Appendix F. SFA Director Notification Letter

APPENDIX F

SFA Director Notification Letter

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OMB Control No.: 0584-0606

Expiration Date: 03/31/2019

<<DATE>>

<<SFA Director Name>>, School Food Authority Director

<<SFA Name>>

<<SFA Address>>

Dear <<SFA Director Name>>:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), has contracted with Mathematica Policy Research to conduct the Outlying Areas Cost Study Feasibility Reassessment. The purpose of the reassessment is to determine the extent of information available about the costs of reimbursable meals for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program and update the information gathered in 2018. Reimbursement rates for school meals sold in the contiguous 48 States and the District of Columbia are assessed periodically using a rigorous cost study methodology applied to a sample of public school food authorities (SFAs) and schools. That cost study methodology has never been applied in outlying areas, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). Mathematica and its partner, Insight Policy Research, will assess whether the methodology can help determine the cost of producing reimbursable lunches and breakfasts in these Territories. This study is important because an accurate assessment of meal costs could be used to adjust per-meal reimbursement rates in <<Puerto Rico/the USVI>>. The study is not an audit.

Your SFA has been selected to participate in the feasibility reassessment. Someone from Insight will soon contact you to help to arrange a visit to conduct face-to-face interviews with you and your district business manager together, plus face-to-face interviews with principals and school nutrition managers in up to <<three schools in your SFA/10 schools across Puerto Rico>>. The person from Insight can also answer any questions you have. The interview with you and the district business manager could take up to <<two/three>> hours. Insight will also request some documentation, such as annual expense and revenue statements, to review before the visit. Gathering and submitting the documents could take up to 1.5 hours.

Your SFA’s participation is mandatory under Section 28 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. If you have any questions about the Outlying Areas Cost Study Feasibility Reassessment, please contact Insight’s data collection lead, <<name>>, at <<email address>>. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

<<State CN Director Name>>

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0606. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 3 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302, ATTN: PRA (0584‑0606). Do not return the completed form to this address.

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