District of Columbia Code
Subchapter II - School Nutrition
§ 38–822.03. Additional requirements for public school meals

(a)(1) Public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools shall offer free breakfast to all students.
(2) If more than 40% of the students at a school qualify for free or reduced-price meals:
(A) A public elementary school, public charter elementary school, and participating private elementary school shall offer breakfast in the classroom each day, except as provided in paragraph (3)(A) of this subsection;
(B) A public middle and high school, public charter middle and high school, and participating private middle and high school shall offer alternative breakfast serving models each day; and
(C) The requirements of this paragraph shall not apply to a public school or a public charter school in which the school’s current breakfast participation rate, without breakfast-in-the-classroom, exceeds 75% of its average daily attendance.
(3)(A) The Office of the State Superintendent of Education may grant a waiver to an elementary school required to serve breakfast in the classroom under paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection for one school year if the school food authority, as defined in 7 C.F.R. § 210.2, submits a written action plan to the Office of the State Superintendent of Education showing a strategy to utilize an alternative breakfast serving model that will enable the school to reach the breakfast participation rate in paragraph (2)(C) of this subsection.
(B) Elementary schools that do not demonstrate incremental progress toward meeting the participation rate in paragraph (2)(C) of this subsection upon completion of the one school year waiver period shall implement breakfast in the classroom at the start of the following school year.
(b) Public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools shall:
(1) Not charge students for meals if the students qualify for reduced-price meals;
(2) Provide meals that meet the dietary needs of children with diagnosed medical conditions as required by a physician;
(3) Solicit input from students, faculty, and parents, through taste tests, comment boxes, surveys, a student nutrition advisory council, or other means, regarding nutritious meals that appeal to students;
(4) Promote healthy eating to students, faculty, staff, and parents;
(5) Provide at least 30 minutes for students to eat lunch and sufficient time during the lunch period for every student to pass through the food service line; and
(6) Participate in federal nutritional programs and Child Nutrition U.S. Department of Agriculture foods program whenever possible.
(c) Public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools shall make cold, filtered water available free to students, through water fountains or other means, when meals are served to students in public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools.
(d)(1) Public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools are strongly encouraged to establish share tables.
(2) A summary of share table participation shall be included in the report required pursuant to § 38-823.03.
(July 27, 2010, D.C. Law 18-209, § 203, 57 DCR 4779; Oct. 20, 2011, D.C. Law 19-37, § 2(e), 58 DCR 6841; Sept. 20, 2012, D.C. Law 19-168, § 4062(c), 59 DCR 8025; Mar. 13, 2019, D.C. Law 22-240, § 2(e), 66 DCR 912; Sept. 11, 2019, D.C. Law 23-16, § 7160, 66 DCR 8621; Mar. 16, 2021, D.C. Law 23-211, § 4(c), 68 DCR 00068.)
This section is referenced in § 38-821.02.
D.C. Law 19-37 rewrote subsecs. (a) and (c); in the lead-in language of subsec. (b), substituted “Public schools, public charter schools, and participating private schools” for “Public schools and public charter schools”; in subsec. (b)(5), inserted “and sufficient time during the lunch period for every student to pass through the food service line,”.
The 2012 amendment by D.C. Law 19-168 substituted “shall make” for “are encouraged to make” in (c).
Applicability of D.C. Law 22-240: § 7160 of D.C. Law 23-16 repealed § 3 of D.C. Law 22-240. Therefore the amendment of this section by D.C. Law 22-240 has been implemented.
Applicability of D.C. Law 22-240: § 3 of D.C. Law 22-240 provided that the change made to this section by § 2(e) of D.C. Law 22-240 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.
For temporary (90 days) repeal of applicability provision of D.C. Law 22-240, see § 7160 of Fiscal Year 2020 Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2019 (D.C. Act 23-112, Sept. 4, 2019, 66 DCR 11964).
For temporary (90 days) repeal of applicability provision of D.C. Law 22-240, see § 7160 of Fiscal Year 2020 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2019 (D.C. Act 23-91, July 22, 2019, 66 DCR 8497).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2(e) of Healthy Schools Emergency Amendment Act of 2011 (D.C. Act 19-143, August 9, 2011, 58 DCR 6814).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 4062(c) of Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2012 (D.C. Act 19-383, June 19, 2012, 59 DCR 7764).
For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 4062(c) of Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2012 (D.C. Act 19-413, July 25, 2012, 59 DCR 9290).
Section 4063 of D.C. Law 19-168 provided that § 4062 of the act shall apply as of June 20, 2012.