Certification of Compliance With Meal Requirements for the National School Lunch Program Under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010

This final rule adopts, with some revisions, changes to the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) regulations, as set forth in the interim final rule published in the Federal Register on April 27, 2012. The changes conform to requirements contained in the Healthy, Hunger- Free Kids Act of 2010 regarding performance-based cash assistance for school food authorities (SFAs) certified compliant with meal pattern and nutrition standards. The changes finalized in this rule include requiring State agencies to certify participating SFAs that are in compliance with meal pattern and nutrition standard requirements as eligible to receive performance-based cash assistance for each reimbursable lunch. This rule also finalizes the requirement in the interim final rule that State agencies disburse performance-based cash assistance to certified SFAs, and withhold the performance-based cash assistance from SFAs determined to be out of compliance with meal pattern or nutrition standards during a subsequent administrative review. Additionally, this final rule is adopting minor changes based on comments on the interim final rule that will help to streamline the certification process. These changes include making permanent the flexibility that State agencies should consider any SFA compliant with the daily and weekly ranges for grain and meat/meat alternates if documentation is compliant with the daily and weekly minimums.