Section 38101.

(a) The governing board of a school district may authorize expenditures from the cafeteria fund or cafeteria account only for those charges from that fund or account that are defined in the California School Accounting Manual.

(b) A food service program shall not be charged more than once for expenditures for the same service. If a food service program is being charged for a service as a direct cost, the school district shall not also allocate that cost as a direct support cost or indirect cost.

(c) For purposes of this section, an "indirect cost" shall be limited to the lesser of the school district's prior year indirect cost rate as approved by the department or the statewide average approved indirect cost for the second prior fiscal year.

(d) Charges to, or transfers from, a food service program shall indicate when the charge or transfer was made and shall be accompanied by a written explanation of the purpose of, and basis for, the expenditure.

(e) This section does not authorize a school district to charge a food service program any charges prohibited by state or federal law or regulation.

(f) If the department and the Department of Finance concur that a school district has violated this section, the Superintendent shall direct that school district to transfer double the amount improperly transferred to the general fund of the school district from that fund to the cafeteria fund of the school district or cafeteria account for the subsequent fiscal year which is then to be used for the improvement of the food service program of the school district. If the school district fails to make that transfer as directed, the Superintendent shall reduce the regular apportionment of the school district determined pursuant to Section 42238 and increase the child nutrition allowance of the school district determined pursuant to Section 41350 by double the amount improperly transferred to the general fund of the school district and that amount is then to be used for improvement of the food service program.

(g) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section that responsible school district officials be held fully accountable for the accounting and reporting of food service programs and that minor and inadvertent instances of noncompliance be resolved in a fair and equitable manner to the satisfaction of the Superintendent and the Department of Finance.

(h) The Superintendent, with the approval of the Department of Finance, may waive up to the full transfer amount in subdivision (f) if he or she determines that the noncompliance involved is minor or inadvertent, or both.

(Amended by Stats. 2005, Ch. 677, Sec. 9. Effective October 7, 2005.)