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Capital Expenditure Approved List

U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Capital Expenditure Approved List for school food authority equipment purchases.

For more information on the purchase of equipment and instructions for submitting a request for equipment not on this list, please see Management Bulletin SNP-38-2014 at USDA Capital Expenditure List and Equip. Purchases. Note: Equipment provided in this list has state agency pre-approval for purchases that support the operation and improvement of School Nutrition Programs only.

  1. Refrigerator and Freezer - Excluding Walk-in Units
    1. Blast Chiller
    2. Camchiller
    3. Combo
    4. Glass Door
    5. Ice Chest
    6. Ice Machine
    7. Milk Cooler
    8. Mobile
    9. Reach-in
    10. Roll-in
    11. Undercounter
    12. Work-top
  2. Gas or Electric Oven/Range/Stove/Steamer
    1. Combi
    2. Convection
    3. Conventional
    4. Conveyor
    5. Countertop
    6. Double Stack
    7. Griddle
    8. Heat-n-Hold
    9. Holding Unit
    10. Induction Cooktop
    11. Range Top
    12. Reel
    13. Rotating Rack
  3. Hot or Cold Cart/Cabinet
    1. Beverage Service
    2. Buffet
    3. Holding
    4. Mobile
    5. Proofing
    6. Retherm
    7. Rolling
    8. Self Serve
    9. Serving
    10. Warming
  4. Hood
    1. Exhaust
    2. Fire Suppression Hood
    3. Condensate
  5. Mixer
    1. Countertop
    2. Floor
  6. Kitchen Sink
    1. Compartment
    2. Hand
    3. Utility
  7. Individual Equipment Items
    1. Air Fryer
    2. Barbeque (allowable when serving reimbursable meals)
    3. Bagging Machine
    4. Braising Pan
    5. Broiler
    6. Cold Pan Serving Counter
    7. Commercial Juicer
    8. Cook/Chill System
    9. Depositor and Filling Machine
    10. Dishwasher
    11. Dough Divider
    12. Drawer Warmer
    13. Floor Scrubber
    14. Food Display (Hot or Cold)
    15. Food Processor
    16. Food Slicer, Chopper, Dicer, etc.
    17. Generator
    18. Griddle
    19. Hot Well Transport System
    20. Meal/Food Packing Machine
    21. Menu Boards (Kitchen/Serving Area)
    22. Microwave
    23. Milk Dispensers
    24. Pizza Oven
    25. Plate/Tray Dispenser
    26. Point of Sale (POS) System and Licensing Renewal
    27. Produce Washers
    28. Salad Bar
    29. Serving Equipment
    30. Serving Line System (Hot or Cold)
    31. Shrink Wrapper Machine
    32. Smoothie Blender
    33. Speed Line (Hot or Cold)
    34. Stainless Steel Work Tables
    35. Steam Jacket Kettle (Gas or Electric)
    36. Steam Table
    37. Styrofoam Recycling Machine
    38. Tilt Skillet
    39. Tray Sealer Machine
  • Per title 2, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 200.439: "Capital expenditures for special purpose equipment are allowable as direct costs, provided that items with a unit cost of $5,000 or more have the prior written approval of the Federal awarding agency or pass-through entity."

  • Per USDA Policy Memorandum SP 31-2014, school food authorities purchasing equipment from this list are not required to receive prior approval from the California Department of Education (CDE).

  • Note: equipment approvals assume existing utility connections are adequate and within the area where the equipment will be installed per manufacturer requirements. Service systems--new or upgrades are unallowable expenses using nonprofit school food service funds. E.g., air conditioners, heating systems, ventilation systems, intercommunication systems, sanitary systems, sewer systems, telephone, and computer lines. The California School Accounting Manual Procedure 770 provides criteria for identifying service systems.

  • Per USDA Policy Memorandum SP 39-2016, SFSP 13-2016, CACFP 11-2016, only school districts operating the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and/or Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) in conjunction with the School Nutrition Program (SNP) are not required to receive prior approval from the CDE before purchasing equipment appearing on this list; however, school districts on either program must account for the expense in the program budget to which the cost pertains.

The effective date of the USDA Capital Expenditure Approved List for SNPs is November 15, 2023.

Questions:   Resource Management Unit | SNPCafeFundQuestions@cde.ca.gov
Last Reviewed: Friday, November 17, 2023
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