs, and provide copies of the promotional materials to each school served by the school food authority for distribution, by school staff, to the parents and guardians of students enrolled at the school.  A school food authority would be required to utilize existing resources, made available by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (DOA), in developing the promotional materials required by the bill.

      Under current law, the DOA, in consultation with the Department of Education (DOE), is required to develop pamphlets and other promotional materials for the State’s school meals programs and provide such promotional materials to every school district in the State.

      The bill requires the DOA, in consultation with the DOE, to adopt standards and guidelines to ensure the uniformity and accuracy of school meals-related information that is being presented by a school food authority as part of the educational campaigns conducted, and in the promotional materials distributed, under the bill.  The bill also requires the DOE to provide each school food authority with information concerning the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of students in each school that the school food authority serves, and to periodically, at least every five years, verify the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of students in each school served by each school food authority. The bill further specifies that a school food authority’s public education campaign and promotional materials are to comply with certain requirements outlined in the bill.

      The bill defines “school food authority” as the school, school district, or third-party food service vendor, as applicable.  

      The committee amended the bill to require school food authorities (not the DOA and DOE, as was provided by existing law and the introduced bill) to engage in the public education campaigns and the development of school meals-related promotional materials, as required by the bill.  The amendments define “school food authority” to mean the school, the school district, or third-party vendor, as applicable.

      The amendments further require each school food authority to provide the promotional materials to each school served thereby, for further distribution, by school staff, to the parents and guardians of students who are enrolled at the school.  The amendments require the school food authority to utilize existing resources, made available by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the DOA, in developing the promotional materials. 

      The amendments further require the DOA, in consultation with the DOE, to adopt standards and guidelines to ensure the uniformity and accuracy of school meals-related information that is being presented by school food authorities as part of the educational campaigns conducted, and in the promotional materials distributed, under the bill.  The amendments require school food authorities to comply with these standards and guidelines when implementing the public education campaigns and developing the promotional materials.

      Finally, the amendments require that public education campaign and promotional materials be provided in the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of students in the public school that each school food authority serves.  The amendments also require that DOE provide each school food authority with information concerning the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of students in each school that the school food authority serves, and to periodically verify the two languages that are most commonly spoken in the homes of students in each public school served by each school food authority.

      As amended and reported, Senate Bill No. 1928 is identical to Assembly Bill No. 2365 (1R), which was also amended and reported by the committee on this date.