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THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234

Office of P-20 Education Policy
Child Nutrition Program Administration
89 Washington Avenue, Room 375 EBA, Albany, NY 12234
Phone: (518) 473-8781 Fax: (518) 473-0018
To: 
School Food Service Directors/Managers
From: 
Frances N. O'Donnell, Coordinator
Date: 
Monday, November 1, 2010
Subject: 
Reporting Eligible Students for Claiming Purposes-October Only and Other Months

When filing claims for reimbursement, the person responsible for completing the report should use the highest number of free and reduced price eligible students approved during the month for every month except October. This is true whether you are completing claims on-line or paper. The reason you must report the highest number of students throughout the month is because the number of students eligible in the school/facility on the last day does not necessarily reflect the highest number of free and reduced price students served during the month.

For example, if five children in one family eligible for free meals during November moved from the district in the middle of the month, the number of free eligible students reported should include these five, even though they weren't enrolled on November 30th. If the number reported didn't include the five students and the school's participation for free meals is high in the early weeks of November, the number of free meals claimed may result in an edit rejection. Your claim will not be processed until information received documents the reason why the number of eligible free meals claimed exceeded the number of free eligibles.

For the month of October, you should report the total number of children approved for free lunches, the total number of children approved for reduced priced lunches and the total number of children enrolled in participating public, private and residential child care institutions on the last day of operation in October. This information, reported to the United States Department of Agriculture, is the only time an unduplicated count is taken of eligible children. This data is used for forecasting and analyzing participation data in the program.

Thank you for your cooperation. Contact Jamie McMillian at 518-473-8781 if you have any questions.

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

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:

  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
  3. email:
    Program.Intake@usda.gov

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Click here for Nondiscrimination Statement translations.

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