H. B. 4548


(By Delegates Campbell, Paxton, Perry, Tabb
and Beach)
[Introduced February 14, 2006; referred to the
Committee on Education.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §18-2-6a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to prohibiting sale or serving of soft drinks during school day in elementary, middle and junior high schools in areas accessible to students; prohibiting sale or serving of soft drinks during breakfast and lunch periods in high schools and requiring equally accessible healthy beverages if soft drinks are offered for sale at other times during school day; correcting references; and conforming disposition of profits from healthy beverage sales and prohibition of sales of competitive food and beverages during food service periods to federal program regulations.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18-2-6a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

 §18-2-6a. Sale of healthy beverages and soft drinks in schools.
(a) In order to generate funding for necessary programs and supplies, county boards may permit the sale of healthy beverages and soft drinks in county schools except during breakfast and lunch periods as follows:
(1) During a the school day, soft drinks may not be sold or served in areas accessible to students in an elementary school, middle school or junior high school through vending machines, on the premises, in school stores, or in school canteens, or through fund raisers by students, teachers, groups or by any other means. In elementary, middle school or junior high school, only healthy beverages may be sold or served during the school day in vending machines, on the premises, in school canteens, or through fund raisers by students, teachers, groups or by any other means. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit or limit sale or distribution of any food or beverage item through fund- raising activities of students, teachers or educational groups when the items are intended for sale off the school grounds.
(2) Those high schools which permit the sale or serving of soft drinks during the school day through vending machines also shall offer for sale and make equally accessible to students healthy beverages. High schools may permit the sale of soft drinks during the school day except during breakfast and lunch periods. Of the total beverages offered for sale, at least fifty percent shall be healthy beverages. Vending machines containing healthy beverages shall be in the same location or substantially similar location as vending machines containing soft drinks.
(3) The sale of healthy beverages and soft drinks shall be in compliance with the rules of the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program of administered by the State Board West Virginia Department of Education and the Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, which became effective on the seventeenth day of June, one thousand nine hundred eighty-five. Seventy-five percent of the profits from the sale of healthy beverages and soft drinks shall be allocated by a majority vote of the faculty senate of each school and twenty-five percent of the profits from the sale of healthy beverages and soft drinks shall be allocated to the purchase of necessary supplies by the principal of the school, except that profits from the sale of healthy beverages offered through the school nutrition programs must accrue to the benefit of the nutrition programs. In accordance with Code of Federal Regulation, 7 CFR, Part 210, Section 210, §210.11, all competitive food and beverage sales are prohibited in the food service areas during the meal service periods.
(b) For the purposes of this section:
(1) "School day" means the period of time between the arrival of the first student at the school building and the end of the last instructional period; and
(2) "Healthy beverage" means water, one hundred percent fruit and vegetable juice and reduced or low-fat milk. and other juice beverages with a minimum of twenty percent real juice

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to reconcile and align W. Va. Code provisions with State Board Policy 4321.1, Standards for School Nutrition and Federal Regulation 7 CFR, Parts 210 and 220, governing the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.