Sacramento - Today, Assemblymember Bill Monning (D-Carmel) introduced legislation to help California schools promote and protect student health by restricting mobile food vending near school campuses.
Assembly Bill (AB) 1678 prohibits mobile food and beverage vending within 1,500 feet of elementary and secondary school campuses from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on any day schools are in session. The bill also requires local health agencies to notify mobile food vendors of this restriction.
“All students deserve access to healthful food. The mobile vending of unhealthful snacks like ice cream, chips, and sugar sweetened beverages near school campuses undermines efforts to provide students with the nutrition they need,” stated Assemblymember Monning. “At a time when childhood obesity is at epidemic levels, we must ensure that our school environments foster student wellness.”
For years, California has taken action to create healthier school environments for students. In communities across the state, these investments are being eroded by mobile food vending that competes with the healthful meals and snacks offered by schools through federally funded nutrition programs.
Mobile food vending poses a threat to student safety as well as student nutrition. Mobile vending near school campuses incentivizes students to leave school grounds, which increases students’ exposure to off-campus hazards such as heavily trafficked streets. Creating a buffer zone, free of mobile food vending, around school campuses will decrease students’ access to unhealthful foods; help bolster school nutrition programs; and help protect the safety of students.
Assemblymember Monning was first elected to represent the 27th Assembly District in 2008 and re-elected in 2010. The 27th Assembly District includes portions of Monterey, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz Counties. Prior to his election to the Assembly, Assemblymember Monning was a Professor at the Monterey College of Law and a Professor of International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution at the Monterey Institute of International Studies.
Contact: Bethany Westfall @ (916) 319-2027
