[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1700 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1700

 To establish an international food for education and infant and child 
    nutrition program to be carried out under section 416(b) of the 
                       Agricultural Act of 1949.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 3, 2001

Mr. McGovern (for himself, Mrs. Emerson, Mr. Hall of Ohio, Mr. Johnson 
  of Illinois, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Leach, Mrs. Clayton, Mr. Manzullo, Mr. 
    Nethercutt, Mr. Thune, Mr. Boswell, Mr. Green of Wisconsin, Mr. 
  Barrett, and Ms. Baldwin) introduced the following bill; which was 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the 
 Committee on International Relations, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish an international food for education and infant and child 
    nutrition program to be carried out under section 416(b) of the 
                       Agricultural Act of 1949.

    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 ``George McGovern-Robert Dole 
International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture 
        Organization (FAO) report, ``The State of Food and Agriculture 
        1998'', approximately 828,000,000 people are chronically 
        undernourished in the world today. While no region is immune to 
        hunger, the vast majority of these people live in 87 low-
        income, food-deficit countries.
            (2) Many of the world's hungry are children, approximately 
        300,000,000. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) 
        report, ``State of the World's Children 2001'', states that 32 
        percent of the world's children under five years of age--
        approximately 193,000,000--have stunted growth, which is the 
        key indicator for under-nutrition. Hunger in the early stages 
        of development is particularly debilitating. As reported by 
        UNICEF, optimal neural development in a child, which affects 
        physical, mental, and cognitive development, depends on good 
        nutrition and stimulation during the first months and years of 
        life.
            (3) The causes of hunger are complex, but are most often 
        associated with poverty and lack of empowerment. In developing 
        countries, where poverty is endemic, governments face low 
        revenues and high debt burdens, funding is inadequate for basic 
        health and education, agricultural productivity and marketing 
        systems are weak and under-performing, employment opportunities 
        are lacking, public institutions are often weak, in some 
        countries, HIV/AIDS is pandemic, and many people struggle just 
        to meet their basic needs.
            (4) Poor children rarely receive adequate education. UNICEF 
        reports that more than 130,000,000 primary-school-age children 
        in developing countries do not go to school, and 60 percent of 
        these children are girls. In 2000, the United Nations 
        Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) 
        reported that for developing countries, an estimated 
        250,000,000 children from ages five to fourteen are laborers, 
        and fifty percent work full time. Lack of education and the 
        resulting poor literacy limit the growth potential of children. 
        Education develops cognitive skills, improves long-term 
        productivity and offers a child protection from the hazards of 
        labor or exploitation. Long-term studies indicate that 
        increased literacy rates are critical to economic development. 
        In countries that achieve an 80 percent or better literacy rate 
        among girls and women, the birthrate decreases.
            (5)(A) Food aid has been shown to have lasting benefits for 
        children in developing countries when part of multi-faceted 
        programs aimed at pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants and 
        children five years and younger.
            (B) Mother-child health (MCH) programs reduce the incidence 
        of malnutrition and under-nutrition and promote proper growth 
        by providing supplemental food to pregnant women and nursing 
        mothers, along with nutritious take-home foods and health care 
        to mothers and children under the age of two.
            (C) Early childhood development programs provide children 
        between the ages of three and six with meals and training in 
        basic skills, while mothers learn about basic sanitation, first 
        aid and respiratory and diarrheal diseases, the greatest 
        killers of young children in poor countries.
            (D) Food for Education programs reduce the incidence of 
        hunger and enhance educational attendance and performance by 
        providing school meals or take-home rations, along with 
improvements in educational quality and the school environment.
            (E) Although the conditions and challenges in developing 
        countries differ greatly from those in the United States, these 
        international food aid programs are similar in concept to the 
        women, infants and children (WIC) program, the Head Start 
        program, and the school breakfast and school lunch programs in 
        the United States.
            (6) Over the past 50 years, United States international 
        food assistance has contributed to alleviating hunger and its 
        causes and is an integral part of United States foreign policy. 
        From the Marshall Plan to the establishment in 1954 of the Food 
        for Peace program (or Public Law 480) and the Food for Progress 
        Act of 1985, American farmers have played a key role in 
        ensuring that the United States is able to respond to 
        emergencies such as famine, natural disasters, and war, and to 
        contribute to global development initiatives. These programs 
        continue because food is greatly needed in poor countries that 
        cannot produce or afford to import adequate amounts of food to 
        meet their minimal needs.
            (7) 7,900,000 metric tons of agricultural commodities, 
        worth $1,500,000,000 in commodity purchases, were approved 
        during fiscal year 2000 to provide food aid to 91 countries, as 
        authorized under section 416(b) of the Agricultural Act of 
        1949, the Food for Progress Program, and Public Law 480. 
        Programs were implemented in the field by nongovernmental and 
        private voluntary organizations, cooperatives, the United 
        Nations World Food Program, and governments.
            (8) American farmers benefit directly from food aid 
        programs by selling commodities for international development 
        and hunger programs. In the longer term, the economic uplift 
        from food aid programs improves the living standards and 
        purchasing power of citizens in developing countries, expanding 
        markets for American agricultural products, goods, and 
        services.
            (9) Two of the most successful and beneficial bipartisan 
        programs ever launched on behalf of children in the United 
        States have been the United States school lunch and school 
        breakfast programs, and the women, infants, and children (WIC) 
        program. While hunger among children has not yet been 
        eradicated in the United States, over the past 22 years, 
        America has provided a nutritious meal to most students who 
        cannot afford one. Currently, about 27,000,000 children are fed 
        every day through these programs.
            (10) On May 30, 2000, during the opening ceremonies of the 
        National Nutrition Summit, Senators George McGovern and Robert 
        Dole praised the Federal Government for reducing hunger in 
        America since 1969. They called upon the United States 
        Government to reduce hunger in the developing world through 
        child nutrition programs similar to the United States school 
        lunch, school breakfast, and WIC programs.
            (11) On July 23, 2000, the G-8 Summit in Okinawa, Japan, 
        endorsed a proposal put forward by the United States, the 
        Global Food for Education Initiative, to pursue a pilot 
        preschool and school feeding program.
            (12) On December 28, 2000, in addition to other 
        international food aid program commitments, the United States 
        launched a $300,000,000 pilot program, the Global Food for 
        Education Initiative, through the United States Department of 
        Agriculture, to provide meals, take-home rations, and other 
        assistance to an estimated 9,000,000 needy pre-school and 
        school-age children in 38 countries. Using authority under the 
        Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act and section 416(b) of 
        the Agricultural Act of 1949, food commodities will be 
        purchased from American farmers by the United States Department 
        of Agriculture, which will be distributed in fiscal year 2001 
        through 49 projects developed by United States-based private 
        voluntary organizations and cooperatives, and by the United 
        Nations World Food Program. Senators McGovern and Dole urged 
        the United States Congress to make this a permanently funded 
        program and to engage the international community in a 
        multilateral effort to end child hunger over the next three 
        decades.

SEC. 3. AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE.

    The Secretary of Agriculture (hereinafter in this Act referred to 
as the ``Secretary'') shall, using the authority of section 416(b) of 
the Agricultural Act of 1949 (hereinafter in this Act referred to as 
``section 416(b)'') and in accordance with this Act, provide eligible 
commodities and financial and technical assistance to establish, 
continue, and expand--
            (1) preschool and school feeding programs to improve food 
        security, reduce the incidence of hunger, and improve 
        educational opportunity; and
            (2) maternal, infant, and child nutrition programs for 
        pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants, and children 5 years 
        of age and younger.

SEC. 4. ELIGIBLE COMMODITIES AND COST ITEMS.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law--
            (1) any agricultural commodity is eligible for distribution 
        under this Act;
            (2) the Commodity Credit Corporation shall purchase 
        agricultural commodities for use under this Act if its stocks 
        are not sufficient to meet commitments entered into under this 
        Act; and
            (3) as necessary to achieve the purposes of this Act, the 
        Secretary--
                    (A) shall approve the use of Commodity Credit 
                Corporation funds to pay the transportation costs 
                incurred in moving commodities (including prepositioned 
                commodities) provided under this Act from the 
                designated points of entry or ports of entry abroad to 
                storage and distribution sites, and associated storage 
                and distribution costs;
                    (B) shall approve the use of Commodity Credit 
                Corporation funds to pay the costs of activities 
                conducted in the host country by a nonprofit voluntary 
                organization, cooperative, or intergovernmental agency 
or organization that would enhance the effectiveness of the activities 
implemented by such entities under this Act; and
                    (C) in the case of administrative expenses of 
                private voluntary organizations, cooperatives, or 
                intergovernmental organizations implementing activities 
                under this Act, shall approve the use of Commodity 
                Credit Corporation funds to meet itemized 
                administrative expenses incurred in connection with 
                activities carried out under this Act; and
            (4) for the purposes of this Act, the term ``agricultural 
        commodities'' includes any agricultural commodity, or the 
        products thereof, produced in the United States.

SEC. 5. ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.

    The Secretary may provide assistance under this Act to private 
voluntary organizations, cooperatives, intergovernmental organizations, 
governments and their agencies, and such other organizations as the 
Secretary determines are appropriate.

SEC. 6. RULES BY SECRETARY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall assure that rules governing 
this Act shall include provisions to--
            (1) provide for the submission of proposals, each of which 
        may include one or more countries, for commodities and other 
        assistance under this Act;
            (2) provide for eligible commodities and assistance on a 
        multi-year basis;
            (3) ensure eligible recipients demonstrate the 
        organizational capacity and the ability to develop, implement, 
        monitor, report on, and provide accountability for activities 
        conducted under this Act;
            (4) streamline procedures for the development, review, and 
        approval of proposals submitted in accordance with this Act;
            (5) ensure monitoring and reporting by eligible recipients 
        on the use of commodities and other assistance provided under 
        this Act; and
            (6) allow for the sale or barter of commodities by eligible 
        organizations to acquire funds to implement activities that 
        improve the food security of women and children or otherwise 
        enhance the effectiveness of programs and activities authorized 
        under this Act.
    (b) Priorities for Program Funding.--In carrying out subsection (a) 
with respect to criteria for determining the use of commodities and 
other assistance provided for programs and activities authorized under 
this Act, the Secretary shall consider the ability of eligible 
recipients to--
            (1) identify and assess the needs of beneficiaries, 
        especially mothers and children five years of age and younger 
        who are malnourished or under-nourished, and school-age 
        children who are malnourished, under-nourished, or do not 
        regularly attend school;
            (2)(A) in the case of preschool and school-age children, 
        target low-income areas where children's enrollment and 
        attendance in school is low or girls' enrollment and 
        participation in preschool or school is particularly low; and
            (B) in the case of programs to benefit mothers and children 
        five years of age or younger, coordinate supplementary feeding 
        and nutrition programs with existing or newly-established 
        maternal, infant, and children programs that provide health 
        needs interventions, and which may include maternal, prenatal, 
        and postnatal and newborn care;
            (3) involve indigenous institutions and communities in the 
        development and implementation of the program and foster local 
        capacity-building and leadership; and
            (4) carry out multi-year programs that foster self-
        sufficiency and ensure program longevity.

SEC. 7. USE OF FOOD AND NUTRITION SERVICE.

    The Food and Nutrition service of the Department of Agriculture 
shall provide technical advice on the establishment of programs under 
section 3(1) and on their implementation in the field in recipient 
countries.

SEC. 8. MULTILATERAL INVOLVEMENT.

    The President is urged to endeavor to engage existing international 
food aid coordinating mechanisms to ensure multilateral commitments to 
and participation in programs like those supported under this Act. The 
President shall report annually to Congress on the commitments and 
activities of governments in the global effort to reduce child hunger 
and increase school attendance.

SEC. 9. PRIVATE SECTOR INVOLVEMENT.

    The President and the Secretary are urged to encourage the support 
and active involvement of the private sector, foundations, and other 
individuals and organizations in programs assisted under this Act.

SEC. 10. FUNDING LEVELS.

    The Commodity Credit Corporation shall make available to carry out 
programs under this Act--
            (1) in fiscal 2002, $300,000,000 and in fiscal year 2003, 
        $600,000,000 for programs under section 3(1) and $50,000,000 in 
        fiscal year 2002 and in fiscal year 2003, $100,000,000 for 
        programs under section 3(2); and
            (2) in each succeeding fiscal year $750,000,000 for 
        programs under section 3(1) and $250,000,000 for programs under 
        section 3(2).

SEC. 11. COOPERATION WITH OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.

    Notwithstanding section 11 of the Commodity Credit Corporation 
Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714i), the Secretary may approve the use of 
Commodity Credit Corporation funds to pay administrative expenses of 
any other agency of the Federal Government, including any bureau, 
office, administration, or agency of the Department of Agriculture, 
assisting in the implementation of this Act.

SEC. 12. REQUIREMENT TO SAFEGUARD LOCAL PRODUCTION AND USUAL MARKETING.

    The requirement of section 403(a) of the Agricultural Trade 
Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (7 U.S.C. 1733(a) and 1733(h)) 
shall apply with respect to the availability of commodities under this 
Act.
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