2017–18 SBP and SFSP Start-up and Expansion Grants
Nutrition Services Division Management Bulletin
Purpose: Beneficial Information
Date: February 2017
Number: SNP-01-2017, SFSP 01-2017
To: Public School Districts, Direct Funded Charter Schools, and County Superintendent of Schools
Attention: Food Service Director, Chief Business Official, and Chief Financial Officer
Reference: California Education Code Section 49550.3; 2017–18 State Budget Act
Subject: Availability of the School Breakfast Program and Summer Food Service Program Start-up and Expansion Grants for State Fiscal Year 2017–18
This Management Bulletin announces the availability of the School Year (SY) 2017–18 School Breakfast Program (SBP) and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Start-up and Expansion Grants. The application deadline is March 1, 2017.
Background Information
The state Legislature appropriates approximately $1.017 million in the annual state budget for SBP and SFSP Start-up and Expansion Grants. California EC, Section 49550.3, authorizes the California Department of Education (CDE) to award competitive grants of up to $15,000 per school site for nonrecurring expenses incurred when initiating or expanding an SBP or SFSP.
Additionally, on June 27, 2016, Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 828, which prioritizes an additional $2 million in grant funds for school food authorities (SFA) that want to start-up or expand Breakfast After the Bell (BATB) meal service models starting in SY 2017–18. The funds, available over a two-year period (SYs 2017–18 and
2018–19), prioritize grants for BATB in schools that have at least 60 percent of enrolled students approved for free or reduced-price meals (F/RP). BATB service models integrate breakfast into the school day (i.e., provide breakfast sometime after the start of the school day). Detailed information about strategies for serving BATB is available on the BreakfastFirst Web site at http://www.breakfastfirst.org.
The following types of grants are available:
For the $1.017 million original SBP and SFSP funding:
- Start-up grants for costs associated with starting an SBP or SFSP site
- Expansion grants for costs associated with increasing program participation at an existing SBP or SFSP site
For the $2 million BATB funding:
- Start-up grants for costs associated with starting a BATB service model
- Expansion grants for costs associated with expanding a BATB service model
Who Can Apply?
Public school districts, county offices of education, and directly funded charter schools can apply for this grant funding. Each SFA may apply for no more than 10 sites, for up to $15,000 per site. Please note that private schools, residential child care institutions, and juvenile detention centers are ineligible to apply for or receive these grants. SFAs participating in the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) are also ineligible to apply for or receive these grants at SSO sites. Only school sites are eligible for a grant.
For SBP grants, the SFA must have at least 20 percent of students enrolled at the site approved for F/RP meals. For SFSP grants, sites must meet all SFSP eligibility criteria, which are available on the CDE SFSP Information Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/sf/sfspinfo.asp.
Also, an SFA must have a current vendor number on file with the California State Controller’s Office to be eligible for an SBP or SFSP grant. SFAs can obtain a vendor number from the CDE as part of the application process to participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), SBP, or SFSP. To begin the NSLP, SBP, or SFSP application process, please contact Tara Chambers, School Nutrition Programs Specialist, by phone at 916-323-7177 or by e-mail at tchambers@cde.ca.gov. Grant recipients must be approved to participate in the SBP or SFSP prior to receiving the first grant payment.
Grant Criteria
These grants are competitive, and detailed scoring criteria is available on the CDE Funding Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r9/sbsf17rfa.asp. SFAs should keep the following criteria in mind when applying for this grant:
- The CDE will give priority to school sites with a high F/RP eligible percentage.
- For the additional $2 million in funding, the CDE will give priority to SFAs that implement a BATB meal service model.
- SFAs may receive a grant for the same site no more than once every three years (unless they serve BATB).
- Eligible SFAs may apply for the SBP grant and/or the SFSP grant on their application; however, SFAs may not request both grants for one site.
- The CDE may consider SFAs with excess net cash resources (NCR) to be ineligible to receive a grant. In accordance with Title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 210.14(b), an SFA shall limit its NCRs to an amount that does not exceed three months’ average expenditures from its food service account. SFAs with excess NCRs must include a detailed explanation in their application for their excess NCRs.
- SFAs must be in good standing in all child nutrition programs in which they participate.
Grant Award Information
- SFAs must obtain and submit board or other approval with their grant application for sites that require approval from their district or agency’s governing board before accepting grant funds. The CDE will not process an application without these approvals (if needed).
- All grant recipients must sign and return the original Grant Award Notification (GAN) before the CDE will release grant funds. An original GAN includes the signature of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson.
- The CDE will bill SFAs for any funds that they have received or may withhold final payment if they do not fulfill the requirements of the grant. Please note that awarded SFAs must be approved to participate in the SBP or SFSP before receiving the first grant payment.
- If an SFA knowingly submits false information on its grant application or invoices, the CDE may deny or recover the SFA’s grant funding.
- The CDE will provide funding for SBP/SFSP grants as long as funds are available. Please note that the CDE will provide grant recipients with 90 percent of the funding at the time of award and the remaining 10 percent upon approval of all invoices. The CDE will recover funds from SFAs that do not submit invoices for approved budget items within the grant award time frame.
- The CDE will send grant awardees an approved procurement form, which represents an estimate of approved grant expenses for claim submittal.
- The CDE administers these grants and reserves the right to make changes to the approved budget, which includes reducing the amount of funding to reflect actual, allowable, and reasonable costs.
Application Deadline
The CDE must receive signed and dated hard copies of grant applications (with original signature) on or before Wednesday, March 1, 2017. The CDE will not:
- Accept any applications received after 5 p.m., on March 1, 2017
- Process incomplete, illegible, or late applications
- Accept fax or e-mail submissions
- Accept placeholder applications of any type
SFAs can download the SBP/SFSP grant instructions and application on the CDE SBP/SFSP Grants Funding Profile Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r9/sbsf17rfa.asp.
Proposed Grant Timeline
The CDE will conduct two rounds of grant awards per fiscal year. Each round has different timelines; however, there is not a separate application process for the reallocation round. The CDE may offer recovered funds to SFAs from the original scoring list. The second round will reallocate leftover funding from awardees that surrendered their funds.
Round 1—Standard Round
| Activity | Deadline |
|---|---|
| All SBP/SFSP grant applications due to the CDE | March 1, 2017 |
| The CDE mails GAN letters to awardees | No later than June 1, 2017 |
| SFAs must submit signed GAN to the CDE | Within 30 days of award |
| Grant period | July 1, 2017 to March 1, 2018 |
| SFAs submit Midyear Progress Report to the CDE | November 1, 2017 |
| Deadline for grantees to report all expenditures to the CDE | No later than March 1, 2018 |
Round 2—Reallocation Round
| Activity | Deadline |
|---|---|
| The CDE mails GAN letters to awardees | April 2018 |
| SFAs must submit signed GAN to the CDE | No later than May 15, 2018 |
| Reallocation period | June 1, 2018, to July 1, 2019 |
| Deadline for grantees to report all expenditures to the CDE | No later than July 1, 2019 |
Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding SBP/SFSP grants, please contact the Breakfast Grant team by e-mail at breakfastgrant@cde.ca.gov.
Questions: Nutrition Services Division | 800-952-5609
Last Reviewed: Wednesday, January 4, 2017
2017–18 SBP and SFSP Start-up and Expansion Grants - School Nutrition (CA Dept of Education):