Policy and Handbook for CACFP
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Policy Updates and News
All the most current resources you need to successfully operate the Child and Adult Care Food Program are available here. TDA keeps this page updated with any new policy updates and news, including the following:
- Handbook release notices with update summaries
- Form release notices
- Brand new policy updates that haven’t yet been updated within the handbooks
- FAQs and other resources, as required
Please bookmark this page and check back periodically.
September 5, 2024 - TDA Requesting Waiver to Align School Food Authority NSLP and CACFP At-Risk Review Cycles
The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is requesting a waiver from USDA that would allow any eligible School Food Authority (SFA) concurrently operating the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) with the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) At-Risk program to have their review cycles for CACFP At-Risk be brought into alignment with the newly allowable 5-year review cycle for NSLP. If approved, note that SFAs not currently in good standing, being managed by a Food Service Management Company, or otherwise requiring a shorter review cycle after being determined high risk, will be excluded from this waiver.
August 28, 2024 - USDA offers additional guidance and best practices for obtaining racial/ethnic data
On Monday, August 26, 2024, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) released memorandum CACFP 12-2024, SFSP 16-2024, Questions and Answers Related to CACFP 11-2021, SFSP 07-2021, Collection of Race and Ethnicity Data by Visual Observation and Identification in the Child and Adult Care Food Program and the Summer Food Service Program – Policy Rescission -Set 2. This memorandum offers guidance to help Program operators comply with the Federal requirement to collect race and ethnicity data from Program participants. Remember that visual observation is not allowable to determine this information. While TDA has a resource on the SFSP and CACFP Administration/Forms pages that will assist in collecting this information, operators may utilize alternate or additional methods as described in this policy memo.
July 25, 2024 - RELEASE: New 2024-2025 WIC Information Flyer Published
a new 2024-2025 wic information flyer - english and spanish has been posted on the cacfp administration/forms page.
july 12, 2024 - py 2024-2025 reimbursement rates for cacfp published
the 2024-2025 reimbursement rates for the child and adult care food program have been posted on the cacfp reimbursement rates page: https://squaremeals.org/programs/child-and-adult-care-food-program/reimbursement-rates. note that the cash-in-lieu value of usda foods (commodities) for july 1, 2024 - june 30, 2025 is $0.30.
may 29, 2024 - tda requesting offsite monitoring flexibilities for cacfp sponsoring organizations
tda is submitting to usda a request to waive specific onsite monitoring regulations required of child and adult care program (cacfp) sponsors of day care home providers, traditional child care centers, and adult day care centers. specifically, tda is requesting the discretion to allow these sponsors, if in good standing, to conduct one of their federally required reviews offsite, with the option to conduct a second review offsite for sites over 100 miles, or 2 hours travel time, from the sponsoring organization’s headquarters.
may 2, 2024 - release: excess net cash resources plan for cacfp and sfsp
tda has released a new form for cacfp and sfsp operators that have exceeded the allowable amount of net cash resources to be maintained in the non-profit food service account at any given time (cacfp - 3 months' average expenditure, sfsp only - 1 month average expenditures). this form should be used for internal planning should net cash resources exceed the required limit. as applicable, operators may have to submit the spending plan to tda in response to required corrective action. this form is available on both the cacfp and summer meal programs administration/forms pages.
april 30, 2024 - release: cacfp handbook section 10000, serious deficiency
tda has released an updated section 10000, serious deficiency, of the cacfp handbook. tda consolidated content from all four current cacfp handbooks (child care center, day care homes, adult day care, and at-risk). this section is now identical in all four handbooks.
additional updates include:
- added new clarification about written notification procedures. consolidated redundant information about this topic into a new section.
- clarified that a sponsor’s disqualification does not necessarily exempt that sponsor’s sites from being placed in the serious deficiency process if tda determines that the site’s egregious issues were not the result of lack of training or oversight by that sponsor.
- added the online link to request to be removed from the national disqualified list.
march 1, 2024 - release: small purchase log
a revised small purchase log has been released on the cacfp, summer meals, and nslp administration/forms pages on squaremeals. the previous version of this form was designed specifically for nslp ces, but it has been updated so that any child nutrition program operator can track their small purchases throughout the program year.
march 1, 2024 - release: income eligibility guidelines for 2024-2025
the 2024-2025 income eligibility guidelines (iegs) for all child nutrition and household programs have been released and posted to squaremeals here: https://squaremeals.org/fandn-resources/income-eligibility-guidelines.
additionally, the following cacfp resource has been updated with the latest iegs:
february 21, 2024 - action required - validation of all unaffiliated cacfp at-risk sites
update: click here for presentation from the february 21 webinar on sponsor-under-sponsor and at-risk site validation.
in efforts to ensure that all sponsors of unaffiliated cacfp at-risk sites are providing the proper operational oversight over the management and administration of the food program at those sites, and to ensure that sponsors are properly procuring meal vendors and fsmcs at at-risk locations, tda is requiring all sponsors of unaffiliated at-risk sites to complete the valid child and adult care food program (cacfp) at-risk unaffiliated site questionnaire/attestation form. within this form, ces will select the sites under their sponsorship that meet the following criteria:
- permanent site agreements are signed by staff affiliated with the location where the meals are being served (for example, if the unaffiliated site is a school, then school staff are responsible for direct oversight of the cacfp at-risk program); or
- if the permanent site agreement is with an organization not affiliated with the location of service (for example, at an apartment complex), the organization signing the permanent site agreement:
- is providing a comprehensive afterschool program, including congregate enrichment activities and food service. note: cacfp funds cannot be used to procure supplies, staff, or materials associated with the enrichment.
- must have a signed memorandum of understanding between the site level organization managing the at-risk program and the location of service approving the operation of an at-risk program onsite. a copy of this agreement must be maintained by the ce and provided at the time of site application.
additionally, for all sites submitted within the form, the ce must attest that they are providing all required management and oversight responsibilities. any site that cannot meet the requirements in the form must not be listed and must be closed prior to september 30, 2024. this form must be submitted no later than june 30, 2024. on july 1, tda will begin closing all unaffiliated at-risk sites for which a form has not been submitted with an effective closing date of september 30. please refer to the sponsor under a sponsor faqs for more information on this new process.
both the form and faqs are also available in the forms table on the cacfp administration/forms squaremeals page.
february 9, 2024 - release: school data for area eligibility report
tda must, on an annual basis, publish a list of schools participating in the national school lunch program (nslp) in which at least one-half of the children are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. the school data for area eligibility 2023-2024 report, based on october 2023 claims data for non-cep schools and the april 2023 cep isp report for cep schools, has been posted to squaremeals in the following locations:
http://www.squaremeals.org/programs/childandadultcarefoodprogram/cacfpadministrationamp;forms.aspx
http://www.squaremeals.org/programs/summerfeedingprograms/summerfeedingadministrationamp;forms.aspx
https://squaremeals.org/programs/national-school-lunch-program/administration-forms
january 4, 2024 - release: new duplicative costs faq
tda has released a set of faqs related to duplicative costs. a duplicative cost is an unallowable expense that results from a contracting entity (ce) paying for the same service under multiple contracts using federal funding. duplicative costs occur when a ce enters a contract for a service currently provided by tda or partners of tda, including education service centers (escs) and the institute of child nutrition (icn). the duplicative costs faqs are posted on the nslp, cacfp, and summer programs resources pages (under policy documents). this guidance will also be added to program handbooks in future updates.
october 26, 2023 - release: new forms - micro-purchase log and good cause transfer request form
tda has released two new forms on the cacfp administration/forms page:
- micro-purchase log - this optional form allows contracting entities to track all informal micro-purchase transactions and associated information throughout the program year.
- good cause transfer request form - tda has created an online request form for cacfp sites requesting a good cause transfer. a pdf tutorial of how to use the form is also available under the instructions column.
october 24, 2023 - release: new milk flexibility for emergency conditions notification form for contracting entities experiencing milk service disruption
considering recent milk supply chain issues due to packaging shortages, tda is using the discretion provided by federal regulation to allow program operators to serve and claim meals without fluid milk or with an alternate form of fluid milk during this temporary emergency period.
to utilize the flexibility, contracting entities (ces) affected by the recent shortage must submit the newly released milk flexibility for emergency conditions notification form as soon as possible. ces must provide details about how they are handling the shortage as well as the name of their milk vendor.
the form will provide flexibility for up to 30 calendar days or until fluid milk becomes available, whichever is sooner. if the shortage exceeds 30 days or the end date submitted on the form, the ce must submit a new form. if the milk shortage ends prior to the end of the 30 days, the ce must return to regular service and document the date of return to service for each site.
the form is currently available on the nslp, cacfp, and summer program administration/forms page tables.
october 6, 2023 - release: updated infant feeding preference form
tda has revised the cacfp infant feeding preference form to include the non-discrimination statement and to address minor formatting and wording issues.
you can find the revised document at the following location: https://squaremeals.org/programs/childandadultcarefoodprogram/cacfpadministrationamp;forms.aspx
please replace any previous versions of the document that you may have saved.
september 25, 2023 - updated guidance on the infant meal pattern
on september 20, usda issued memo cacfp 11-2023, feeding infants and meal pattern requirements in the child and adult care food program; questions and answers. this revision incorporates updated breastmilk storage recommendations, infant formula food safety considerations, and information on crediting grains in ounce equivalents. the updated guidance incorporates updated recommendations from the american academy of pediatrics (aap) and guidance from the 2020-2025 dietary guidelines for americans (dgas), including recommendations for children under 2 years of age. this memo supersedes the previous memo guidance from cacfp 02-2018; most changes reflect non-substantive, additional clarification and not changes to requirements.
updated guidance includes:
- infant formula that is imported into the u.s. as a result of the 2022 fda infant formula enforcement discretion policy may be served in the cacfp.
- updated recommended storage requirements for storing expressed breastmilk in the refrigerator from 72 hours to up to four days. this recommendation may vary if the breastmilk is to be fed to an infant that is either preterm and/or ill.
- considerations for formula safety, including the prohibition of homemade formula, best practices for using water to prepare formula, timeframes for usage of prepared formula, formula storage requirements, and best practices for identifying formula in stores that might not be safe to use.
- reminder that ounce equivalents are used to measure grains in the infant meal pattern. iron-fortified infant cereal is the only grain that may count towards a reimbursable breakfast, lunch, or supper in the cacfp infant meal pattern. program operators may serve bread/breadlike items, crackers, iron-fortified infant cereal, or ready-to-eat cereal as part of a reimbursable snack to infants that are developmentally ready to accept them.
- provides clarification that while the aap recommends that by 7 or 8 months of age, infants should be consuming solid foods from all food groups (vegetables, fruits, grains, protein foods, and dairy), it is important to keep in mind that infants develop at different rates. not all infants will be eating solid foods at 6 months of age, nor will all infants be eating solid foods from each food group by 7 or 8 months of age.
- provides best practices for thawing breastmilk as well as the safe usage of thawed breastmilk.
- adds sesame to the list of major allergens.
- clarifies that cooked grains are not creditable towards the infant meal pattern. however, an infant may be served some mixed dishes that contain foods that do not credit towards the infant meal pattern, such as rice, quinoa, or pasta.
- clarifies that minimum creditable amounts do not apply to the infant meal pattern. minimum serving sizes are listed as ranges for infants because not all babies are ready to eat solid foods at the same time.
refer to the fns website at https://www.fns.usda.gov/cacfp/feeding-infants-and-meal-pattern-requirements-qas to read the complete guidance.
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State and Federal Law Concerning F&N Programs
FNS Instruction 796-2 and Tip Sheet
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Assistance available in English and Spanish. Please call 877-TEX-MEAL (877-839-6325) for help. Additional translations services available as well.
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In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
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1. Mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
2. Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
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This institution is an equal opportunity provider. |
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