Report Title:

School Nutrition

Description:

Establishes a 3-year school nutrition demonstration project to reduce obesity and improve the health of Hawaii's children.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1428

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds it alarming that the rate of obesity among Hawaii's children is twice that of children on the mainland United States. Hawaii's medical community is looking for solutions and many suggest a physical activity and school nutrition program. Some states, including California, have already implemented school nutrition programs. Other states are introducing legislation to ban soft drink sales in schools.

The purpose of this Act is to reduce obesity and improve the health of Hawaii's children by establishing a three-year school nutrition demonstration project that implements stricter standards of nutrition in public schools.

SECTION 2. (a) As used in this Act:

"Added sweetener" means any additive that enhances the sweetness of the beverage, including added sugar, but does not include the natural sugar or sugars that are contained within the fruit juice which is a component of the beverage.

"Elementary school" means a public school that maintains any grade from kindergarten to grade six, inclusive, but no grade higher than grade six.

"Full meal" means any combination of food items that meet a United States Department of Agriculture-approved meal pattern.

"High school" means a public school maintaining any of grades nine to twelve, inclusive.

"Middle school" means a public school that maintains any of grades seven to nine, inclusive, but no grade higher than grade nine.

SECTION 3. (a) There is established the school nutrition demonstration project to be administered by the department of education. At least ten high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, or any combination thereof, may voluntarily participate in the school nutrition demonstration project. The pilot project shall commence in the fall of the 2003-2004 school year. Participating schools shall be eligible to receive a grant of no less that $ and no more than $ , depending upon the size of the school.

(b) Each school participating in the school nutrition demonstration project shall comply with the following requirements:

(1) Only the following types of beverages shall be sold to pupils from thirty minutes before the start of the school day until thirty minutes after the end of the school day:

(A) Hundred per cent fruit juices or fruit-based drinks that are composed of no less than fifty per cent fruit juice and have no added sweeteners;

(B) Drinking water;

(C) Milk, including but not limited to chocolate milk, soy milk, rice milk, and other similar dairy or nondairy milk; and

(D) Electrolyte replacement beverages that do not contain more than forty-two grams of added sweetener per twenty ounce serving;

(2) Carbonated beverages shall not be sold to pupils from thirty minutes before the start of the school day until thirty minutes after the end of the school day;

(3) No beverage that exceeds twelve ounces per serving shall be sold to pupils from thirty minutes before the start of the school day until thirty minutes after the end of the school day; provided that the twelve-ounce maximum serving requirement shall not apply to any of the following:

(A) Drinking water;

(B) Milk, including chocolate milk, soy milk, rice milk, and other similar dairy or nondairy milk; or

(C) An electrolyte replacement beverage; provided that it does not exceed twenty ounces per serving.

(c) No food item shall be sold to pupils from thirty minutes before the start of the school day until thirty minutes after the end of the school day unless it does not exceed twelve ounces per serving and it meets the following standards:

(1) Not more than thirty-five per cent of its total calories shall be from fat. This requirement does not apply to the sale of nuts or seeds;

(2) Not more than ten per cent of its total calories shall be from saturated fat; and

(3) Not more than thirty-five per cent of its total weight shall be composed of sugar. This requirement does not apply to the sale of fruits or vegetables.

(d) Entrée and side dish serving sizes shall be no larger than the portions of those foods served as part of the federal school lunch program.

(e) Fruit and nonfried vegetables shall be offered for sale at any location where food is sold.

SECTION 4. (a) At those schools participating in the demonstration project created by this Act, the sale of all foods on school grounds shall be approved for compliance with the nutrition standards by the person or persons responsible for implementing these provisions as designated by the school principal.

(b) At elementary schools:

(1) The only food that may be sold to pupils during breakfast and lunch periods is food that is sold as a full meal. This paragraph does not prohibit the sale of fruit, nonfried vegetables, legumes, beverages, dairy products, or grain products as individual food items if they meet the requirements set forth in section 3(c);

(2) An individual food item sold to a pupil during morning or afternoon breaks shall meet all of the standards set forth in section 3(c); and

(3) Regardless of the time of day, water, milk, one hundred per cent fruit juices, or fruit-based drinks that are composed of no less than fifty per cent fruit juice and that have no added sweeteners are the only beverages that may be sold to pupils.

(c) In middle schools:

(1) From thirty minutes before the start of the school day until after the end of the last lunch period, no carbonated beverage shall be sold to pupils; and

(2) Vending machines that contain beverage items that do not meet the requirements in this section shall remain locked or be rendered inoperable until after the end of the last lunch period.

(d) An elementary school may permit the sale of food items that do not comply with this section as part of a school fundraising event in any of the following circumstances:

(1) The sale of those items by pupils of the school takes place off school premises; or

(2) The sale of those items by pupils of the school takes place at least thirty minutes after the end of the school day.

SECTION 5. (a) The superintendent and board of education shall develop school policies on nutrition and physical activity based on the findings and recommendations of schools participating in the school nutrition demonstration project. In developing the policy, the board of education shall hold at least one public hearing.

(b) The policies shall address the issues and goals, including but not limited to the following:

(1) Implementing the nutritional standards set forth in section 3(c);

(2) Encouraging fundraisers that promote good health habits and discouraging fundraisers that promote unhealthy foods;

(3) Ensuring that no pupil is hungry;

(4) Improving nutritional standards;

(5) Increasing the availability of fresh fruits and vegetables, including provisions that encourage schools to make fruits and vegetables available at all locations where food is sold;

(6) Ensuring, to the extent possible, that food is served fresh;

(7) Encouraging eligible pupils to participate in the school lunch program;

(8) Integrating nutrition and physical activity into the overall curriculum;

(9) Ensuring regular professional development for food services staff;

(10) Ensuring pupils a minimum of thirty minutes to eat lunch and twenty minutes to eat breakfast, when provided;

(11) Ensuring pupils engage in healthful levels of vigorous physical activity;

(12) Ensuring pupils receive nutrition education;

(13) Improving the quality of physical education curricula and increasing training of physical education teachers;

(14) Enforcing existing physical education requirements;

(15) Altering the economic structures in place to encourage healthy eating by pupils and reduce dependency on generating profits for the school from the sale of unhealthy foods;

(16) Developing a financing plan to implement the policies;

(17) Increasing the availability of organic fruits and vegetables and school gardens; and

(18) Collaborating with local farmers' markets.

SECTION 6. (a) Each school participating in the school nutrition demonstration project shall submit annual status reports to the superintendent of education at the end of each school year, including an accounting of any moneys used to implement the project and recommendations for the development of school policies on nutrition and physical activity.

(b) Based on the reports of the participating schools, the superintendent shall submit annual status reports to the legislature on the progress of the school nutrition demonstration project and the development of school policies on nutrition and physical activity no later than twenty days before the convening of the regular sessions of 2004 and 2005.

(c) The superintendent of education shall submit a final report on the school nutrition demonstration project and the development of school policies on nutrition and physical activity, along with findings and recommendations, to the legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of the regular session of 2006.

SECTION 7. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $        , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2003-2004, and the same sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2004-2005, for the implementation of the school nutrition demonstration project.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 8. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2003, and shall be repealed on July 1, 2006.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________