FDACS Issues Order in Favor of GrayRobinson Client: Henry and Rilla White Youth Foundation
Tallahassee, Fla. – September 3, 2020 – GrayRobinson, P.A. (GrayRobinson) today announced its Attorneys Ty Jackson and George Levesque, shareholders in the Tallahassee law firm office, prevailed in case before the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) regarding the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) facilitated at the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ).
Jackson and Levesque represented the Henry and Rilla White Youth Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation, against the FDACS Division of Food Nutrition and Wellness. In May, the foundation was issued a Notice of Action by the division for allegedly violating the NSLP by operating as the School Food Authority (SFA) at DJJ detention centers operated by for-profit entities. Pursuant to the Notice of Action, the foundation was ordered to reimburse the division almost $14 million for alleged improper payments made to the foundation relating to its participation in the NSLP during school years 2014-2020. The foundation was also denied reimbursement for alleged improper claims made from December 2019 through March 2020, among other allegations.
Jackson and Levesque argued the foundation was authorized to act as the SFA for the DJJ detention centers and had done so since at least 2012 with the explicit approval of the FDACS and the United States Department of Agriculture.
Ultimately, the FDACS ordered the foundation is entitled to relief from the division’s demand for reimbursement, and is entitled to reimbursement for unpaid claims for meal services provided under the NSLP for school years 2014 to present.
Read the Final Determination in its entirety here.