Bill Summary
The Food for Thought Act of 2019 is a bill that aims to amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. The amendment would establish a pilot program for community colleges to provide free meals, including snacks, to eligible students. This program would be administered by the Secretary and grants would be given to community colleges that meet specific criteria such as student body size, minority serving institutions, and proximity to schools that receive special assistance payments. The funds from the grants can be used for meals, outreach to students, and purchasing equipment. The meals served must meet nutritional requirements developed under the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The Secretary is also required to provide technical assistance to community colleges and report on the effectiveness of the program. The bill authorizes $6 million for the program and defines a community college as a public institution that primarily awards associate's degrees.
Possible Impacts
1. The Food for Thought Act of 2019 could potentially alleviate food insecurity for eligible students at community colleges by providing free meals, snacks, and information about federal food assistance programs.
2. The Act may also impact the food purchasing and preparation processes at community colleges, as they must comply with the dietary guidelines set forth by the Secretary and provide a report on their use of grant funds.
3. The Act may also lead to collaborations and consultations between community colleges, state educational agencies, and state boards of higher education, as well as technical assistance from the Secretary to develop prepared meal infrastructure and carry out program activities.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4065 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4065
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish
a pilot program for serving meals in community colleges, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 25, 2019
Mr. Schiff (for himself, Ms. Judy Chu of California, Ms. Sewell of
Alabama, Ms. Pressley, Ms. Norton, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Carson of Indiana,
Mr. Cox of California, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Payne, Ms. Eshoo, Mr.
Cardenas, Ms. Sanchez, Ms. Porter, and Mrs. Torres of California)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish
a pilot program for serving meals in community colleges, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Food for Thought Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. SCHOOL LUNCH IN COMMUNITY COLLEGE PILOT PROGRAM.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1769) is amended by inserting before subsection (b) the
following:
``(a) School Lunch in Community College Pilot Program.--
``(1) Authorization of program.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary, acting through
the Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service,
shall carry out a program to make grants to community
colleges to provide free meals, including snacks, to
eligible students, as determined by the Secretary.
``(B) Award requirements.--In awarding grants under
this subsection, the Secretary shall make grants to
community colleges that reflect varying student body
size, full-time student enrollment, geographic
location, including urban, rural, or suburban campuses,
minority serving institutions, residential character,
including race and ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
``(C) Maximum amount.--A grant under this
subsection may not be in an amount greater than
$200,000.
``(D) Priority.--In awarding grants under this
subsection, the Secretary may give priority to
community colleges--
``(i) with prepared food infrastructure or
can identify an outside source of support to
develop such infrastructure;
``(ii) that serve more than 300 students
who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants; or
``(iii) that are located within proximity
of a school that elects to receive special
assistance payments under section 11(a)(1)(F)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1759a(a)(1)(F)).
``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
this subsection, a community college shall submit an
application to the Secretary, at such time, in such manner, and
containing such information as the Secretary may require,
including the number of students such community college will
serve under the grant.
``(3) Use of funds.--
``(A) In general.--A community college that
receives a grant under this subsection shall use the
grant to--
``(i) provide free meals, including snacks,
to eligible students;
``(ii) conduct outreach to students to
encourage participation in the free meal
program;
``(iii) prepare meals;
``(iv) purchase meals from vendors; and
``(v) provide information to students
regarding eligibility for assistance under
Federal food assistance programs.
``(B) Limitation on purchase of equipment.--A
community college that receives a grant under this
subsection may use not more than 20 percent of such
grant to purchase equipment to carry out the activities
described in clauses (i) through (iv) of subparagraph
(A).
``(4) Requirements.--Meals served by a community college
pursuant to a grant under this subsection shall meet the
requirements developed under the dietary guidelines required
under paragraph (5)(C).
``(5) Report.--Each community college that receives a grant
under this section shall, not later than 18 months after
receiving such a grant, submit a report to the Secretary of
Education that includes--
``(A) the prevalence of food insecurity with
respect to students enrolled in such community college;
and
``(B) an evaluation of the use of grant finds by
such community college in addressing such food
insecurity.
``(6) Department activities.--
``(A) Consultation.--In carrying out the grant
program under this subsection, the Secretary shall
consult with community colleges, State educational
agencies, and State boards of higher education.
``(B) Technical assistance.--Not later than 120
days after the date of the enactment of this
subsection, the Secretary, acting through the
Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, shall
provide technical assistance to community colleges to--
``(i) as applicable, develop prepared meal
infrastructure;
``(ii) carry out the activities described
in paragraph (3), including training the
employees of the community college to carry out
such activities; and
``(iii) develop outreach to students with
respect to such activities.
``(C) Dietary guidelines.--Not later than 120 days
after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the
Secretary shall develop nutritional requirements for
meals served pursuant to a grant under this subsection
that are consistent with the goals of the most recent
Dietary Guidelines for Americans published under
section 301 of the National Nutrition Monitoring and
Related Research Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5341).
``(D) Study.--Not later than 2 years after the date
of the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary
shall submit to Congress a report that includes--
``(i) an evaluation of the pilot program
under this subsection; and
``(ii) recommendations with respect to
expanding the pilot program under this
subsection.
``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $6,000,000 for
fiscal year 2020 and each of the succeeding 3 fiscal years.
``(8) Community college defined.--In this subsection, the
term `community college' means a public institution of higher
education as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)) that--
``(A) does not provide an educational program for
which the institution awards a bachelor's degree (or an
equivalent degree); and
``(B) predominately awards associate's degrees.''.
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