WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Congress has included a provision in the omnibus spending bill that will allow local school districts to beg the Department of Agriculture for a waiver from the new stringent school snack food regulations.

“To qualify for the waiver, schools must demonstrate that they cannot comply with the new regulations without incurring additional expenses during the 2014-15 school year,” said a news report from the Dairyherd Network.

The new rules will apply to snacks offered in school cafeterias. They state that individual snack items serves in schools must have a maximum of 200 calories, and that total sugar in any item must be no more than 35 percent of its weight.

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The rules apply to “‘a la carte’ lines in school cafeterias, vending machines, and snack bars, but won’t apply to fundraisers, after-school concession stands, or class parties,” according to the news service.

They regulations build upon the “healthy” overhaul of the National School Lunch Program pushed by First Lady Michelle Obama. More recently, she announced her desire to regulate so-called junk food advertising in schools.

The rules go into effect July 1, so schools must rush to qualify for an exemption.

Strangely, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives didn’t force a repeal of this federal overreach into local communities. Instead, they helped increase the size and power of the federal government by requiring school districts to ask for a waiver, further expanding the bureaucracy that will now be needed to oversee the waiver process.