QUARTERLY UPDATES
legislative UPDATE
BY BEN DRISCOLL, REGIONAL SALES/ SERVICE MANAGER, SMART SYSTEMS, ISNA LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE CHAIR
FALL 2022
Since the Legislative Action Conference this past March, the legislative climate around school nutrition programs has been a whirlwind. Extending the waivers and being able to provide healthy meals for all have been a priority. Unfortunately, we are starting the 2022-23 school year without the ability to provide school meals at no cost however, we have succeeded in continuing a majority of the waivers through the Keep Kids Fed Act of 2022 . We are also optimistic Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR) will take place this year. The Keep Kids Fed Act was signed into law by the President on June 25th, 2022. This piece of legislation will: • Increase federal reimbursements for every school lunch by 40 cents and every school breakfast by 15 cents, above the annual inflationary adjustment. • Extend no-cost waivers, including those for schools unable to meet nutrition standards due to supply chain disruptions, and to reduce administrative and reporting burdens. • Extend waivers for 2022 summer meal programs. Although the Keep Kids Fed Act provides critical aid, we need to continue the fight on behalf of kids across the country. Discussions on Child Nutrition Reauthorization are at the forefront right now. On July 20th the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee Chairman, Bobby Scott, introduced the 2022 Child Nutrition Reauthorization Bill. Some of the key provisions in the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act (HR 8450) are: • Strengthening the Community Eligibility Provision and Direct Certification to increase student access to free school meals.
• Increase in the federal reimbursement rate for school lunch and commodities for school breakfast. • Reconsider the bill’s mandate to establish additional school nutrition rules, which could be unachievable and result in fewer students eating healthy school meals. With this being an election year, there is very limited time left for the House and Senate to consider and pass this legislation. SNA is taking the necessary steps to ensure the CNR bill is considered by the full House and Senate when Congress returns from the August recess. To keep our programs a priority, we must educate Congress on how school nutrition programs operate, and the successes and hurdles school nutrition teams face to ensure children have access to nutritious school meals. I encourage you to contact your legislators and urge them to support the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. Let’s not lose all hope for healthy meals for all children. SNA has a new petition urging President Biden and the U.S. Congress to provide meals to all students at no charge. Sign the SNA petition for school meals free of charge and then share the link with your friends! Lastly, I would like to honor one of our Indiana legislators who was tragically killed in a car accident on August 3rd, 2022. Jackie Walorski always took the time to personally meet with us and listen to our concerns and needs when it came to child nutrition. She was a champion for our child nutrition programs, especially the Summer Food Service Program. Rest in Peace, Congresswoman Jackie Walorski. click here to sign the SNA petition for universal school meals
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