Preschools, child daycare facilities, and Trustline providers: meals.

Existing federal law establishes the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to provide aid to childcare institutions and family or group daycare homes for the provision of nutritious foods that contribute to the wellness, healthy growth, and development of young children. Existing law, the California Child Day Care Facilities Act, administered by the State Department of Social Services, provides for the licensure and regulation of child daycare facilities, as defined. Existing law requires childhood nutrition training for certain licensees, and requires that training to include information about reimbursement rates for the CACFP. Existing law generally prohibits a person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation from operating, establishing, managing, conducting, or maintaining a child daycare facility in this state without a current valid license. Existing law requires the department to establish and continuously update a trustline registry of persons who provide childcare and who are not required to be licensed. Under existing law, a provider who is registered pursuant to these provisions is known as a Trustline provider. Existing law, the Early Education Act, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, to, among other things, provide an inclusive and cost-effective preschool program, and declares the policy of the state that no child shall be hungry while in attendance in a preschool facility and that preschool programs have an obligation to provide for the nutritional needs of children in attendance. Existing law requires a school district or county superintendent of schools maintaining a kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to provide a needy pupil with one nutritionally adequate free or reduced-price meal during each schoolday, and two school meals free of charge during each schoolday to any pupil who requests a meal without consideration of the pupil's eligibility for a federally funded free or reduced-price meal, and sets the reimbursement rate for meals served by family daycare homes at 75 percent of the meals served. This bill would, subject to an appropriation for these purposes, require the department to provide funding for (1) a supplemental state meal reimbursement for preschool facilities, child daycare facilities, and Trustline providers for up to 2 daily meals per child served through the CACFP at a rate equivalent to the state meal reimbursement for local educational agencies; (2) reimbursement of up to 2 daily meals per child served through the CACFP at a specified rate in order to establish a free meal program for all children receiving care from those facilities and providers; and (3) grants to those facilities and providers, and sponsors of the CACFP, to encourage their participation in and expansion of the CACFP. This bill would also increase the reimbursement rate for meals served in family daycare homes to 100 percent of the meals served.