Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 101 Part 3.djvu/440

 101 STAT. 1738

PUBLIC LAW 100-237—JAN. 8, 1988 (1) IN GENERAL.—Before the expiration of the 270-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish procedures to provide for systematic review of the costs and benefits of providing commodities of the kind and quantity that are suitable to the needs of recipient agencies. (2)

INFORMATION

FROM

RECIPIENT

AGENCIES.—Before

the

expiration of the 120-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish procedures to ensure that information is received from recipient agencies at least semiannually with respect to the types and forms of commodities that are most useful to persons participating in programs operated by recipient agencies. (g) TESTING FOR ACCEPTABILITY.—The Secretary shall establish an ongoing field testing program for present and anticipated commodity and product purchases to test product acceptability with program participants. Test results shall be taken into consideration in deciding which commodities and products, and in what form the commodities and products, should be provided to recipient agencies. (h) BUY AMERICAN PROVISION.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require that recipient agencies purchase, whenever possible, only food products that are produced in the United States. (2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the requirement established in paragraph (1)— (A) in the case of recipient agencies that have unusual or ethnic preferences in food products; or (B) for such other circumstances as the Secretary considers appropriate. (3) EXCEPTION.—The requirement established in paragraph (1) shall not apply to recipient agencies in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. (i) UNIFORM INTERPRETATION.—The Secretary shall take such actions as are necessary to ensure that regional offices of the Department of Agriculture interpret uniformly across the United States policies and regulations issued to implement this section. (j) PER MEAL VALUE OF DONATED FOODS.—Section 6(e) of

State and local goxf^nments. Children and youth

the

National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1755(e)) is amended by— (1) inserting "(D" after the subsection designation; and (2) adding at the end the following new paragraph: "(2) Each State agency shall offer to each school food authority under its jurisdiction that participates in the school lunch program and receives commodities, agricultural commodities and their products, the per meal value of which is not less than the national average value of donated foods established under paragraph (1). Each such offer shall include the full range of such commodities and products that are available from the Secretary to the extent that quantities requested are sufficient to allow efficient delivery to and within the State.". (k) REPORT.—Not later than January 1, 1989, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Education and Labor and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report on the implementation and operation of this section.

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