School Food Authorities currently administering the National School Lunch Program and/or School Breakfast Program participating or desiring to participate in the Seamless Summer Option, as defined in subsection 5P-1.001(31), F.A.C., must meet the standards established by the United States Department of Agriculture as provided in 2 C.F.R. § part 200, 7 C.F.R. § part 15, 15a, 15b, 7 C.F.R. § part 210, 7 C.F.R. § part 220, 7 C.F.R. § part 225 and 7 C.F.R. § part 250 all revised as of January 1, 2021, and which are hereby adopted and incorporated by reference and available online at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14884, and by email request to the department at InfoFNW@fdacs.gov, Florida Statutes Chapter 595, and this rule chapter.
    (1) Participation. Only School Food Authorities administering the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program may participate in the Seamless Summer Option. With department approval, School Food Authorities may sponsor non-school meal sites under the Seamless Summer Option.
    (a) School Food Authorities must be able to demonstrate administrative capability and financial viability as specified in subparagraphs 5P-3.001(1)(a)(3)a. and 5P-3.001(1)(a)(3)c., F.A.C., to properly operate the Seamless Summer Option meal service during school vacation periods. School Food Authorities currently in good standing in the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program are not required to submit further evidence of financial and administrative capability. For the purposes of this rule, School Food Authorities are considered to be in good standing if they have been reviewed during the previous 12 months and had no significant operational issues.
    (b) The department will deny Seamless Summer Option applications from School Food Authorities that have significant operational issues either in the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program as specified in subparagraphs 5P-2.005(13)(e)1. through 5P-2.005(13)(e)8., F.A.C.
    (c) Completion of the Seamless Summer Option training found at http://FDACS.gov/trainFNW with eighty (80) percent accuracy or higher is a prerequisite for approval to participate. Previous participation in the Summer Food Service Program is not a requirement for participating in the Seamless Summer Option.
    (d) Applications to participate in the Seamless Summer Option are due May 15 for all School Food Authorities.
    (2) Periods of Operation. For schools operating under a traditional school calendar, the months of operation for Seamless Summer Option are May through September when school is not in session and October through April for non-school sites only in response to an unanticipated school closure as specified in subsection 5P-3.001(10), F.A.C. At year-round schools, School Food Authorities may operate the Seamless Summer option during school vacation periods longer than 10 school days. For year-round schools that have vacation periods shorter than 10 school days, the department will waive the 10-day requirement to allow for Seamless Summer Option participation.
    (3) Site Eligibility. The site eligibility requirements for the Seamless Summer Option are those specified in 7 C.F.R. part 225, previously incorporated in this rule, and Fl. Admin. Code R. 5P-3.002
    (4) Meal Service. Meals at all approved Seamless Summer Option sites, except for camps, must be served free of charge to all children. School Food Authorities that sponsor camps may charge for the meals served to children who are not eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals.
    (a) All persons in the community who are 18 years of age and under and those persons over age 18 who are mentally or physically disabled may receive meals under the Seamless Summer Option.
    (b) School Food Authorities offering the Seamless Summer Option must follow the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program meal pattern requirements established in 7 C.F.R. § 210.10 and 7 C.F.R. § 220.8, respectively, previously incorporated in this rule.
    1. School Food Authorities must use the National School Lunch Program meal pattern for lunches established in 7 C.F.R. § 210.10, previously incorporated in this rule, when serving supper meals.
    2. School Food Authorities operating open and restricted open Seamless Summer Option sites that have difficulty implementing the age grade/group requirement should work with the department to make accommodations, including using a single age/grade group meeting the minimum meal pattern requirements for the most common age/grade group attending the site. All accommodations must have a reasonable justification for the need to deviate from the age/grade group requirement and be added as an addendum to the Child Nutrition Program agreement between the School Food Authority and the department. All other sites that serve an identified group of children, including closed enrolled sites and camps, must follow the meal pattern for each age/grade established in 7 C.F.R. § 210.10 and 7 C.F.R. § 220.8, previously incorporated in this rule.
    3. Seamless Summer Option sites must provide meal accommodations consistent with the policy established in SP 59-2016, Policy Memorandum on Modifications to Accommodate Disabilities in the School Meal Programs, effective September 27, 2016, which is hereby adopted and incorporated by reference and available online at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14866, and by email request to the department at InfoFNW@fdacs.gov. The competitive food service standards at 7 C.F.R. § 210.11, previously incorporated in this rule, do not apply to Seamless Summer Option.
    4. Offer versus serve is allowed, but not required at Seamless Summer Option sites.
    5. School food authorities participating in the Seamless Summer Option must comply with the requirements of the Buy American provision in the National School Lunch Act as provided in 7 C.F.R. § 210.21(d), previously incorporated in this rule.
    (c) With department approval, a School Food Authority can serve meals on weekends under the Seamless Summer Option. A School Food Authority that plans to serve weekend meals in the Seamless Summer Option must include this information in its application to the department. Seamless Summer Option sites operating more than five days a week must increase the weekly grains quantity by approximately 20 percent (1/5) to account for each additional operating day.
    (d) Meal times for breakfast and lunch must follow the designated times in the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program regulations at 7 C.F.R. § 210.10(l) and 7 C.F.R. § 220.2(b), previously incorporated in this rule. Breakfast must be served between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Snacks must be evenly and adequately spaced between other meal service times to minimize food waste and ensure good nutrition practices. Supper meal service may not begin later than 7:00 p.m. (EST). Meal service outside of the designated times must be approved by the department.
    (e) In year-round school sites, School Food Authorities must differentiate between meal counts for children receiving meals through the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program during the traditional school calendar and children receiving meals through the Seamless Summer Option during summer and other school vacation periods.
    (f) Seamless Summer Option sites are required to notify the department prior to field trips in accordance with Fl. Admin. Code R. 5P-3.002(6)(e)
    (g) All Seamless Summer Option sites must plan for and prepare one meal per child per meal service. Seamless Summer Option sites are allowed to offer eligible children a second breakfast and claim it for reimbursement in accordance with the requirements in 7 C.F.R. § 220.9(a), previously incorporated in this rule. Seamless Summer Option sites may not claim second lunches or snacks for reimbursement.
    (5) Monitoring. School Food Authorities are required to review each Seamless Summer Option site at least once during its operation. The School Food Authority must review the site’s compliance with meal counting, claiming, menu planning, and food safety requirements.
    (a) As set forth in 7 C.F.R. § 210.10(a)(3) and 7 C.F.R. § 220.8(a)(3), previously incorporated in this rule, schools and non-school sites must keep production records and menu records for the meals they produce, including those offered under the Seamless Summer Option. The production records must allow the department to evaluate how the meals contribute to the required food components or food items. Records for food purchases (e.g. invoices, receipts) are required to document the expenditure of funds from the nonprofit food service account for compliance with determining the proportion of program and non-program food expenditures in relation to revenues.
    (b) Edit checks are not required for Seamless Summer Option sites during the period of time that the School Food Authority is operating the sites under the Seamless Summer Option policies. School Food Authorities must ensure that meal counts match actual participation and claims reflect the number of meals served. If a school is operating the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program for academic summer schools, edit checks are required as outlined in 7 C.F.R. § 210.8, previously incorporated in this rule.
    (6) Reimbursement Rates. Meals served under the Seamless Summer Option are reimbursed at the “”free”” rates prescribed by the USDA for the National School Lunch Program, afterschool snacks served in afterschool care programs, and for the School Breakfast Program. Supper meals are reimbursed at the National School Lunch Program’s free lunch rate. Camps operating the Seamless Summer Option will only be reimbursed for those meals served to children who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals at the free rate. Meals served to children at the camp site who are ineligible for free or reduced-price meals are not reimbursable.
    (a) Lunches claimed under the Seamless Summer Option will count toward the determination of the School Food Authority’s eligibility for the extra reimbursement differential and the school’s eligibility for the severe need breakfast rate. School Food Authorities certified to receive the performance-based reimbursement in accordance with 7 C.F.R. § 210.7(d), previously incorporated in this rule, will receive the additional reimbursement for lunches and suppers served under the Seamless Summer Option.
    (b) Claims for reimbursement under the Seamless Summer Option may be combined in accordance with 7 C.F.R. § 210.8(c)(1), previously incorporated in this rule. School Food Authorities may not combine June and July claims for reimbursement because of the National School Lunch Program rate change that occurs on July 1.
    (7) Administrative Reviews. The department will review at least one Seamless Summer Option site in operation at all School Food Authorities scheduled for an administrative review. The review will be conducted in the summer prior to or following the scheduled administrative review.
    (a) The department will schedule administrative reviews during the summer to avoid making a second visit to the Seamless Summer Option site if the school is operating the National School Lunch Program on a year-round basis and both the National School Lunch Program schools and Seamless Summer Options schools will be operating at the time of review.
    (b) Seamless Summer Option administrative reviews will be conducted in accordance with Fl. Admin. Code R. 5P-2.005
    (c) The department will conduct ad hoc Administrative Reviews, Claim Reviews, Site Visits, or Technical Assistance Visits of a Sponsor’s operation of the Seamless Summer Option Program if, but not limited to, the following circumstances exist:
    1. The department receives a complaint regarding the Sponsor’s operation of the Seamless Summer Option Program; or
    2. The department identifies unusual data or trends within the Sponsor’s claims for reimbursement and any other information collected by the department about the Sponsor’s operation of the Seamless Summer Option Program, such as block claiming, substantially higher or substantially lower meal counts, recurrent field trips, duplicative site officials, or continual changes to meal service times.
Rulemaking Authority 570.07(23), 595.404(4), 595.404(10) FS. Law Implemented Florida Statutes § 595.404. History—New 12-6-22.