SB0167sam001 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Ram Villivalam

Filed: 3/27/2023

10300SB0167sam001 LRB103 05208 RJT 59892 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 167

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 167 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The School Code is amended by adding Sections 10-20.85 and 34-18.82 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/10-20.85 new)

Sec. 10-20.85. Halal and kosher lunch options

(a) As part of a school lunch program, each school board shall provide halal and kosher food options that comply with federal and State nutritional guidelines to those students who submit a request for a halal and kosher food options. A request shall be submitted at the time of school registration. After a student or the student's parent or guardian submits a request for a halal or kosher option, the school board shall make accommodations for the request as soon as the vendor determined by the State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (c), the school district itself, or a vendor selected by the school district is able to provide the meals.

(b) Any vendor offering halal or kosher food products to a school district shall certify that the food or food product is halal or kosher and that the vendor is in compliance with the Halal Food Act or the Kosher Food Act. A school district may rely upon such certification.

(c) The State Board of Education shall enter into a statewide education master contract as defined in Article 28A of this Code with a halal-certified and kosher-certified vendor for packaged meals that meet both the federal and State nutritional guidelines for school lunch programs and school breakfast programs as defined in the School Breakfast and Lunch Program Act for the purpose of providing a statewide option for school districts to purchase halal and kosher meals. The State Board may enter into as many contracts needed in order to provide access for schools districts statewide. The contract must specify packaged meal delivery directly to any requesting school in the state at a uniform delivery cost, regardless of the school's location The State Board of Education shall notify all school districts of the award of contract as required in subsection (c) of Section 10-20.21 of this Code. Upon notice, each school district may purchase halal and kosher packaged meals from the contracted vendor as needed in order to fulfill subsection (a) of this Section.

(d) Halal-certified and kosher-certified meals shall be reimbursable by the State Board of Education. The amount of the State reimbursement provided through the program to each participating school board for each budget year shall be equal to the federal free reimbursement rate multiplied by the total number of eligible meals that the participating schools serve during the applicable budget year, minus the total amount of reimbursement for eligible meals served during the applicable budget year that the school board receives pursuant to the National School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program. The State Board of Education shall develop procedures to allocate and disburse the money appropriated as reimbursements pursuant to this Section among participating school boards each budget year in an equitable manner and in compliance with the requirements of the National School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program.

(e) A school district shall only be responsible for providing a lunch program by which halal or kosher food options are offered under subsection (a) if the State Board is able to secure a statewide education master contract and provide a halal and kosher food option to the school district pursuant to subsection (c) for halal or kosher meals that meet all of the requirements of this Section.

(f) A school district is not subject to the Halal Food Act or the Kosher Food Act if it uses a vendor to provide halal or kosher food products pursuant to this Section.

(g) The provisions of this Section shall not infringe upon or affect any obligation in a contract entered into and in effect on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.

(105 ILCS 5/34-18.82 new)

Sec. 34-18.82. Halal and kosher lunch options.

(a) As part of a school lunch program, each school board shall provide halal and kosher food options that comply with federal and State nutritional guidelines to those students who submit a request for a halal and kosher food options. A request shall be submitted at the time of school registration. After a student or the student's parent or guardian submits a request for a halal or kosher option, the school board shall make accommodations for the request as soon as the vendor determined by the State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (c), the school district itself, or a vendor selected by the school district is able to provide the meals.

(b) Any vendor offering halal or kosher food products to a school district shall certify that the food or food product is halal or kosher and that the vendor is in compliance with the Halal Food Act or the Kosher Food Act. A school district may rely upon such certification.

(c) The State Board of Education shall enter into a statewide education master contract as defined in Article 28A of this Code with a halal-certified and kosher-certified vendor for packaged meals that meet both the federal and State nutritional guidelines for school lunch programs and school breakfast programs as defined in the School Breakfast and Lunch Program Act for the purpose of providing a statewide option for school districts to purchase halal and kosher meals. The State Board may enter into as many contracts needed in order to provide access for schools districts statewide. The contract must specify packaged meal delivery directly to any requesting school in the state at a uniform delivery cost, regardless of the school's location The State Board of Education shall notify all school districts of the award of contract as required in subsection (c) of Section 10-20.21 of this Code. Upon notice, each school district may purchase halal and kosher packaged meals from the contracted vendor as needed in order to fulfill subsection (a) of this Section.

(d) Halal-certified and kosher-certified meals shall be reimbursable by the State Board of Education. The amount of the State reimbursement provided through the program to each participating school board for each budget year shall be equal to the federal free reimbursement rate multiplied by the total number of eligible meals that the participating schools serve during the applicable budget year, minus the total amount of reimbursement for eligible meals served during the applicable budget year that the school board receives pursuant to the National School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program. The State Board of Education shall develop procedures to allocate and disburse the money appropriated as reimbursements pursuant to this Section among participating school boards each budget year in an equitable manner and in compliance with the requirements of the National School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program.

(e) A school district shall only be responsible for providing a lunch program by which halal or kosher food options are offered under subsection (a) if the State Board is able to secure a statewide education master contract and provide a halal and kosher food option to the school district pursuant to subsection (c) for halal or kosher meals that meet all of the requirements of this Section.

(f) A school district is not subject to the Halal Food Act or the Kosher Food Act if it uses a vendor to provide halal or kosher food products pursuant to this Section.

(g) The provisions of this Section shall not infringe upon or affect any obligation in a contract entered into and in effect on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.

Section 15. The Halal Food Act is amended by adding Section 25 as follows:

(410 ILCS 637/25 new)

Sec. 25. State facility halal food services.

(a) In this Section, "State-owned or State-operated facility" means either of the following:

(1) A hospital that is organized under the University of Illinois Hospital Act.

(2) A penal institution, as that term is defined under Section 2-14 of the Criminal Code of 2012, that is owned or operated by the State.

(b) Any State-owned or State-operated facility that provides food services or cafeteria services for which food products are provided or offered for sale also shall offer, upon request provided with reasonable notice, halal food options that comply with federal and State nutritional guidelines at the State-owned or State-operated facility. After an individual submits a request for a halal option, the state-owned or state-operated facility shall make accommodations for the request as soon as the state-owned or state-operated facility is able to provide the meals

(c) Any halal food product offered under this Section purchased from a halal-certified vendor. Any person, organization, or vendor falsely representing a food product it provides as halal or falsely representing itself as a halal-certified vendor shall be subject to penalties under Section 2 of this Act.

(d) The provisions of this Section shall not infringe upon or affect any obligation in a contract entered into and in effect on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.

Section 20. The Kosher Food Act is amended by adding Section 1.5 and by changing Sections 1 and 2 as follows:

(410 ILCS 645/1) (from Ch. 56 1/2, par. 288.1)

Sec. 1. (a) Every person, who, with intent to defraud, sells, or exposes for sale any meat or meat preparations and falsely represents the same to be kosher, whether such meat or meat preparations be raw or prepared for human consumption, or as having been prepared under and of a product or products sanctioned by the certifying organization or the supervising rabbi; or falsely represents any food product or the contents of any food package or container to be so constituted and prepared, by having or permitting to be inscribed thereon the word "kosher" in any language; or in any sign, display or advertisement characterizes his place of business as a "kosher" establishment if non-kosher food products are sold or offered for sale in such place of business; or who, while dealing or purporting to deal in kosher meat or meat preparations, prepares or handles or sells, or causes to be prepared or handled or sold, any food products which, when so prepared or handled or sold together with kosher meat or meat preparations, constitute a violation of the requirements of the certifying organization or the supervising rabbi, and thereby render such kosher meat or meat preparations, so handled or sold in conjunction therewith, non-kosher, or who otherwise in the preparation, handling, and sale of such kosher meat or meat preparations fails to comply with such religious requirements and dietary laws necessary to constitute such meat or meat preparations kosher, or who, without complying with such religious or dietary laws, issues or maintains any sign or advertisement in any language purporting to represent that he sells or deals in kosher meat or meat preparations, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to the penalty provided for in Section 2 of this Act.

(b) It shall be unlawful to label or designate food or food products with the words parve or pareve knowing that such food or food products contain milk, meat or poultry products rendering such food products impermissible to be used or eaten according to the certifying organization or the supervising rabbi.

(c) Any food commodity in package form which is marked as being certified by an organization, identified on the package by any symbol or is marked as being Kosher shall not be offered for sale by the producer or distributor of such food commodity until 30 days after such producer or distributor shall have registered the name, current address and telephone numbers of the certifying organization or the supervising rabbi with the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

In this Act, "kosher" means supervised, prepared under, and maintained in strict compliance with the laws and customs of the Jewish religion, including, but not limited to, (i) the laws and customs of shechita requiring the slaughter of animals according to appropriate Jewish law and (ii) as expressed by reliable, recognized Orthodox Jewish entities and Orthodox Jewish rabbis.

(Source: P.A. 93-134, eff. 1-1-04.)

(410 ILCS 645/1.5 new)

Sec. 1.5. State facility kosher food services.

(a) In this Section, "State-owned or State-operated facility" means either of the following:

(1) A hospital that is organized under the University of Illinois Hospital Act.

(2) A penal institution, as that term is defined under Section 2-14 of the Criminal Code of 2012, that is owned or operated by the State.

(b) Any State-owned or State-operated facility that provides food services or cafeteria services for which food products are provided or offered for sale also shall offer, upon request provided with reasonable notice, kosher food options that comply with federal and State nutritional guidelines at the State-owned or State-operated facility. After an individual submits a request for a kosher option, the state-owned or state-operated facility shall make accommodations for the request as soon as the state-owned or state-operated facility is able to provide the meals

(c) Any kosher food product offered under this Section purchased from a kosher-certified vendor. Any person, organization, or vendor falsely representing a food product it provides as kosher or falsely representing itself as a kosher-certified vendor shall be subject to penalties under Section 2 of this Act.

(d) The provisions of this Section shall not infringe upon or affect any obligation in a contract entered into and in effect on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.

(410 ILCS 645/2) (from Ch. 56 1/2, par. 288.2)

Sec. 2. Any person convicted of violating Section 1 or 1.5 of this Act, shall for the first offense, be guilty of a Class C misdemeanor and for the second and each subsequent offense shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(Source: P.A. 77-2510.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect June 1, 2024.".