CACFP Manual for Emergency Shelters

Emergency shelters participating in CACFP are required to maintain records to verify that the meals and snacks served to resident participants meet guidelines and to justify the claim for reimbursement.

Eligibility Requirements

Participation

An emergency shelter is defined as a public or private nonprofit organization or its site that provides temporary shelter and food services to homeless children, including a residential child care institution (RCCI) that serves a distinct group of homeless children who are not enrolled in the RCCI's regular program. (CFR 226.2)

Any facility whose primary purpose is to provide a temporary shelter to homeless families with children is eligible to participate in CACFP. In most cases, an eligible shelter is one that combines overnight facilities with day programs, such as congregate meal services, for homeless children and their parents or guardians. Facilities meeting this description include family shelters, domestic violence shelters, shelters for runaways, and other facilities that provide temporary shelter to homeless children. Emergency shelters that offer temporary housing in a different location from the meal service are also eligible to participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).

While it is recognized that homeless service agencies target and serve homeless individuals and families in different ways, not all temporary living situations are eligible for CACFP. For example, transitional apartments, independent living facilities, single room occupancy (SRO) residences (such as SRO hotels that provide a small private room for one person), and housing units where families double or triple up with friends or relatives are generally not eligible for CACFP.

Participation During Disasters

Emergency shelters that provide temporary housing to displaced families are eligible to participate in CACFP. Where significant numbers of persons are being temporarily housed, state agencies may designate any appropriate facility as an emergency shelter and may waive facility application requirements in these situations. When state agencies have designated a facility as an emergency shelter, all children through age 18 and persons with disabilities as defined under 7 CFR 226.2 may receive up to three free meals (breakfast, lunch, and supper) each day.

An “appropriate facility” may include a school or an institution that, although it is not providing actual shelter, is nevertheless providing meals to displaced families who are being temporarily housed elsewhere in locations that may not have the means to provide meal services to these temporary residents. (Reference: Policy Memo SP 46-2014, CACFP 12-2014, SFSP 18-2014 Disaster Response)

Eligibility Requirements

To participate in the CACFP, the shelter does not have to offer formal child care as recognized by the licensing authority. There is no federal requirement for emergency shelters to have federal, state, or local licensing as a condition of eligibility to participate in the CACFP. In the absence of a license, shelters must meet all applicable state and local health, fire, and safety standards and requirements.

Eligible Participants

Meals served to children 18 years of age or younger and persons with disabilities as defined under 7 CFR 226.2 who are residents in an emergency shelter may be claimed for reimbursement. Emergency shelters that serve individuals who are disabled over the age of 18 must serve a majority of participants who are aged 18 and under. Therefore, more than 50% of the CACFP participants should be children 18 years of age and younger. Persons with disabilities over the age of 18 must be 50% or fewer of the CACFP participants.

Providers of meals to homeless children often serve a diverse clientele that includes homeless and non-homeless adults and children. Shelters must differentiate between children residing in the shelters and those who may be served meals as walk-ins. In those situations where a shelter’s total food service is not conducted exclusively for the benefit of eligible residential children, the shelter must keep separate records of the meals it serves. Meals served to noneligible adults and children are not reimbursable. Exception: the meals/snacks consumed by a child who is visiting a parent (who is a resident at the shelter) may be claimed for reimbursement if the child is also a resident at another emergency shelter. Sometimes family members are separated and reside at different emergency shelters. Such exceptions must be explained on the resident roster.

Meal Service

All participating shelters must serve meals that meet the CACFP meal pattern requirements and must maintain a non-profit food service. Reimbursable meals include breakfast, lunch, supper, and/or snacks seven days a week. Shelters may receive reimbursement for up to three meals (breakfast, lunch, and supper) or two meals and one snack for each resident participant each day. Resident children and persons with disabilities, as defined under 7 CFR 226.2, are automatically eligible for meals and or snacks at the free reimbursement rate. The shelters may not charge or collect payments for the CACFP meals and snacks served to eligible participants.

Shelter residents may prepare and serve their own meals if the shelter provides supervision of the meal preparation and service, and the shelter can ensure that:

• The meal is served in a congregate setting.
• The meal meets the CACFP meal pattern requirements.
• An accurate meal count is recorded.

Only meals served in congregate meal settings are eligible for reimbursement. Meals consumed in private family quarters in an emergency shelter are not reimbursable. An exception can be made for infants from birth through 11 months of age fed in the private family quarters of the shelter residence, and when the infant is documented on the resident roster, including when a mother directly breastfeeds in her room. Mothers are required to tell shelter staff that they fed their infant, and then that infant’s meal can be counted. No other documentation is required. When an infant is in residence during the meal service period, the shelter must offer the infant a meal that meets program requirements.

Reporting and Recordkeeping

Shelters must keep records that support the claims for reimbursement, the non-profit status of the organization, and the proper utilization of CACFP funds to support meal costs. Shelters must maintain a monthly roster of participants in residence that is updated daily. Creditable meals must be served in a congregate setting, and point-of-service meal counts must be documented by meal type, such as breakfast, lunch, supper, and snack. All meal counts must be documented at the point of service, except for infants when fed in private family quarters.

Emergency shelters are not required to keep CACFP-specific child enrollment information, such as the usual days, hours, and meals when the child is typically present. Emergency shelters are not required to distribute and collect household income information. No media release is required for a battered women’s shelter due to the secrecy of the location.

Commodities and Funds from Other Federal Programs

An approved shelter may receive CACFP reimbursement and cash-in-lieu of commodities for lunch and supper meals served to eligible participants. A shelter may continue to receive and use commodity foods from The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) for the meals it serves to adults and children (walk-ins) who are not eligible for CACFP, provided that its records are sufficient to establish the shelter’s allotments of commodities under each program.

Shelters participating in CACFP are not allowed to supplement the reimbursement they receive for a meal with funds from another USDA child nutrition program. However, they may obtain funds from other federal program sources to support their food service operations. Shelters that receive grants through FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP), HUD's Emergency Shelter Grant Program, and other "non-child nutrition" programs may continue to use them to purchase food, even for meals for which they claim CACFP reimbursement, and to operate more than one federal program, independently, at the same facility. In many cases, those sources of funds are less restrictive than child nutrition program funds.

The only restriction on the use of those funds, for food or for other purposes, is in the definition of "income to the program" in section 226.2 of the regulations. The shelter cannot claim a meal under two programs, but it can use other available funds to enhance the meal service. In most cases, the shelter will be able to shift its other federal grants to support the types of functions that are not reimbursable under CACFP. For example, the shelter could use its EFSP funds to serve meals to adults or to nonresidential children whose meals would not be eligible for CACFP reimbursement.

Resident Roster

Resident rosters are a requirement of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). CACFP Memorandum 11-2007 Accommodations for Non-Traditional Program Operators, which can be found at the USDA website, clearly states that non-traditional programs, such as emergency shelters, must maintain a list of participants by name, date of birth, and dates of residency. Resident rosters must be updated daily to ensure that there is an accurate record of attendance for all participants claimed for reimbursement. All participants recorded as receiving meals and claimed for reimbursement must be on the resident roster for that date. Accurate records of CACFP-eligible participants in residence are very important for the completion of the monthly claim for reimbursement. Meals served to participants not on the resident roster will not be reimbursed.

Shelters can opt to create their own roster form, providing the following information is included:

• List all CACFP participants* residing at the shelter, preferably in alphabetical order by last name, then first name.
• List the participant’s date of birth (month/date/year) and the date the participant entered the shelter; also, list the date the participant left the shelter.
• Do not use meal count records as resident rosters.
• The resident roster should be completed for each month and updated daily. The shelter director or designee must sign and date the form.
• File completed resident rosters in the monthly folder with other CACFP documentation for the month.

*Per the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, any victim service provider may not disclose “personally identifying information” or “personal information” about an individual, including a first and last name; a home or other physical address; contact information; a social security number; any other information, including date of birth, racial or ethnic background, or religious affiliation, that, in combination with any other non-personally identifying information, would serve to identify any individual.

Although first and last names and date of birth may be omitted from the resident roster and meal count records for privacy protection at a shelter that is a victim service provider, there must be a way to identify each participant using initials or other discreet methods on the resident roster. The first and last names and date of birth must be made available to the reviewer during a monitoring review.

Meal Count Record

Daily Meal Count Records are a requirement for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). All shelters must record and maintain daily counts of the number of meals served to resident participants, taken manually at the time of service. The meal count records must contain the number of meals served by each meal type (breakfast, lunch, snack, and supper) for a shelter to consolidate and submit a justifiable monthly claim for reimbursement accurately.

Meal Counting Methods – Each meal must be recorded at the time it is served to each participant, which is called the “point of service” (POS) meal count. An exception may be made for meals served in private family quarters that are part of an emergency shelter to infants from birth through 11 months. Meal count records must document the name of each eligible participant and the meal(s) to be claimed for reimbursement on a daily basis.

The shelter may choose to enter the original handwritten meal counts into an electronic accounting system for ease of consolidation, although the original paper document must be retained with the monthly records.

If a shelter would like to use an electronic system for both POS meal count and monthly consolidation, prior Department of Health and Senior Services-Community Food and Nutrition Assistance (DHSS-CFNA) approval is required to ensure CACFP requirements are met. If an electronic system is implemented, the shelter must establish a backup system.

The original source documentation must be retained for three fiscal years plus the current year.

Completing The Meal Count Form CACFP-225B

• Enter the shelter name.
• Enter the calendar “week of” including month, date range, and year.
• Print legibly or type each participant’s full name (no nicknames)*, preferably in alphabetical order by last name.
• For each meal served, place a checkmark in the box under the appropriate meal on the meal count form.
• Record the meal as it is served to each participant, referred to as a POS meal count. A total headcount or headcount by category is not acceptable.
• Add the total daily meals by type - breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack.
• At the end of the week, calculate the total weekly meals by type.

The 7-day Meal Count form for shelters (CACFP 225-B) is available at the CACFP website [NEEDS LINK] - Forms.

**Per the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, any victim service provider may not disclose “personally identifying information” or “personal information” about an individual, including a first and last name; a home or other physical address; contact information; a social security number; any other information, including date of birth, racial or ethnic background, or religious affiliation, that, in combination with any other non-personally identifying information, would serve to identify any individual.

Although first and last names and date of birth may be omitted from the resident roster and meal count records for privacy protection at a shelter that is a victim service provider, there must be a way to identify each participant using initials or other discreet methods on the resident roster. The first and last names and date of birth must be made available to the reviewer during a monitoring review.

Each user of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) web-based system must have a personal user ID and password, referred to as User Access. User IDs and passwords may not be shared. It is recommended that two key people from each center have access to submit claims and make system changes. If you want to add User Access or change current access when a user is no longer employed, you must submit a Network User Access Request Form (MO 580-1854) available at the CACFP website [NEEDS LINK] under Forms.

In this web-based system, each independent center is considered a sponsor of one center!

Basic Claiming Steps are available on the CACFP website [NEEDS LINK] under Links to Important Information.

Please read all instructions before entering your first claim.

Tips for Moving in the Web-Based System

• Do not use the “Back” button; use the menu in the orange section at the top left of the screen or use the “breadcrumb trail” (orange bar) to navigate from screen to screen.
• Each time you save the claim, no matter if it has errors, it is saved on the server and will be there if you need to leave or log off and come back.
• Use the “Tab” key to navigate from field to field, or use your cursor to click into the field you want to complete. Try not to use the “Enter” key; if you do, the claim will be saved in error status.
• If you are in “View” mode, changes will not be saved. If you want to make changes, make sure you are in “Edit” or “Revise” mode.
• Claims are saved at the site level or center level before saving a sponsor-level claim.
• Revisions can only be filed after the original or previous revision is in “Paid” status.

User Notes

• Click the “Users” tab to view individuals who have access to submit applications and claim information for your organization.
• User Access IDs and passwords are assigned to individuals and are not to be shared.
• Inform the state office immediately if an individual with access is leaving your organization so their access can be revoked.
• Submit a Network User Access Request form to request online access for new users.

Payment Notes

• Click the “Payments” tab to view upcoming and past payments for CACFP claims.
• If a claim has been approved but has not yet been processed for payment, the payment information will show in the Open Balance Transactions section. All other payments are shown in the next section.
• When checking the payments, the processed date shown is approximately 4 to 5 business days prior to the electronic funds deposit date. It is the date it was processed and the information was sent to the State of Missouri payment system.
• Deductions, if any, made from claim reimbursements due to downward revisions are reflected in the information under the “Payments” tab only, not in the claim amount under the “Claims” tab.

Filing a Claim for Reimbursement

• A center has 60 calendar days from the end of the claim month to file a claim for reimbursement. It is not the last day of the month; it is 60 calendar days. If a claim is filed online late, the center may not be paid for that month.
• Submit the completed claim online after you have reviewed your entries and are satisfied that the claim is completed accurately. The system has built-in checks that should decrease the chance of errors in the claim being submitted.
• You cannot enter a claim before the first day of the next month. For example, an October claim cannot be entered until November 1.

The Department of Health and Senior Services-Community Food and Nutrition Assistance (DHSSCFNA) processes claims on the 10th of each month for payment by check or automatic deposit by around the 28th of the month. A second processing for claims is done on the 25th of the month for claims received from the 11th through the 25th. The second payment is made around the 13th of the following month.

DHSS-CFNA cannot guarantee an exact date; this is a projected date only.

CACFP payments are typically directly deposited. This avoids payment delays and lost checks. If you have not received your payment within 15 days of the projected payment date, please contact DHSS-CFNA. Per CACFP regulations, DHSS-CFNA will provide payment of valid claims within 45 days of receipt.

60 Day Deadline for CACFP Claims

Additional Meal Claim Information

• Creditable meals may be claimed for children ages birth through 18 and eligible persons with disabilities who reside in the center and are in attendance each day: three meals or two meals and one snack per participant per day. Non-eligible adults and children may never be claimed for CACFP meal reimbursement in centers.
• Meals prepared or packed at the center and served off the center grounds, such as a picnic, that were supervised by center personnel may be claimed.
• Meals prepared or packed at the center and sent with a participant to eat at another location without the supervision of center personnel are not eligible to be claimed for CACFP reimbursement.
• Food items provided by parents or other unapproved food sources cannot be counted as fulfilling any of the CACFP required meal or snack components, although parents of infants are allowed to provide one component. However, there are exceptions described in CFR 226.20(g) for participants who cannot consume regular meals because of medical or special dietary needs, either due to disability or non-disability reasons.

Meal Service Times and Duration

Reimbursement will only be made for meals served within the center’s approved meal times, as documented on the Center Information Sheet in the CACFP web-based system. Meal times may be changed with CFNA approval.

Meal service times for infants are not restricted since infants should be fed “on demand.” Each enrolled participant, from birth through age 12 months, may be claimed for no more than three meals or two meals and one snack per child in attendance each day.

When scheduling meal times, the following guidelines will be used for approval:

Breakfast

• The duration of the breakfast meal service may take no longer than two hours from start to finish.
• The breakfast meal must be served at a time traditionally considered as the normal serving time for breakfast.

Snack

• The duration of the snack service may take no longer than two hours from start to finish.
• A snack may be approved for midmorning, afternoon, or evening.
• A snack may be scheduled no earlier than two hours after the completion of the previous meal or snack.
• The midmorning snack may be served at a time less than two hours following completion of the breakfast meal, only in situations where the children served morning snacks are totally different children who arrive at the center too late for the scheduled breakfast.

Lunch

• The duration of the lunch meal service may take no more than two hours from start to finish.
• Lunch must be served at a time traditionally considered to be the normal serving time for lunch.
• Lunch may be served no earlier than two hours after the completion of the previous meal or snack.

Supper

• The duration of the supper meal service may take no more than two hours from start to finish.
• The supper meal must be served at a time traditionally considered as the normal serving time for supper.
• The supper meal may be scheduled no earlier than two hours after the completion of the previous meal or snack.