Meal Claiming Requirements
September, 2012
Meal Claiming Requirements
September, 2012
Meal Claiming Requirements
Goal: To accurately claim meals served in
school nutrition programs.
September, 2012
Elements of an Acceptable
Counting and Claiming System
 Eligibility Documentation
 Point of Service Meal Counts
 Reports
 Claim for Reimbursement
 Collection Procedures
 Internal Controls
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Eligibility Documentation
Direct certification
0r
Current approved free or reduced-price meal
application
USDA Eligibility Guidance for School Meals Manual:
www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/guidance/EliMan_h.pdf
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Rosters
• A correct benefit issuance list (roster) must be
generated and used in the meal system.
• Names on the roster must match approved
applications and direct certification.
• A system must be in place to update this roster in a
timely manner.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Now it’s time to feed the students!
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Point of Service (POS) Meal Counts
Definition:
Meals are counted at that point in the school nutrition
program operation where it can be accurately
determined that a reimbursable free, reduced-price,
or paid meals has been served to an eligible student.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Point of Service (POS)
1. Identification of the student
A. Served to eligible students
B. Counted by eligibility category
2. Identification of a reimbursable meal
A. Meal meets the meal pattern requirements
Requirement: You must ensure that only one meal
per student daily is claimed for reimbursement
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Two Methods for POS
 Single Location:

Identify student, eligibility, and reimbursable meal at
end of serving line
 Multiple Locations:


Identify student and eligibility at beginning of line
Identify reimbursable meal at end of line
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Overt Identification
Definition:
Overt identification is any action that may result in a
child being recognized as potentially eligible to
receive, or certified, for free or reduced-price school
meals.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Overt ID in Food Service Area
The following practices are prohibited:
• Using separate dining areas, service times, or
serving lines based on a student’s eligibility status
• Limiting the choices of reimbursable meals based
on a student’s eligibility status
• Encouraging competitive food sales during meal
service that inadvertently result in eligible children
being identified
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Overt ID: Medium of Exchange
Any meal cards, tickets, tokens, or other methods to
obtain reimbursable meals must not be coded or
colored in a manner that would overtly identify free
and reduced-price eligible children.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Meal Counting Systems
 Rosters
 Coded ticket/token
 Automated tab tickets
 Bar-coded and magnetic strip cards
 Coded ID cards in manual or automated system
 Verbal identifier with a roster or number list
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Reimbursable Meals
 Traditional meal service
 All food items are served
 Offer versus Serve (OVS)
 Must contain the minimum number of
components/food items in the correct portion size
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Reimbursable Meals: Offer vs. Serve
 New Requirement:
Student must take ½ cup fruit/vegetable
Lunch:
July 1, 2012
Breakfast:
cns.ucdavis.edu
July 1, 2014
September, 2012
Salad Bars
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Transport Meals
Transport record must include:
 Food items
 Serving size
 Contribution to meal pattern
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The teacher asks the student in the morning:
Who will be eating lunch?
The teacher then puts a check mark by the
students’ name if they raised their hands.
The school claims the meals for these students by
eligibility category from the checklist.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
In the morning, the teacher asks the students who
will be eating lunch. The school claims these
students by eligibility category from the checklist.
Is this acceptable?
No, the meal counts are not taken at the point of
service. Meal counts must be taken when the
student receives the meal.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The school nutrition program claims meals for
all students in attendance each day by eligibility
category because meals are offered to all
students.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
Food service claims meals for all students in
attendance each day by eligibility category
because meals are offered to all students. Is this
acceptable?
No, because the meal counts were not taken at
the point of service. Meal counts must be taken
when the student receives the meal.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The students go to the cashier at the front of the
line and are counted by eligibility category.
The students then go through the hot food line,
then to the milk and juice cooler.
There is no monitor at the end of the line to assure
that all meals are reimbursable.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The students go to the cashier at the front of the
line and are counted by eligibility category, then to
the milk and juice cooler, and no monitor at the
end of the line. Is this acceptable?
No, the meal counts are not monitored at the end
of the line to assure that a reimbursable meal has
been taken by the student.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The teachers purchase lunch and eat in the
cafeteria with their students.
The school claims these meals in the paid category
because the teachers paid for their meal.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The teachers purchase lunch and eat in the
cafeteria with their students. The school claims
these meals in the paid category because the
teachers paid for their meal. Is this acceptable?
No, adult meals cannot be claimed for
reimbursement.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
The high school sends meals to the continuation
high school located in the next building.
The students’ meals are counted by eligibility
category and recorded. The high school also
recorded these meals daily.
At the end of the month, it was discovered that
meals were double claimed. How should this be
resolved?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
High school meals were double claimed. How
should this be resolved?
The school district must check that the meal
counts are correctly claimed by all sites. Check
your computer system.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
A student charges a meal on a Monday and pays for
the meal charge on Wednesday.
The meal is claimed on Wednesday when she paid
for her charged meal.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
A student charges a meal on a Monday and pays for
the meal charge on Wednesday. The meal is
claimed on Wednesday when she paid for her
charged meal. Is this acceptable?
No, if meals are served on credit they must be
included as part of the POS count on the day they
are served, not the day they are paid.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
A middle school lunch program uses student workers
to help with meal service. The students receive a free
meal in return for their help.
After the meal service, the helpers serve themselves for
lunch. One helper took two corn dogs, mustard, and a
bottle of water. Another took a hamburger with
ketchup and mustard, and baked tortilla chips. The
remaining two helpers took pizza and some fruit.
The helpers’ meals were counted and recorded as free
meals because no one paid, although one was eligible
for reduced-priced meals and two were full pay
students. Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
Middle school lunch program: The helpers’ meals
were counted as free meals because no one paid
although one was eligible for reduced-priced meals and
two were full pay students. Is this acceptable?
No, there is no point of service. Earned meals served
to student workers must be counted by the students’
eligibility category. In addition, only meals
containing the required components can be claimed
for reimbursement.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
At an elementary school with a computerized meal
count system, the special education aide brought 15
student lunch cards from the special education class.
The aide then handed the lunch cards to the
employee operating the point of service counting
machine. The cards were scanned through the
machine.
The aide took the lunches back to the classroom.
Only 14 students received lunches in the classroom.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
Special education aide: 15 student lunch cards
scanned and 14 students served. Is this
acceptable?
No, because meals were not counted at the POS.
Each student must be counted separately at the
point of service.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
An aide takes a list of 19 students’ names that will be in
detention for lunch.
The cashier enters the students’ names in the computer
with their eligibility category.
The aide takes all of the lunch components on a cart to
the room, where 15 students actually arrive for
detention. Some students arrive with a lunch they
obtained from the cafeteria. Also, some of the students
obtaining a lunch from the cart do not select a
reimbursable meal.
Is this acceptable?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Is This an Acceptable Meal Counting System?
An aide takes a list of 19 students’ names that will be in
detention for lunch; 15 students actually arrive for
detention and some do not select reimbursable meals
from a cart. Is this acceptable?
No, there is no POS. Meal counts were not taken by
student. Two meals were claimed for some students.
Some students were claimed who did not receive a
meal. There is no monitor to assure that all meals
claimed were reimbursable.
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Additional Questions
• Does the school have a trained substitute cashier?
• Is there a back-up counting system in case of
mechanical failure of an automated system?
• Does the school have proper procedures in place to
manage and safeguard cash collected daily for
student meals, a la carte items, and adult meals?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Additional Questions
• Can only one meal per day for each student be
claimed? (cannot claim second meals)
• Are acceptable codes used to identify students by
category?
• Is there an acceptable procedure for field trip
meals?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Site Approval on CNIPS
Problems:
• Site is not approved for claiming

New site opens and claims for reimbursement are submitted
• Site moves locations

Original site location is approved but the site moves midyear due to lease issues and renovations
• Site is not approved to serve a meal type

Site does not usually serve breakfast except on minimum
school days in order to meet the state meal mandate
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Collection Procedures
Is the written, approved version of your collection
procedures an accurate description of what
happens daily at your sites?
Include procedures for:
• Paying for meals
• Issuing and collecting medium of exchange
• Claiming meals by eligibility category
• Taking accurate point of service meal counts
• Preventing overt identification
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Collection Procedures
Collection procedure template with questions to
create a written collection procedure located in
CNIPS/downloadable forms or at:
www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/sn/documents/mccp.doc
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Internal Controls
Procedures to ensure an accurate claim for
reimbursement:
• Site monitoring
• Edit checks
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Site Monitoring
• On-site review of meal counting procedures, per
site, for lunch
• Must be completed by February 1st each school
year
• Sample forms (includes lunch, afterschool snack,
and Provision 2 and 3 site monitoring forms):
www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/sn/fm.asp
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Site Monitoring
 Does the meal count system at the site match
what is described in the collection procedures for
the site?
 Do all meals served meet meal pattern
requirements?
 Does the count system ensure that only complete
meals are claimed for reimbursement?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Site Monitoring
 Are meal counts taken accurately at the point of
service in the correct eligibility category?
 Does the system prevent overt identification of
eligible students?
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Edit Checks
 Compare daily meal counts by site to:
 Total eligible students by category
 Attendance adjusted eligible students by category.
 Attendance factor 2011-12 – 93.8%
 Example: 500 eligible free x 93.8% = 469
 If any daily meal count exceeds 469, must explain
 Check for unreasonable meal count patterns
 Sample edit check forms:
www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/sn/mealcount.asp
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Total Meal Counts
POS meal count does not include student’s eligibility
status for the following programs:
 Summer Seamless Option
 Afterschool Snack Program (area eligible)
 Non-Base Year Provision 2
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Total Meal Counts
Summer Seamless Option:
 If area eligible with more than 50% free and
reduced-price enrolled students , claim all meals in
the free category
More information at:

www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Seamless_Summer.htm
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Total Meal Counts
Afterschool Snack Program:
 If area eligible with more than 50% free and
reduced-price enrolled students, claim all meals in
the free category
 If not area eligible, claim meals in the students’
correct eligibility category
 More information:

www.fns/usda.gov/cnd/afterschool/
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Total Meal Counts
Non-Base Year Provision 2:
 Count total number of reimbursable meals served,
but claim by eligibility based upon percentages of
free, reduced-price, and paid meals served in the
base year.
 Refer to USDA Provision 2 Guidance Manual at:

www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Goverance/pro-1-23/Prov2Guidance.pdf
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Accurate Meal Counts: Summary
 Meals are counted correctly at POS by eligibility
category
 Meal counts consolidated correctly for each day
 Meals counts consolidated correctly for each
month by site
 Meals counts entered correctly into CNIPS for each
site
cns.ucdavis.edu
September, 2012
Thank You
PowerPoint presentation and handouts
available at
cns.ucdavis.edu
You may consult your area CDE child nutrition
consultant with further questions.
September, 2012
Resources
The following webinars are available at:
cns.ucdavis.edu
(on the left-hand side, under “Latest Updates & News”)
•
•
•
•
Requirements For Transporting Meals
Offer Versus Serve
Salad Bars
Menu Production Records
September, 2012
Resources (cont.)
Successful Menu Planning: Transitioning to
Current USDA Nutrition Standards:
cns.ucdavis.edu/content/Training/SMP_Participant.pdf
September, 2012