Requires school districts to purchase food products that are grown, produced, harvested or processed in New York state; allows waiver if price of such local food products is not reasonably competitive; allows waiver if such food products are not available in sufficient quantity.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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5445
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 23, 2015
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Introduced by M. of A. LIFTON, CROUCH, LOPEZ, BARRETT -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to the purchase
of local food products by school districts
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 9 of section 103 of the general municipal law,
2 as amended by chapter 269 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 9. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section to the
5 contrary, a board of education [may] shall, on behalf of its school
6 district, [separately purchase eggs, livestock, fish, dairy products
7 (excluding milk), juice, grains, and species of fresh fruit and vegeta-
8 bles directly from New York State producers or growers, or associations
9 of producers and growers] require that essential components of all food
10 products purchased are grown, produced or harvested in New York state or
11 that any processing of such food products take place in facilities
12 located within New York state, provided that:
13 (a) [such] an association of producers or growers that produces or
14 grows eggs, livestock, fish, dairy products (excluding milk), juice,
15 grains, and species of fresh fruit and vegetables, is comprised of ten
16 or fewer owners of farms who also operate such farms and who have
17 combined to fill the order of a school district as herein authorized,
18 provided however, that a school district may apply to the commissioner
19 of education for permission to purchase from an association of more than
20 ten owners of such farms when no other producers or growers have offered
21 to sell to such school;
22 (b) [the amount that may be expended by a school district in any
23 fiscal year for such purchases shall not exceed an amount equal to twen-
24 ty cents multiplied by the total number of days in the school year
25 multiplied by the total enrollment of such school district;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03035-01-5
A. 5445 2
1 (c)] upon determination by a board of education that the cost of such
2 food products is not reasonably competitive, the specifications requir-
3 ing such purchase shall be waived for that specific food product until
4 the next contract for such food product is let out for bid. For purposes
5 of this subdivision "reasonably competitive" shall mean that the cost of
6 the New York state grown, produced, harvested or processed food product
7 does not exceed a cost premium of ten percent above the cost of a compa-
8 rable product that is not grown, produced, harvested or processed in New
9 York state.
10 (c) upon determination by a board of education that such food products
11 are not available in sufficient quantity for purchasing, the specifica-
12 tions requiring such purchase shall be waived for that specific food
13 product until the next contract for such food product is let out for
14 bid.
15 (d) all such purchases shall be administered pursuant to regulations
16 promulgated by the commissioner of education. Such regulations shall: be
17 developed in consultation with the commissioner of agriculture and
18 markets to accommodate and promote the provisions of the farm-to-school
19 program established pursuant to subdivision five-b of [the] section
20 sixteen of the agriculture and markets law and subdivision thirty-one of
21 section three hundred five of the education law as added by chapter two
22 of the laws of two thousand [two] one; ensure that the prices paid by a
23 district for any items so purchased do not exceed the prices of compara-
24 ble local farm products that are available to districts through their
25 usual purchases of such items; ensure that all producers and growers who
26 desire to sell to school districts can readily access information in
27 accordance with the farm-to-school law; include provisions for situ-
28 ations when more than one producer or grower seeks to sell the same
29 product to a district to ensure that all such producers or growers have
30 an equitable opportunity to do so in a manner similar to the usual
31 purchasing practices of such districts; develop guidelines for approval
32 of purchases of items from associations of more than ten growers and
33 producers; and, to the maximum extent practicable, minimize additional
34 paperwork, recordkeeping and other similar requirements on both growers
35 and producers and school districts.
36 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to the
37 academic school year commencing on or after July 1, 2015; provided that,
38 effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule
39 or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effec-
40 tive date is authorized and directed to be made and completed on or
41 before such effective date.
