SB290: relative to wellness programs in public schools.

SB 290-FN-LOCAL – AS INTRODUCED

2006 SESSION

06-2501

08/01

SENATE BILL 290-FN-LOCAL

AN ACT relative to wellness programs in public schools.

SPONSORS: Sen. Flanders, Dist 7

COMMITTEE: Education

ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a wellness program in New Hampshire schools that combines education about nutrition with physical exercise.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

06-2501

08/01

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Six

AN ACT relative to wellness programs in public schools.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Statement of Intent. The general court recognizes that it is beneficial to encourage wellness programs in public schools and in communities in New Hampshire because wellness programs encourage lifelong patterns of healthy eating and regular physical exercise. Therefore, the general court hereby establishes the New Hampshire school wellness program.

2 New Subdivision; New Hampshire School Wellness Program. Amend RSA 189 by inserting after section 63 the following new subdivision:

New Hampshire School Wellness Program

189:64 New Hampshire School Wellness Program Established. There is established the New Hampshire school wellness program. Wellness programs shall be designed to encourage lifelong patterns of healthy eating and regular physical exercise among citizens of this state.

189:65 Definitions. In this subdivision:

I. “Commissioner” means the commissioner of the department of education.

II. “Department” means the department of education.

III. “Fitness program” means a program which includes a physical education program and a physical activity program.

IV. “Nutrition” includes all food and beverages sold or served in the food service program, vending machines, snack bars, and school stores.

V. “Physical activity program” means a program which includes, in addition to regular physical education classes, minimum daily physical activity for each student provided through activities such as recess and other recreation periods, and participation in athletics either during or after regular school hours.

VI. “Physical education program” means a program which is a sequential, developmentally appropriate program that is an enjoyable experience for students and designed to help students develop the knowledge, skill, self-management skill, attitudes, and confidence needed to adopt and maintain physical fitness throughout their lives.

VII. “Wellness program” means a program which includes fitness and nutrition.

189:66 Council Established; Duties.

I. The commissioner shall establish an advisory council on wellness which shall include at least 3 members associated with the health services field. The council shall assist the department in planning, coordinating, and encouraging wellness programs in the public schools, in consultation with individuals and organizations with expertise in promoting public health, nutrition, or physical activity. The council may also consult with volunteer organizations, state medical associations, parents, community leaders, or other interested parties.

II. The commissioner shall collaborate with other agencies and councils working on childhood wellness to:

(a) Develop appropriate nutrition and fitness curricula for use in the public schools, consistent with current authoritative dietary guidelines and physical activity recommendations.

(b) Develop a program to integrate:

(1) Lessons on better dietary habits, promoting physical activity, and reducing television viewing and other recreational screen time into the curriculum; and

(2) Topics related to healthful eating, physical activity, and other factors related to the risk for obesity in periodic academic testing.

(c) Prepare and continually update a list of school and community programs which have the potential to improve childhood wellness. The commissioner shall make the list available to all school districts and to any community groups that request it.

(d) Establish and maintain a website which displays data on youth risk behavior and wellness programs, including, but not limited to, data from a youth risk behavior survey in a way that enables the public to easily access and understand the information.

(e) Research funding opportunities for schools and communities that wish to build wellness programs and make the information available to the public.

(f) Create a process for schools to share with the department of health and human services any data collected about the height and weight of students in kindergarten through grade 6. The commissioner of the department of health and human services may report any data compiled under this subdivision on a countywide basis. Any reporting of data shall protect the privacy of individual students and the identity of participating schools.

III. The department shall offer assistance to school districts to provide teacher instruction in wellness programs.

IV. The department shall conduct periodic assessments of each school’s policies and practices related to nutrition, physical activity, and obesity prevention, and report the results of school evaluations to parents and the public.

V. Any school district board may establish a wellness community advisory council to inventory community programs and assets and to assist the school board and community in developing and implementing wellness programs. The school board shall provide public notice to the community to allow all interested parties to apply for appointment to a council. The school board shall endeavor to appoint members that represent various points of view and expertise within the community regarding wellness programs. Members may include representatives from coordinated school health teams, teachers, school administrators, students, community members, health care providers, parents, and others.

189:67 Model Childhood Fitness and Nutritional Policies. The commissioner shall collaborate with the commissioner of the department of health and human services to develop a model school fitness and nutrition policy. The policy shall be available to school districts on or before January 1, 2007. The model policy shall include:

I. A nutrition policy that includes a definition of nutritious foods, nutritional guidelines, and, to the extent financially feasible, policies regarding purchasing of locally grown foods for food and beverages sold or served in the food service program, vending machines, snack bars, and school stores. The policy shall:

(a) Ensure that all school meals meet current authoritative dietary guidelines;

(b) Require schools to offer a choice of 2 or more fruits or 2 or more vegetables at lunch time and require that fruits and vegetables be made available to students outside regular school meal periods, including vending machines, snack machines, school stores, and snack bars;

(c) Recommend a program to incorporate produce from school gardens and farmers’ markets;

(d) Recommend guidelines on the availability of competitive foods during the school day; and

(e) Allow adequate time for students to receive and consume school meals in a pleasant environment.

II. A physical education program curriculum which is a sequential, developmentally appropriate program of daily physical education classes that shall last not less than 30 minutes per day, that provides an enjoyable experience for students, and is designed to help students develop the knowledge, skill, self-management skill, attitudes, and confidence needed to adopt and maintain physical fitness throughout their lives. The program shall require that students take standardized physical fitness tests and that teachers provide students with explanations of their fitness scores, and shall include an annual report to parents which describes their child’s performance on fitness and other wellness indicators.

III. A physical activity program which includes, in addition to regular physical education classes, minimum moderate to vigorous daily physical activity for each student provided through programs such as recess and other recreation periods, and participation in athletics either during or after regular school hours.

IV. A process for implementing and enforcing nutrition and physical fitness policies.

V. A process for reporting to the community on the health status of students.

VI. A process by which schools regularly evaluate their physical activity programs using both quantitative and qualitative measures, and report the results of these evaluations to parents and the public.

3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.

LBAO

06-2501

2/21/06

SB 290 FISCAL NOTE

AN ACT relative to wellness programs in public schools.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The Department of Education states this bill will increase state expenditures by $340,096 in FY 2007 and by $290,096 each year thereafter. Local expenditures will increase by an indeterminable amount. There will be no fiscal impact on state, county and local revenue or county expenditures.

METHODOLOGY:

The Department of Education assumed three additional full-time positions and one part-time Statistician position would be needed to implement the provisions of this bill. In addition, an existing Executive Secretary position would be upgraded from a labor grade 11 to a Program Assistant I, labor grade 12. The Department assumes this bill will take effect on July 1, 2006. The Department estimated an additional $150,000 would be needed in the first year for a contract to build web-based data sharing ability, materials for training data users, training sessions, travel, postage and office rent. After the first year, this amount would drop to a level of about $100,000 per year. The Department estimated the first year costs as follows:

Part-time Statistician, LG 16

18.5 hours @ $14.04/hour $13,506

Part-time benefits @ 7.65% 1,033

Full-time Nutritional Consultant II, LG 27 43,680

Full-time Program Specialist II, LG 21 33,677

Physical Education Consultant II, LG 27 43,680

Upgrade Executive Secretary, LG 10 to

Program Assistant I, LG 11 878

Full-time Benefits 53,642

Training, Web-based system, training,

travel and materials and printing 150,000

Total Costs First Year $340,096

The Department indicated it could absorb the costs associated with establishing the Advisory Council on Wellness and collaborating with other agencies to develop the nutrition and fitness curricula without incurring requiring additional funds.

The Department stated that school districts will incur costs for assessment, testing, data management, as well as additional costs for food programs, scheduling and physical education programs. The Department is not able to determine the amount of these additional costs.