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Bill

S 311

Disability Advocacy Day

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Thomas Alexander

Establishes the Massachusetts Farm to School Program under DESE to fund locally sourced school meals and early care, boosting local agriculture, nutrition, and food literacy.

Adopted
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Bill Summary · S 311

Summary — S.311 (2025): "An Act establishing the Massachusetts Farm to School Program"

Status & procedural history (key dates)
- Filed in the Massachusetts Senate: 1/14/2025 (Senate Docket No. 841). Presented by Sen. Joanne M. Comerford.
- Officially introduced/first read: 1/29/2025; referred to committee(s) (various committee referrals appear in the record, including Education, Finance and Transportation).
- Hearing scheduled: 07/21/2025 (Gardner Auditorium).
- Reported favorably by committee and referred to Senate Ways & Means: 09/22/2025.
- Note: the metadata supplied for this file contains some inconsistent entries (duplicate referrals and mixed sponsor lists); the bill text itself establishes a state-level Farm to School program.

Purpose and intent
- Establish a Massachusetts Farm to School Program administered by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to: strengthen the state’s food and agriculture economy; improve student health and nutrition; and build food literacy through education and experiential learning.
- Support school and licensed early education meal programs to buy and serve foods grown, raised, caught, or processed in Massachusetts, other New England states, or New York, and to prepare more scratch-cooked meals.

Key provisions
1. Program administration
- DESE will administer a Farm to School Program made up of (a) a grant program and (b) a Local Food Incentive reimbursement program.
- DESE must establish an advisory committee including representatives from the Department of Agricultural Resources, Department of Early Education and Care, Division of Marine Fisheries, Massachusetts Farm to School, School Nutrition Association of Massachusetts, and geographically/demographically diverse stakeholders.
- DESE must hire a full‑time Farm to School program coordinator to oversee implementation, capacity building, technical assistance, and timely reimbursements.

  1. Grant program (subject to appropriation)

    • Eligible applicants: K–12 schools and licensed child care programs in Massachusetts that participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) or Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).
    • Fundable activities/priorities: kitchen equipment for scratch cooking; training for kitchen staff in using and procuring local ingredients; educator training to integrate food-system lessons; curricular and extracurricular programming (e.g., farm field trips); and infrastructure for school gardens or indoor growing systems.
    • Creation of the Massachusetts Farm to School Fund (state-level special fund) to receive appropriations, gifts, grants, and other receipts. Unexpended funds shall not lapse at fiscal year end.
    • DESE to promulgate regulations/guidelines and award grants with attention to geographic, social, economic, and racial equity.

  2. Local Food Incentive / reimbursement program

    • DESE to design a program to reimburse School Food Authorities (SFAs) and licensed early education programs for purchases from local farms, fishers and producers.
    • Eligible participants: school districts in NSLP and licensed early education programs in CACFP.
    • Note: the bill text provided is truncated at the reimbursement rate clause (“Participants in the program shall be reimbursed 1 dollar f...”), so the specific per-unit reimbursement amount or formula is not fully visible in the supplied text.

Who would be affected
- Primary: public K–12 school districts, school food authorities, and licensed early education and care programs that participate in NSLP/CACFP.
- Secondary: Massachusetts and regional farmers, fishers, processors, distributors; school nutrition staff and educators; students and families (through improved access to local, fresh food and food literacy programming).
- Fiscal impact: program depends on state appropriations and other funding into the dedicated Farm to School Fund.

Implementation, equity, and oversight
- DESE, guided by an advisory committee, must create implementation guidelines, build capacity (including contracting for technical assistance), and prioritize equitable distribution of grants and funds.
- Program coordinator responsible for outreach, capacity assessments, technical assistance arrangements, and ensuring timely reimbursements.

Notes, uncertainties, and data limitations
- The supplied file includes inconsistent metadata (e.g., an initial title referencing vehicle operation and a sponsor list that appears to include federal legislators). This summary is based on the bill text titled “An Act establishing the Massachusetts farm to school program.”
- The Local Food Incentive reimbursement amount and potentially other text are truncated in the provided version; specific reimbursement rates or caps are therefore not available here.
- Final program details (eligibility nuances, award sizes, application timelines) will depend on DESE regulations and available appropriations if the bill is enacted.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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