[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2342 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2342

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to protect children's health 
  by denying any deduction for advertising and marketing directed at 
    children to promote the consumption of food of poor nutritional 
                                quality.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 15, 2014

 Mr. Blumenthal (for himself and Mr. Harkin) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to protect children's health 
  by denying any deduction for advertising and marketing directed at 
    children to promote the consumption of food of poor nutritional 
                                quality.

    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 ``Stop Subsidizing Childhood Obesity 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and 
        tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. Currently, more 
        than one-third of children and adolescents are overweight or 
        obese.
            (2) A report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found 
        that if the population of the United States continues on its 
        current trajectory, adult obesity rates could exceed 60 percent 
        in a number of States by 2030.
            (3) Health-related behaviors, such as eating habits and 
        physical activity patterns, develop early in life and often 
        extend into adulthood. The diets of American children and 
        adolescents depart substantially from recommended patterns that 
        put their health at risk. Overall, American children and youth 
        are not achieving basic nutritional goals. They are consuming 
        excess calories and added sugars and have higher than 
        recommended intakes of sodium, total fat, and saturated fats.
            (4) Budgets for food marketing to children have spiked into 
        the billions of dollars. According to a 2012 report from the 
        Federal Trade Commission, the total amount spent on food 
        marketing to children is about $2 billion a year.
            (5) Companies market food to children through television, 
        radio, Internet, magazines, product placement in movies and 
        video games, schools, product packages, toys, clothing and 
        other merchandise, and almost anywhere a logo or product image 
        can be shown.
            (6) According to a comprehensive review by the National 
        Academies' Institute of Medicine, studies demonstrate that 
        television food advertising affects children's food choices, 
        food purchase requests, diets, and health.
            (7) A 2005 report from the Institute of Medicine confirmed 
        that ``aggressive marketing of high-calorie foods to children 
        and adolescents has been identified as one of the major 
        contributors to childhood obesity''.
            (8) Nearly three-quarters of the foods advertised on 
        television shows intended for children are for sweets and 
        convenience or fast foods.
            (9) A study published in the Journal of Law and Economics 
        and funded by the National Institutes of Health found that the 
        elimination of the tax deduction that allows companies to 
        deduct costs associated with advertising food of poor 
        nutritional quality to children could reduce the rates of 
        childhood obesity by 5 to 7 percent.

SEC. 3. DENIAL OF DEDUCTION FOR ADVERTISING AND MARKETING DIRECTED AT 
              CHILDREN TO PROMOTE THE CONSUMPTION OF FOOD OF POOR 
              NUTRITIONAL QUALITY.

    (a) In General.--Part IX of subchapter B of chapter 1 of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:

``SEC. 280I. DENIAL OF DEDUCTION FOR ADVERTISING AND MARKETING DIRECTED 
              AT CHILDREN TO PROMOTE THE CONSUMPTION OF FOOD OF POOR 
              NUTRITIONAL QUALITY.

    ``(a) In General.--No deduction shall be allowed under this chapter 
with respect to--
            ``(1) any advertisement or marketing--
                    ``(A) primarily directed at children for purposes 
                of promoting the consumption by children of any food of 
                poor nutritional quality, or
                    ``(B) of a brand primarily associated with food of 
                poor nutritional quality that is primarily directed at 
                children, and
            ``(2) any of the following which are incurred or provided 
        primarily for purposes described in paragraph (1):
                    ``(A) Travel expenses (including meals and 
                lodging).
                    ``(B) Goods or services of a type generally 
                considered to constitute entertainment, amusement, or 
                recreation or the use of a facility in connection with 
                providing such goods and services.
                    ``(C) Gifts.
                    ``(D) Other promotion expenses.
    ``(b) IOM Study.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall enter into a 
        contract with the Institute of Medicine under which the 
        Institute of Medicine shall develop procedures for the 
        evaluation and identification of--
                    ``(A) food of poor nutritional quality, and
                    ``(B) brands that are primarily associated with 
                food of poor nutritional quality.
            ``(2) IOM report.--Not later than 12 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this section, the Institute of Medicine 
        shall submit to the Secretary a report that establishes the 
        proposed procedures described in paragraph (1).
    ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Brand.--The term `brand' means a corporate or product 
        name, a business image, or a mark, regardless of whether it may 
        legally qualify as a trademark, used by a seller or 
        manufacturer to identify goods or services and to distinguish 
        them from the goods of a competitor.
            ``(2) Child.--The term `child' means an individual who is 
        under the age of 14.
            ``(3) Food.--The term `food' shall include beverages, 
        candy, and chewing gum.
            ``(4) Marketing.--The term `marketing' means any product or 
        brand advertising or promotional techniques directed at 
        children, including--
                    ``(A) advertising (including product placement) on 
                television and radio, in print media, in social media, 
                and on the Internet (including third-party and company-
                sponsored websites),
                    ``(B) the use of characters or mascots, themes, 
                activities, incentives, or any other advertising or 
                promotional techniques contained on the packaging or 
                labeling of a product,
                    ``(C) advertising preceding a movie shown in a 
                movie theater or placed on a video (DVD or VHS) or 
                within a video game or mobile application,
                    ``(D) promotional content transmitted to 
                televisions, personal computers, and other digital or 
                mobile devices,
                    ``(E) advertising displays and promotions at the 
                retail site or events,
                    ``(F) specialty or premium items distributed in 
                connection with the sale of a product or a product 
                loyalty program,
                    ``(G) character licensing, toy co-branding and 
                cross-promotions,
                    ``(H) celebrity and athlete endorsements, and
                    ``(I) any advertising or promotional techniques 
                used within a school.
    ``(d) Regulations.--Not later than 18 months after the date of the 
enactment of this section, the Secretary, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Federal Trade 
Commission, shall promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to 
carry out the purposes of this section, including regulations defining 
the terms `directed at children', `food of poor nutritional quality', 
and `brand primarily associated with food of poor nutritional quality' 
for purposes of this section.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for such part IX is 
amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``Sec. 280I. Denial of deduction for advertising and marketing directed 
                            at children to promote the consumption of 
                            food of poor nutritional quality.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to amounts paid or incurred in taxable years beginning 24 months 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THE FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLE PROGRAM.

    In addition to any other amounts made available to carry out the 
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program under section 19 of the Richard B. 
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769a), the Secretary of 
the Treasury (or the Secretary's delegate) shall, on an annual basis, 
transfer to such program, from amounts in the general fund of the 
Treasury of the United States, an amount determined by the Secretary of 
the Treasury (or the Secretary's delegate) to be equal to the increase 
in revenue for the preceding 12-month period by reason of the 
amendments made by section 3 of this Act.
                                 <all>