Food for Thought Winter 2022

QUARTERLY UPDATES

legislative UPDATE

Contact Renee Bowen at 1-877-337-2661 or Renee@desconinc.com

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BY BEN DRISCOLL REGIONAL SALES/SERVICE MANAGER SMART SYSTEMS ISNA LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE CHAIR

WINTER 2 0 2 1 - 2 0 2 2

Universal meals, waivers, reimbursement rates, supply chain issues, flexibilities on whole grains and sodium…what will the future look like for child nutrition programs? What will happen when the covid waivers expire? These are all legitimate concerns and questions that every director is asking. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress gave the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) the authority to issue nationwide child nutrition waivers to address access and operational challenges created by the pandemic, allowing school nutrition programs to adapt as necessary to changes such as school closures and virtual learning. This authority was extended through June 30, 2022, with the Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act. On November 10th, SNA along with more than 20 allied organizations, sent a letter to the U.S. House and U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations and the U.S. House and U.S. Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittees, urging them to extend USDA’s nationwide waiver authority to September 30, 2022. Extending these waivers would allow summer meal programs to operate under the same program rules through the entire summer. As we get closer to these waivers expiring, we begin to have concerns about going back to paid meals, 100% whole grains, and transitioning to target 2 sodium levels. In the midst of all this, we continue to struggle with staffing and supply chain issues. SNA’s Public Policy & Legislative Committee is working hard to be proactive and solve these concerns. Child Nutrition Reauthorization is one possible way to get the changes we want and need for school nutrition programs to be successful. Although these programs are permanently authorized, every five years Congress is supposed to review and amend these programs through Child Nutrition Reauthorization. The most recent reauthorization took place in 2010 when the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act was signed into law. Some of the authorities created in that law expired on September 30, 2015. Although they have expired, most program operations have continued with funding provided by appropriations acts. Reauthorization refers to Congress’s process of making changes, additions, and deletions to the permanent laws that authorize child nutrition programs. Reauthorization

provides an opportunity to improve and strengthen the child nutrition and school meal programs, so they better meet the needs of the nation’s children. We are hearing that Congress will potentially pick-up reauthorization of our programs as early as January 2022. Ultimately, all these decisions are made by USDA and our legislators on Capitol Hill, which is why it’s so important to contact your legislators and explain your challenges. With all of the unknowns come opportunity, especially with the Legislative Action Conference (LAC) right around the corner. With LAC scheduled in March, this will be a great opportunity to speak to our current and newly elected legislators to inform them not only of the importance of school nutrition programs, but also the challenges we are faced with. Now, more than ever, we need to educate our legislators and fight for the 30 million children we serve each day with affordable nutritious meals. LAC will be held in person this year!! Join SNA’s 2022 Legislative Action Conference (LAC), March 6-8, 2022, at the J.W. Marriott in Washington, D.C. to build and grow relationships that will shape federal school nutrition policies. SNA’s 2022 Position Paper will likely be released in early January. Please refer to SNA’s website HERE for more information and to registration. Feel free to reach out to me personally if you have any questions. I hope to see you join us in Washington D.C. to educate our legislators!!

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