Lincoln bill makes record investments in child nutrition programs

More Ag News

Ag News

Washington – U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry today unveiled the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, a bipartisan, fiscally responsible bill making the largest investment in federal child nutrition programs to date.

Lincoln’s bill provides $4.5 billion in new child nutrition program funding over ten years, a significant increase over previous efforts. The highest previous increase was $500 million over ten years.

“We are poised for a truly historic moment in the Senate Agriculture Committee today with the unveiling of a bill that makes the largest investment in our child nutrition programs to date,” said Lincoln.” “This proposal is a monumental step forward as we work to end childhood hunger and address the epidemic of childhood obesity in the United States. It invests roughly $4.5 billion in new funding in child nutrition programs over the next ten years – more new money than we have provided for child nutrition programs since their inception.

“This legislation will also mark the first time since the inception of the National School Lunch Program that Congress has dedicated this level of resources to increasing the program’s reimbursement rate. It also invests heavily in new initiatives designed to automatically enroll more eligible low-income children with our National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs and includes a major expansion of afterschool feeding programs,” said Lincoln.

The legislation aims to ensure that all children eligible for nutrition programs are actually participating, improve the quality of meal benefits, and modernize and improve the integrity of the programs. The legislation is fully paid for.

“This bill complements the tremendous work that has been done in my home state of Arkansas,” Lincoln said. “From stronger local wellness policies, to improved nutrition requirements for the Child and Adult Care Food Program, to funding to bring healthy, local foods into schools, this bill is an incredible step in the right direction toward teaching our children the healthy habits they need to live longer, more productive lives.”

The federal child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Special Supplemental Program for Women Infants, and Children (WIC), and the Child and Adult Care Food Program, play a critical role in preventing hunger and promoting healthy diets among children from birth until the end of secondary school.

A summary of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 is below.

Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 Proposed Bipartisan Framework*

*all estimates are 10-year figures

TOTAL NEW CHILD NUTRITION FUNDING: $4.5 BILLION

Guiding Principles:

· Expand program access to reduce childhood hunger

· Improve nutritional quality to promote health and address childhood obesity

· Simplify program management and improve program integrity

A Path to End Childhood Hunger: $1.2 billion

· Expanding Afterschool Meals for At-Risk Children Nationwide

· For the vast majority of states, the CACFP at-risk afterschool program only provides reimbursement for a snack. This section would give communities in all 50 states the ability to be reimbursed for a meal.

· Expanding Universal Meal Service through Community Eligibility

· This new option will allow schools in high-poverty areas to offer free meals to all students without collecting paper applications, which will expand access to more children and reduce administrative burdens on schools.

· Connecting More Eligible Low-Income Children with School Meals

· Children whose families receive SNAP benefits are directly certified for free school meals. This provision would expand the direct certification process to include Medicaid in select districts in the U.S.

· Performance Bonuses for Direct Certification

· This section would establish performance benchmarks for states to improve their direct certification methods, as well as provide incentive bonuses to states to incentivize improved performance.

· Categorical Eligibility of Foster Children

· This section would add foster children to the list of those that are automatically eligible for free meals, eliminating the need for foster children to demonstrate their income when applying for school meal benefits.

· Promoting the Availability and Locations of Summer Food Service Program Meal Sites

· Requires school food authorities to coordinate with institutions operating the Summer Food Service Program to develop and distribute materials to families to inform them of the availability and location of summer meal sites.

· Piloting Innovative Methods to Feed Hungry, Low-Income Children

· Provides mandatory funding to test pilot projects to improve the way we feed hungry children, including during out-of- school times.

Promoting Health and Reducing Childhood Obesity: $3.2 billion

· Helping Schools Improve the Nutritional Quality of School Meals

· A performance-based increase in the federal reimbursement rate for school lunches — 6 cents per meal — will help schools meet new meal standards to provide children with healthier school meals.

· National Nutrition Standards for All Foods Sold in Schools

· This section would provide the Secretary of Agriculture with the authority to establish national nutrition standards for all foods sold on school campus throughout the school day.

· Promoting Nutrition and Wellness in Child Care Settings

· This section establishes nutrition requirements for child care providers participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program, as well as providing guidance and technical assistance to help providers improve the health of young children.

· Connecting More Children to Healthy Local Produce through Farm-to-School Programs

· Provides mandatory funding for schools to establish school gardens and to source local foods into school cafeterias.