[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 89 (Thursday, June 24, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H4930-H4952]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CHILD NUTRITION AND WIC REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2004
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the
Speaker's table the Senate bill (S. 2507) to amend the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966
to provide children with increased access to food and nutrition
assistance, to simplify program operations and improve program
management, to reauthorize child nutrition programs, and for other
purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.
The Clerk read the title of the Senate bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). Is there objection to the
request of the gentleman from Ohio?
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to
object, although I do not intend to object, I ask the gentleman to
offer an explanation of his request.
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. I yield to the gentleman from Ohio.
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding to me.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this measure, which represents
months of hard work and commitment to bipartisan cooperation.
In that spirit we have before us a bill that will extend the life of
the Federal child nutrition programs while strengthening program
integrity, ensuring effective use of Federal resources, and providing
continued nutritional services for millions of American children. And I
am pleased to have reached a bipartisan, bicameral consensus that
finally will allow the President to sign these important reforms into
law.
First and foremost, I want to recognize the gentleman from Delaware
(Mr. Castle), chairman; and the gentlewoman from California (Ms.
Woolsey), ranking member of the Education Reform Subcommittee, who
deserve a great deal of credit for their hard work and cooperation that
have brought this bill before us today. I also want to thank the
gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), the ranking member of
the committee, for his continued commitment to a bipartisan,
cooperative process.
The Federal child nutrition programs ensure millions of needy
children have access to nutritious meals. While we all know that a
healthful diet is necessary for children to achieve full physical
development and long-term health and is critical for academic success
as well in school, for this reason the investment in these programs is
considerable. And so is our obligation to ensure our Federal resources
are being used effectively and efficiently. Children and families
depend on Federal child nutrition programs, and they depend on us to
ensure that these programs are being administered with integrity.
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act extends the National
School Lunch and Breakfast programs; Child and Adult Care Food Program;
After-School Snack Program; the Summer Food Service Program; and the
Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and
Children, the WIC program. Taken together, the reforms in this bill
will help ensure we are making the most of Federal resources to improve
the nutritional health of children while being mindful of program
quality and integrity.
The bill before us strikes an important balance between our desire to
promote healthy nutritional choices and physical activity among
children and the need to preserve local control for our schools. The
gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle), the author of the House version
of this legislation, has been a leader in our efforts to reduce the
epidemic of child obesity by promoting a comprehensive approach that
includes nutrition education and physical activity. In particular, the
establishment of a local wellness policy, written at the local level to
reflect local needs, marks significant progress that will promote
nutrition education and increased physical activity in schools while
maintaining local control.
To improve integrity in the Federal child nutrition programs and
ensure access for eligible children, the legislation makes a number of
positive reforms. The bill allows children whose parents who are in the
Armed Forces and living in privatized military housing to continue to
receive free or reduced-price meals at school if they meet the
eligibility requirements. It also helps parents by allowing them to
submit a single application for multiple children and ensures
enrollment of eligible children through the use of direct certification
of school lunch eligibility for those children and families receiving
food stamps.
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act also takes steps to
reduce paperwork by allowing school lunch certifications to be valid
for 1 full year, preventing situations in which schools are forced to
repeatedly certify children within a single school year. The bill also
includes a provision originally proposed by the gentleman from Florida
(Mr. Keller) to help reduce the stigma amongst children receiving free
and reduced-priced lunches by helping schools make technological
improvements, such as automated meal card systems that keep students'
financial status confidential to increase the efficiency of program
operations.
In recognition of the success and popularity of the Fruit and
Vegetable Pilot program, which currently provides fresh and dried
fruits and fresh vegetables to children in 25 schools in each of four
States and one Indian reservation, I am pleased that the bill before us
authorizes the continuation and expansion of this valuable pilot
program.
And since this measure originally passed the House, we have worked
closely with Members on both sides of the aisle and in both legislative
bodies to reach a consensus, which is embodied in the bill that we have
before us today. And through that process, we have reached an agreement
on additional reforms that will further strengthen and improve child
nutrition programs. We have included a demonstration program that will
allow us to evaluate the impact of eliminating the reduced-price meal
category, an initiative many of us are interested in exploring, and
authorize six additional States, including my home State of Ohio, to
participate in the Lugar pilot program under the Summer Feeding
Program.
Additionally, I am pleased to have reached a commonsense solution to
address concerns about the most efficient use of taxpayer resources
particularly within the WIC program. The bill includes strong cost-
containment measures to ensure that WIC food costs and voucher payments
are consistent with competitive retail prices for supplemental foods.
And this will ensure efficient use of taxpayer dollars while protecting
our ability to serve the greatest number of eligible women, infants,
and children.
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act will prevent
important nutritional programs from expiring while ensuring that they
continue to operate effectively and efficiently. And I am pleased to
support this measure and would encourage my colleagues to do so.
There are a number of staff members from our committee who I believe
deserve special recognition and thanks. And they include Stephanie
Milburn, Krisann Pearce, Cindy Herrle, Julian Baer, Denise Forte, Linda
Theif. And I also want to thank Tyson Redpath on my staff and Sarah
Rittling on the gentleman from Delaware's (Mr. Castle) staff. And Kate
Houston, she wrote it. Kate Houston spent hundreds and hundreds and
hundreds of hours over this last year shepherding this and working with
staff on both sides of the aisle. And I think all of our colleagues
realize that we could not do the job that we do as Members without
having terrific staff, and on our committee we have got terrific staff
on both sides of the aisle. I want to thank all of them.
I include letters for the Record.
[[Page H4931]]
U.S. House of Representatives,
Committee on Agriculture,
Washington, DC, June 21, 2004.
Hon. John Boehner,
Chairman, House Committee on Education and the Workforce,
Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Boehner: As you are aware, the Senate
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry reported S.
2507, the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of
2004, on June 7. As reported, S. 2507 contains matters within
the jurisdiction of the Committee on Agriculture.
Section 104(b)(2) amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977, and
section 301 amends the Commodity Distribution Reform Act and
WIC Amendments of 1987. Both the Food Stamp Act and the
Commodity Distribution Act are within the jurisdiction of the
Committee on Agriculture. In the interest of expediting this
matter, however, our committee will not seek referral of S.
2507. I do so with the understanding that by discharging the
bill the Committee on Agriculture does not waive any future
jurisdictional claim over this or similar measures. In
addition, in the event a conference with the Senate is
requested on this matter, the Committee on Agriculture
reserves the right to seek appointment of conferees, if one
should become necessary.
I also ask that you insert a copy of our exchange of
letters in the Congressional Record during consideration of
S. 2507 on the Floor.
Sincerely,
Bob Goodlatte,
Chairman.
____
Committee on Education and the Workforce, U.S. House of
Representatives,
Washington, DC, June 22, 2004.
Hon. Bob Goodlatte,
Chairman, Committee on Agriculture, Longworth House Office
Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Goodlatte: This letter is to confirm our
agreement regarding S. 2507, the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization. I thank you for working with me,
specifically regarding the amendments included in the Senate
amendment specifically, Section 104(b)(2) Agreement for
Direct Certification and Cooperation and Title III, Commodity
Distribution Programs, which are within the jurisdiction of
the Committee on Agriculture.
While these provisions are within the jurisdiction of the
Committee on Agriculture, I appreciate your willingness to
work with me in moving S. 2507 forward without the need for
additional consideration in your Committee. I agree that this
procedural route should not be construed to prejudice the
jurisdictional interest and prerogatives of the Committee on
Agriculture on this provision or any other similar
legislation and will not be considered as precedent for
consideration of matters of jurisdictional interest to your
Committee in the future.
I thank you for working with me regarding this matter. I
will include a copy of your letter and this response in the
Congressional Record during consideration of S. 2507 on the
House floor.
Sincerely,
John A. Boehner,
Chairman.
____
Committee on Education and the Workforce, U.S. House of
Representatives,
Washington, DC, June 22, 2004.
Hon. Joe Barton,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Commerce, Rayburn House
Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Barton: This letter is to confirm our
agreement regarding S. 2507, the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization. I thank you for working with me,
specifically regarding the amendments included in the Senate
bill specifically, Section 105(b) Conforming Amendments and
Title IV, Miscellaneous which are within the jurisdiction of
the Committee on Energy and Commerce.
While these provisions are within the jurisdiction of the
Committee on Energy and Commerce, I appreciate your
willingness to work with me in moving S. 2507 forward without
the need for additional consideration in your Committee. I
agree that this procedural route should not be construed to
prejudice the jurisdictional interest and prerogatives of the
Committee on the Energy and Commerce on this provision or any
other similar legislation and will not be considered as
precedent for consideration of matters of jurisdictional
interest to your Committee in the future.
I thank you for working with me regarding this matter. I
will include a copy of this letter in the Congressional
Record during consideration of S. 2507 on the House floor.
Sincerely,
John A. Boehner,
Chairman.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman
for his explanation.
Continuing under my reservation of objection, I yield to the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey), ranking member of the
committee.
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding to
me.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 2507, the Child Nutrition and
WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. This reauthorizes the Federal child
nutrition programs, one of the most important bills I think that we
consider here in the House of Representatives. This has become, through
considerable effort on all sides, a bipartisan, bicameral bill. And I
thank my colleagues and staff on both sides of the aisle and in both
Chambers who have worked so hard and in such good faith.
A lot of positive compromises were made to get to this point. I think
that every Member who was involved in the negotiations, and even some
who were not, gave up something while gaining in the long run. But we
were determined all through the effort that the Federal child nutrition
programs would continue to provide nutritious food for low-income
infants and children at home, in child care centers, in family day care
homes, at school, and when school is out for the day or the year. And
that is what this bill before us today does.
While I would have liked to include a full expansion of the Free
Breakfast Program for all kids and tighter restrictions on the junk
food that is sold in schools, the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization Act does improve the Federal child nutrition programs
in many ways, and I am not going to list all those ways because we have
other people that would like to speak. But I want the Members to know
that those of us that are here support exactly what is in this bill,
and we are glad that we are able to support it. What I hope and what I
expect is that one of the most significant benefits to hungry children
since the first Federal school lunch, and that is the pilot program
that will allow five States to examine the impact of eliminating the
reduced/free category in school meals, that this will be a huge success
supported around the Nation so we will prove that children who have a
nutritious meal, a nutritious breakfast learn better, they have better
attendance, they have better scores on their tests, and they behave
better in school. So that we will have learned something very
significant by the end of this reauthorization. Our children will get
nutritious meals. They will get snacks. They will develop better eating
habits as a result of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization, and
I urge all my colleagues to support it.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman
for her explanation. And also I want to thank her for all of her hard
work and her advocacy on behalf of children in this program and
families in this program. She has very much made a difference in the
outcome of this legislation by her efforts.
Mr. Speaker, continuing under my reservation of objection, I yield to
the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) for his remarks.
Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman from
California for yielding to me. I also want to thank him for all of his
help and cooperation on this legislation; as well as the distinguished
gentleman in Ohio (Mr. Boehner) for his work; and obviously my ranking
member, with whom I worked closely on this; and particularly the staff,
Kate Houston, and Sarah on my staff, as well as all the other staff
people.
Obviously I rise in support of the legislation as well. The bill
before us today does represent several months of hard work,
cooperation, and dedication to strengthening nutritional services for
vulnerable children. I am pleased to have the bill before us and to
have an agreement that spans both sides of the aisle in addition to
both sides of the Capitol.
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 makes a
number of positive reforms focusing on reaching three main goals:
ensuring eligible children have access to services, promoting
comprehensive solutions to the health and nutrition of children, and
strengthening program integrity to ensure Federal resources are being
effectively leveraged to serve children who qualify. The bill
reauthorizes the National School Lunch and Breakfast programs, Child
and Adult Care Food Program, After-School Snack Program,
[[Page H4932]]
Summer Food Service Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition
Program for Women, Infants, and Children. I believe that in this bill
we have gone a long way in strengthening these programs on behalf of
disadvantaged children and their families.
While the bill includes a variety of important reforms, there are a
few I would like to mention specifically. With little money to work
with, we were able to increase access to child nutrition programs for
eligible children. For example, the bill extends participation for
eligible children whose parents are in the Armed Forces and living in
privatized military housing so these children may continue receiving
free or reduced-priced meals. This provision alone would benefit 250
children in my home State of Delaware and up to 100,000 children
nationwide.
The Federal Government invests roughly $16 billion annually in child
nutrition programs. Ensuring the effective use of these resources by
enhancing program integrity has been a top priority during the
reauthorization process. We have moved to ensure that children who
deserve these services are receiving them and not being excluded by
those who are not eligible. To this end, we have taken steps to reduce
administrative error, improve accuracy, and enhance accountability for
program administration.
Finally, I would like to highlight an issue of particular concern to
me, the growing problem of childhood obesity. During visits to schools
over the past several years, I have noticed a growing number of obese
children. We all recognize the fact that obesity has reached epidemic
proportions in our Nation. Defeating this crisis will require the work
of many, including schools, parents, government, the health community,
and industry.
The bill before us today also includes important steps to promote
comprehensive solutions to child health and nutrition, including
provisions to promote nutritional education and physical activity at
the State and local level.
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 is a result
of cooperative bipartisan and bicameral efforts to strengthen
nutritional services provided to needy children and families through
the various child nutrition programs. I would like to thank my
colleagues for their cooperation in bringing this bill forward, and I
urge its passage.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman
from Delaware for his explanation. I also want to thank him for all of
his work and his participation. He is one of those individuals in this
institution that makes a bipartisan agreement like this able to be
brought up on unanimous consent because of his cooperation and his
advocacy on behalf of our children. So I thank the gentleman from
Delaware (Mr. Castle).
Mr. Speaker, continuing under my reservation of objection, I yield to
the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews), a member of the committee.
Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California for
yielding to me.
I would like to thank the gentleman from Ohio (Chairman Boehner); the
gentleman from Delaware (Chairman Castle); the gentleman from
California (Mr. George Miller), our ranking member; and the gentlewoman
from California (Ms. Woolsey), ranking member of the subcommittee, for
their outstanding work that will benefit my constituents and children
throughout the country.
{time} 1430
I thank the gentleman for his cooperation and comity, and for working
with us on this.
I particularly want to thank the committee for incorporating three
issues in this bill that I was involved in working on with members on
both sides.
The first is a provision that will permit school districts to more
easily automatically enroll children in the child nutrition programs if
they are eligible for some other assistance program that has similar or
the same eligibility requirements. There are a lot of children who do
not get enrolled because their moms and dads do not send the forms back
or because there is some kinds of bureaucratic problem. This will help
many, many children, and it is greatly appreciated.
Secondly, I appreciate the committee's efforts to be sure that
children who attend private for-profit pre-kindergarten programs are
given full and equal opportunity to participate in this program.
Third, I salute the committee leadership for their very artful and
fair compromise on the issue of soy milk, which is important medically
and culturally for many children and many families. This will permit
parents who wish to make the choice of soy milk to make that choice.
I also want to commend the staff on both sides of the aisle for their
outstanding participation and help in this. I am proud to support this
bill.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, continuing my
reservation, I thank the gentleman for his remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to my colleague the gentlewoman from California
(Ms. Lee), and thank her for her participation in this legislation.
Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, first let me thank the chairman of the
subcommittee, the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle); the chairman of
the full committee, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner); my
colleague, our ranking member, the gentleman from California (Mr.
George Miller); and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) for
making sure that this is a bipartisan bill and for incorporating many
of our new policies and ideas into this bill, and ensuring that one
provision is included in the bill that I introduced actually back in
September of 2003, the Right to Know School Nutrition Act.
Basically, today over 27 million low-income children throughout the
nation have come to rely on the national school lunch program and the
national breakfast program for a healthy and nutritious meal.
Oftentimes this is the only source of nutrition that these kids will
receive all day, so it is incredibly important that we provide healthy,
nutritious meals to these students and we make sure we notify their
parents about what they are eating.
But, believe it or not, when it comes to the issue of irradiated
food, food that is bombarded with gamma rays or electrons, there is no
requirement in law that schools must notify their parents or their
children about what they are eating, or even that the irradiated food
was being served in school. This provision of the bill basically
notifies parents and children about irradiated food, while providing a
possible alternative, if the schools can so provide for that.
So I am very delighted that both the House and the other body have
seen fit to include a large part of my bill in this bill. I think it is
very important for the health and safety of our children. It is very
important that parents and children know that their food is irradiated
and have some alternatives for their health. That is basically what it
is about.
I just want to thank the chairman of the full committee, the chairman
of the subcommittee, our ranking member and the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Woolsey), our ranking subcommittee member, for all of
their assistance in this. I fully support the bill, and hope we have a
bipartisan vote.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, continuing to reserve
the right to object, I thank the gentlewoman for her remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Los Angeles, California
(Ms. Waters).
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004.
I am very pleased to commend my colleagues, the gentleman from Ohio
(Chairman Boehner); the ranking member the gentleman from California
(Mr. George Miller); and my good friend the gentlewoman from California
(Ms. Woolsey) on the wonderful work they have done, along with all of
the other members of the committee.
I just want to give recognition to the fact that there was some
controversy that developed around the WIC-only stores, but a good
compromise has been worked out, and the compromise language in the bill
is intended to make sure that the program serves the maximum number of
eligible women, infants and children.
The language is not intended to eliminate WIC-only stores or to force
the WIC-only stores to price their products less than the larger retail
stores.
[[Page H4933]]
The WIC-only operators have agreed that they will make their prices
more competitive, because that was one of the criticisms. I commend the
WIC-only stores for providing special services to limited English
speaking families and poor families that allows them to receive this
valuable service with dignity and respect. The language in the bill
also allows the WIC-only stores to use promotional items in the same
way that the larger retail stores are allowed to do.
I would like to thank again all of my colleagues for working this
out. The compromise language makes good sense, and this helps us to
move forward in ways that serve the maximum number of women, infants
and children.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, continuing my
reservation of objection, I thank the gentlewoman for her comments and
participation in the resolution of the issue concerning the WIC-only
stores.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the ranking
member for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentleman from Ohio (Chairman
Boehner) and the ranking member, the gentleman from California (Mr.
George Miller), as well as all of those who have actually been involved
to make sure that we had a good, solid, bipartisan piece of legislation
that affords the greatest opportunity for our school children to get
nutritious meals and to make sure that those individuals who are in
need of this kind of action on the part of our Congress do in fact
receive it.
I think this is one of the greatest examples of bipartisanship, of
the opportunity that people have to work cooperatively together. It has
been a great process, and I think the results are going to be even
greater.
So, again, I commend the chairman of the Committee on Education and
the Workforce, our ranking member, and, of course the ranking member of
my subcommittee, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey). It has
been a great process.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, continuing my
reservation, I thank the gentleman for his comments.
Mr. Speaker, I again want to support this legislation. I want to
thank the gentleman from Ohio (Chairman Boehner); the subcommittee
chairman, the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle); and the gentlewoman
from California (Ms. Woolsey) for all of their work and cooperation. I
know it continues to mystify some people in the House how the gentleman
from Ohio (Mr. Boehner) and I can continue to work together, and that
the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) can come to these bipartisan
agreements with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) on my
side.
We have serious philosophical differences on many issues, but we have
been able to put them aside from time to time on behalf of the children
of this Nation, and here I think we have made major improvements in
this legislation to the benefit of the 27 million children who
participate in this program every school day, to the 2 million children
who will participate in the summer feeding and the child care programs
in this country, and nearly 7.5 million poor women and children who
participate in the Women, Infants and Children program, a program that
has demonstrated that we get many, many, many times the return on the
money we invest in the WIC program in the reduction of health care
costs to the mother and the newborn child because we are able to
interact with them and give them good advice about their pregnancy,
about the birth of their child and about the care of their child in the
early moments of life.
It was almost 30 years ago this year in this Congress when I stood
here on a similar unanimous consent request to extend and make
permanent the Women, Infants and Children program. It has returned
billions of dollars in savings to this country, and, more importantly,
it has provided for millions of newborn babies to be born healthy, to
avoid the problems of low birth weight and their mothers the problems
of troubled pregnancies and premature births.
For that, we are very grateful to the people who work so hard in this
program to develop its nutritional benefits and its healthcare
benefits.
I also want to thank my colleagues for working so hard to try to
expand the efforts to eliminate and reduce paperwork and to make sure
that we are coordinating these programs with other programs, such as
the Medicaid agencies and food stamp offices, to make sure they know of
the accessibility to these programs, to remove the barriers to migrant
children and homeless and runaway youth and to expand the opportunities
to military families.
It is unfortunate that in this country we have so many people in
poverty or have such low wages, many of whom work the year-round, that
are eligible for this program, but it is also very fortunate for those
individuals and good for our country that we have this program to
extend these nutritional and health benefits to them.
I wish we would have been able to make a better statement, a greater
statement, and a better direction for this country on the problems of
childhood obesity. These rates have doubled in children and tripled in
adolescents in the last two decades. We cannot ignore the opportunity
we have to work with these children on a whole range of solutions to
the problems of obesity while we have them in school. One which is very
important to be transmitted to them is the benefit of a good and
healthy diet. This program should be compatible with those goals. I
hope we have sent a message to the program that we want them to develop
a healthier diet, a better diet, but we also want to send the message
of exercise, of healthy living outside of school by those young people.
Finally, we have all thanked one another, but this is a rare moment
in this session of Congress, in these 2 years, that stand here
reporting under unanimous consent a bipartisan piece of legislation of
this significance. So I do want to thank again the gentleman from Ohio
(Chairman Boehner) for all of his cooperation in moving this
legislation in a timely fashion, so we would have an opportunity to
work with the Senate; to the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) and
the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) for developing the
substance of this legislation, the changes in this legislation, the
reforms in this legislation and the expansion of opportunity for these
children and for their families.
I certainly want to thank Senator Harkin, who I came to Congress
with, for all of his hard and continuing work on child nutrition and
food programs in this Nation and internationally, and Chairman Cochran,
who I have had an opportunity to work with on so many programs
affecting children in literacy and nutrition and other benefits such as
that.
Finally, I want to thank the staff members of our committee. On our
side of the aisle, Lynda Theil, Denise Forte and Joe Novotny; the
people from CRS, Joe Richardson and Donna Porter, who provided us so
much technical assistance and expertise; to Tyson Redpath on the staff
of the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), and Sarah Rittling on the
staff of the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle); and the Republican
staff in the House, Kate Houston, Stephanie Milburn, Sally Lovejoy,
Krisann Pearce and Julian Baer, for all of their work, for their
consistence.
The fact of the matter is, it was the cooperation among the staffs
that allowed this bill to be reported on a timely basis as we come
toward the end of this session of Congress.
I would also like to thank Derek Miller of Senator Harkin's staff and
Dave Johnson of Senator Cochran's staff.
Mr. Speaker, I think the House and the Senate can be very proud of
this legislation, and I know that those individuals, the American
School Food Service Association, the Food Research and Action Center,
the WIC directors, the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association,
the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, and so many others that I
will submit for the Record, were great advocates of the improvements
made in this legislation and the expansion of nutritional and health
opportunities for the participants.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the list of supporters of this
legislation.
American Association of School Administrators.
[[Page H4934]]
American Commodity Distribution Association.
American Dietetic Association.
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal
Employees (AFSCME).
American School Food Service Association (ASFSA).
America's Second Harvest.
Anti Hunger Action Committee.
Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs.
Bread for the World.
Catholic Charities USA.
Central Coast Hunger Coalition.
Chicago Jobs Council.
Children's Defense Fund.
Children's Foundation.
Coalition of Labor Union Women.
Coalition of Religious Communities (Utah).
Coalition on Human Needs.
Colorado Anti-Hunger Network.
Colorado Center on Law and Policy.
Community Food Security Coalition.
Congressional Hunger Center.
Connecticut Association for Human Services.
Crossroads Urban Center.
Denver Urban Ministries.
EBT Industry Council of the Electronic Funds Transfer
Association.
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Food and Allied Service Trades Department (FAST), AFL-CIO.
Food Research and Action Center (FRAC).
FOOD Share, Inc.
Greater Upstate Law Project, NY.
Green Consulting Services, Miami, FL.
Hudson Valley Poverty Law Center, NY.
Human Services Coalition of Dade County.
Hunger Action Network of New York State.
I Am Your Child Foundation.
Indiana Coalition on Housing and Homeless Issues, Inc.
Institute Justice Team, Sisters of Mercy of the Americas.
Jewish Council for Public Affairs.
Just Harvest, Pittsburgh, PA.
Lutheran Advocacy Ministry--Colorado.
Migrant Legal Action Program.
Monterey County Farm to School Partnership.
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good
Shepherd.
National Association for the Education of Young Children
(NAEYC).
National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems.
National Association of State Boards of Education.
National Coalition for the Homeless.
National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA.
National Council of Jewish Women.
National Farmers Union.
National Grange.
National Head Start Association.
National Priorities Project.
National PTA.
National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness.
National WIC Association (NWA).
National Women's Law Center.
Northeast Missouri Client Council for Human Needs, Inc.
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Washington Office.
Public Children Services Association of Ohio.
Public Interest Law Office of Rochester, NY.
Public Justice Center.
RESULTS.
Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Cruz and San Benito
Counties.
Share Our Strength (SOS).
The Advocacy for the Poor, Inc., Winston-Salem, NC.
The Partnership Center, Ltd.
Union for Reform Judaism.
United Food and Commercial Workers International Union
(UFCW).
United Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Association.
WHEAT, Phoenix, AZ.
Women of Reform Judaism.
World Hunger Year.
Mr. KENNEDY of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support
of S. 2507, the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act. Federal
child nutrition programs were conceived to offer wholesome meals and
snacks to children in need, and to support the health of lower-income
pregnant women, new mothers, and their young children. Federal child
nutrition programs touch the lives of countless children. The National
School Lunch Program alone serves an average of 29 million children
each school day. Fifty-eight percent of these children receive a
nutritious lunch each school day for free or at a reduced price. Nearly
eleven million children also take part in school breakfast, after-
school snacks, and summer meals. These programs provide an
extraordinary opportunity to send a strong, consistent message to
children about maintaining a healthy, active lifestyle.
Along with nutritional provisions, this legislation works to
streamline the eligibility criteria and paperwork parents and guardians
need to participate. For schools, lunch certifications will now be
valid for a full year. Additionally, parents will be allowed to submit
a single application for multiple children, and to file school lunch
applications electronically. And, eligible children whose parents live
in privatized military housing will continue to receive free- or
reduced-price meals.
This bill also addresses the Women, Infant and Children program
commonly know as WIC. This important program helps safeguard the health
of nutritionally at-risk pregnant women and new mothers, infants, and
children up to age five. It provides vital nutrient-dense foods to
supplement diets, along with nutrition education and referrals for
health care and other social services. WIC is based on the premise that
early intervention programs can prevent future medical and
developmental problems in at-risk individuals. The success of WIC is
well documented. Participation in WIC has led to better pregnancy
outcomes--fewer infant deaths, fewer premature births, and increased
birth weights. Through this legislation, WIC is authorized through 2009
and a number of enhancements are made to program access and operations.
Finally, this bill also ensures that supplemental foods available
through WIC are consistent with current nutritional science, a key link
in fighting youth obesity. Mr. Speaker, The Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization Act will help strengthen and improve all these programs
which are so valuable to children and their families. I urge my
colleagues to support this important legislation and yield back the
balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2507, the
bipartisan bill to reauthorize the Child Nutrition and WIC Programs. In
this hot political climate, I am pleased to see that members crossed
the aisle to compromise in the interests of hungry children. There are
a number of provisions in this bill which will improve the program
through increased access and innovative programs.
Migrant and seasonal farm working families, the families that put
food on our tables, face unique challenges in accessing this program.
The average farm worker earns just $7,500 a year--leaving most of their
families well below poverty level. The hardships that the children in
these families face are only amplified by their migratory lifestyle.
Their parents, who are poor, uneducated, and often with limited
literacy in their native language, face many barriers helping their
children apply for services every time they move. S. 2507 would make
homeless, runaway and migrant children automatically eligible for free
lunch and breakfast. It will extend automatic eligibility to children
who qualify for migrant educational services under the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act.
It will be easier for parents to apply for free or reduced price
meals by requiring only one application for the household and making
that application valid for the full school year. Additionally, children
in Food Stamp and TANF households will be directly certified to
participate in the program.
Common sense and scientific knowledge tells us that eating breakfast
improves school performance. Yet a number of barriers keep schools from
offering this service, ranging from cost, stigma, and transportation.
This bill would encourage more schools to serve breakfast by studying
the logistical impediments that make it difficult, and finding ways to
reduce those impediments.
Children who are hungry during the school day suffer even more during
the summer when the appropriate resources are not available. S. 2507
authorizes a new pilot project to examine ways to reduce transportation
barriers and increase access to summer feeding programs in rural areas.
Childhood obesity has become a national epidemic. Nearly a quarter of
Hispanic children are overweight, and at high risk for Type II
Diabetes. This program is in the position to significantly impact this
national health crisis. In addition to requiring schools to create a
wellness policy, this bill would authorize grants for outreach and
education on obesity prevention activities to communities with high
Limited English Proficiency populations.
This bill would expand the Fruit and Vegetable Pilot program,
allowing it to target high poverty areas. Additionally, it authorizes
an evaluation of the impact of fruits and vegetables on childhood
obesity through pilot programs in WIC.
I stand today in support of this reauthorization bill because it
offers real solutions to families and children who are most in need of
our help. S. 2507 is a comprehensive piece of legislation that
increases access, simplifies the application process, offers outreach,
creates innovative pilot programs for targeted communities, and
promotes the health and well being of all children served in the
program. I encourage my colleagues to support this important bipartisan
reauthorization.
Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 2507, The
Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. I would like to
commend the leadership of the Education and the Workforce Committee and
the Senate Agriculture Committee for negotiating a bipartisan bill that
will improve access to the child nutrition programs.
[[Page H4935]]
I am pleased that this compromise bill contains a number of
provisions that were supported by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and
national Hispanic organizations. S. 2507 will make a difference for
Hispanic children and families.
Measures to allow for the direct certification of migrant students
and the direct verification of eligibility will protect our most at
risk students from being dropped from the program, not for lack of
eligibility but for lack of understanding or fear.
The provisions to ensure that school lunch information--throughout
the entire process--is in a language and form that the parents can
understand will go a long way to building understanding and trust.
These are significant improvements to the program.
Additionally, the bill strengthens nutrition education. Childhood
obesity and diabetes are reaching epidemic proportions in the Hispanic
community and across the Nation. We must do more to help young people
develop healthy lifestyles. This legislation is a step in the right
direction.
S. 2507 provides important resources to expand access through
innovative programs. The bill expands the Lugar summer food program,
establishes a pilot program for rural areas, and allows 5 states to
examine the impact of replacing the reduced priced lunches with free
lunches--a goal that has strong bipartisan support.
This legislation also takes steps to safeguard the integrity of the
WIC program, ensuring that WIC food packages reach the maximum number
of women, infants, and children.
I urge my colleagues to vote yes on S. 2507.
Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Child Nutrition
and Women, Infants, and Children reauthorization bill. These vital
programs--school lunch and breakfast programs, after-school snack
programs, WIC--improve the day-to-day-lives of American families. WIC
touches the lives of every 5 people in the United States, including
over 37 million children and nearly 2 million lower-income and
postpartum women. It guarantees young women and their children receive
adequate nutrition and health advice--preventing future illnesses and
other health problems.
Our experience with the WIC nutrition program shows that it is a
sound and wise long-term investment that pays off by improving the
health and development of the women and young children who participate
in the program. Each dollar invested in WIC saves more than three
dollars in other government spending on programs such as Medicaid. WIC
helps young mothers and their children start off on the right foot and
saves money at the same time.
As a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture,
I work every year with my colleagues to ensure sufficient funding for
the WIC program and to enact measures to streamline and improve the
integrity of the program. But while I am largely pleased with the bill
the other body produced, it unfortunately did not expand the school
lunch program to all children who are in need.
There is no more important measure of our nation's values than how we
care for and ensure the health and nutrition of our children--none.
We still have a way to go with respect to the full funding of WIC
this year. But I am encouraged by this reauthorization, Mr. Speaker,
and will continue to work toward fully funding the program in the
coming year.
Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this Child Nutrition Act.
This bill is a step in the right direction of important reforms in
federal child nutrition programs. I would like to thank Chairmen
Boehner, and Castle and Ranking Members Miller and Woolsey for their
hard work on the bill. I would also like to thank the Chairman for
taking my amendment during the committee process eliminating the cost-
accounting requirement for severe need breakfast programs.
This paperwork problem was brought to my attention by the Director of
the New Jersey Child Nutrition Programs, Kathy Kuser. Many states, such
as New Jersey, Wisconsin and Illinois, are making significant efforts
to improve their school breakfast participation rate, and reducing the
paperwork requirements would help these efforts.
Under current law, schools would qualify for severe-need breakfast
assistance if at least 40 percent of the lunches served during the
second preceding school year were free or reduced price. They calculate
their cost per breakfast by prorating their labor costs, and figuring
out their food, supplies and other costs associated with the school
breakfast program. They have to save their receipts and calculations
and submit them in order to get the severe-need reimbursement. Removing
the cost-accounting requirement would be a significant paperwork
reduction for the schools without significantly increasing cost for the
government.
I also want to commend the committee for including direct
certification for children from food stamp households for free school
meals. Many schools are not aware of this method to determine
eligibility for free meals. Direct certification improves access to
free school lunches and improves program integrity, according to a
study done by Mathematica.
I am also pleased to see a bill authorizing grants for ``farm-to-
cafeteria'' projects, including nutrition education activities. These
activities incorporate the participation of school children in farm and
agricultural education projects and procure local foods from small- and
medium-sized farms for school meals.
The expansion of eligibility for Child and Adult Care Food Program
(CACFP) for children in shelters from age 13 to 18 who live in domestic
violence shelters and homeless shelters is a wonderful improvement to
the previous child nutrition legislation. My constituents who
participate in Mercer Street Friends, Anchor House, Triad House, Family
Preservation Center (Homefront) and the Family Preservation House would
benefit from this change to CACFP eligibility. These organizations
depend on food donations to feed their clients who are nutritionally at
risk and should be eligible for this important nutrition support
program.
Finally, I am pleased to see that the bill we are considering today
has some positive improvements to the bill that first passed in March.
The bill now authorizes grants to states for comprehensive nutrition
education and physical activity programs.
It also authorizes grants to schools for nutrition and physical
activity projects. Today's bill provides training and technical
assistance to schools to develop healthy school nutrition environments
and local wellness policies.
The bill also expands from 5 to 8 the number of states participating
in the successful Fruit and Vegetable Pilot.
Mr. Speaker, once again I want to thank my colleagues and their
staffs on the for their hard work. I ask my colleagues to support this
bill, which will eliminate barriers to participation for low-income
children and families and ensure greater access to these critical
nutrition programs.
Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act. As a member of the Education and
the Workforce or Committee, I am pleased with the process in which this
bill has been considered; it is a critical bill that will greatly
benefit our nation's children as well as family farmers.
Ensuring that our youth receive proper nutrition is a top priority
for me in Congress. I have traveled across western Wisconsin, meeting
with people both in and out of the schools who are active in
administering child nutrition programs, and consistently I hear how
important these programs are for our youth. I have also met with
parents and children who participate, and I hear how many of these
families depend on federal child nutrition programs for a healthy start
in life and healthy meals as their children grow. Sadly, too often, a
federally subsidized meal is the only complete meal some children eat
in a day. This reality underscores the importance of this bill that
will improve access to such important programs while also increasing
the nutritional value of federal food programs.
Specifically, I am pleased that several provisions were included in
the base bill, which I coauthored in previous legislation. H.R. 3250,
the Child Nutrition Improvement Act of 2003, which I sponsored with
Representatives Bennie Thompson, Gil Gutknecht, and Tom Petri, will
combat the increasing problem of child obesity through increased child
milk consumption by preventing commercial beverage companies from
pressuring schools to remove milk vending machines. Another provision
included in the base bill from H.R. 3250 will improve child nutrition
by making it easier for schools to offer milk in a variety of flavors
and fat contents to better meet students' varying tastes and needs.
With 90 percent of teenage girls and 70 percent of teenage boys
currently not getting enough calcium, it is imperative to provide
increased availability of milk products in schools.
Additionally, S. 2507 includes legislation that I sponsored with
Representative Upton, H.R. 2626, The Farm-to-Cafeteria Projects Act of
2003. This provision focuses on connecting local agriculture to schools
in every state through a competitive, one-time matching grant directly
to local communities. This allows each locality to design a farm-to-
cafeteria project tailored to specific farm and school community needs.
Experience has shown that kids' food choices can be improved by
connecting farms to the lunchroom.
Mr. Speaker, again, I am proud to support this bill on the Floor
today. Our goal in the 21st century should be to ensure that every
child receives proper nutrition needed to succeed in school. It is a
simple fact: good nutrition is an educational tool that improves
children's performance in school.
Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Child Nutrition and
WIC Reauthorization Act today.
I support child nutrition programs. The link between child nutrition
and academic performance is a strong one, and I believe we need
[[Page H4936]]
to do everything we can to make sure these programs are available to
the children who need them most.
Under current law, reduced-price school meals are offered only to
children with family incomes between 130 percent and 185 percent of the
poverty level. Many families in the reduced-price income category find
it difficult to pay the fee. As a result, many children who could
benefit from the program do not.
I am pleased the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act
incorporates a pilot program to evaluate the effect of legislation I
introduced which provides free meals under the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act to all children whose family incomes are less
than 185 percent of the poverty line.
Under my legislation, each year the income eligibility threshold for
free meals would rise, so that by the beginning of the school year that
begins July 1, 2008, all children who are currently eligible for a
reduced-price meal would be eligible for a free meal.
For Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District, this means 3,943
more children would be eligible for free meals, an increase of 13
percent.
S. 2507 would authorize a demonstration program in five States or
parts of States to evaluate the impact of eliminating the reduced-price
meal category.
The bottom line is reducing school hunger will increase academic
performance.
Children cannot learn on an empty stomach. We need to ensure all
children who can't afford lunches have guaranteed access to free meals.
With the bounty of food we have in America, there is no reason for a
child to be hungry in school. I urge support of this legislation.
Mr. CARTER. Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of S. 2507, Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004, which includes language
that I offered to stop infant formula theft.
Stolen infant formula is a major problem throughout the country,
including the State of Texas.
In 2003, international crime rings stole as much as $2.5 million
worth of baby formula a month in Texas, and testimony before Congress
revealed that some of the proceeds may go to fund terrorism.
After being stolen, the formula was stored and sometimes repackaged
with phony expiration dates, then it was sold to small convenience
stores in the United States.
This legislation requires State agencies to license and maintain a
list of infant formula manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and
retailers approved to provide infant formula to vendors.
This section closes a loophole that would allow crime rings to steal
infant formula and resell this formula to retailers, who often are
unaware that the formula was stolen.
This list would include food manufacturers, wholesalers,
distributors, and retailers licensed in the State to distribute infant
formula and food manufacturers registered with the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration that provide infant formula, with vendors required to
purchase infant formula from the list.
The stolen formula is often resold to customers using vouchers from
the federally funded Women, Infants, and Children program.
I want to thank Education and the Workforce Chairman John Boehner and
the Subcommittee on Education Reform Chairman Michael Castle, along
with this staff, Kate Howston and Stephanie Milburn for their important
work on this legislation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I urge that my colleagues support this
important legislation.
Mr. OSBORNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this
legislation, which will do so much to assist children across the
county.
I would like to point out a few things specifically that I believe
make this an excellent reauthorization. We all know that childhood
obesity has grown to epidemic proportions. The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention estimates that over 15 percent of children ages
6 to 11 were overweight in 1999 and 2000, more than triple the average
of 4.2 percent from 1962 to 1970.
While this bill does not dictate to a school how to set priorities on
nutrition and exercise, it does require schools to set locally
determined wellness policies that encourage nutrition and physical
activity. Although this language does not go as far as I would
personally like to see, I believe it is a strong step in the right
direction and I applaud the Chairman of the Education and the Workforce
Committee Mr. Boehner, and especially Chairman of the Subcommittee on
Education Reform, Mr. Castle for their efforts in this area.
In addition, the bill authorizes and expands the fresh fruit and
vegetable pilot program, which is currently operating in a number of
schools around the country with tremendous success. The bill also
strengthens partnerships between local schools and local farmers in an
effort to see more locally grown produce on school lunch tables.
I think this is a fair bill, a good bill, and our Nation's children
will benefit from the commonsense reforms in this legislation. I urge
passage of S. 2507.
Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2507. I thank
Chairman Boehner and Mr. Castle for work on this legislation. I
particularly thank them for their willingness to retain direct
certification of migrant children and policies promoting wellness
during negotiations with the Senate.
This legislation works to protect eligible children's access to the
child nutrition programs by extending automatic eligibility to children
who qualify for migrant educational services under Title 1, part C of
the No Child Left Behind Act. It allows for direct certification of
migrant children if they are identified by the district's migrant
education coordinator. Such a change makes it easier for migrant
children to receive school meals as soon as they enter a new school.
In addition, this legislation promotes nutritional education and
physical activity. I am very pleased that this legislation promotes
such education and physical activity at the state and local levels to
prevent childhood obesity. I am hopeful that the local school wellness
policies, which will be established by schools participating in the
school nutrition programs, will promote health and prevent childhood
obesity throughout schools in Michigan and throughout the Nation.
Finally, I support strengthening partnerships between local
agriculture and schools. I cosponsored Representative Upton and
Representative Kind's Farm-To-Cafeteria Projects Act, and I am pleased
to see these provisions included. This legislation will promote
partnerships between local Michigan farms and the child nutrition
programs to ensure that children receive fresh and local produce.
In closing, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004.
Mr. KELLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 2507,
the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004.
I support this legislation not only because it strengthens the
current school lunch program, but more specifically, it will reduce the
stigma among children receiving free and reduced-priced lunches by
helping schools make technological improvements, such as automated
``meal card'' systems, that keep students' financial status
confidential so that children aren't embarrassed or singled out in the
lunch line in front of their peers as participants in the free or
reduced lunch program.
I am pleased that yesterday the Senate passed this legislation, and
followed the House in incorporating my ``Pride in the Lunch Line Act''
legislation to allow schools access to existing Federal funds to
purchase technology that will allow low-income children to go through
the lunch line without the stigma or embarrassment of being identified
as recipients of the free or reduced lunch program.
I modeled my legislation after a program in one of my local school
districts, Lake County, Florida, that uses technology to enable every
child to go through the school lunch line without being identified as a
free or reduced lunch program recipient. Regardless of family income,
every child has the same debit card which either their parents deposit
money into or is funded by the program.
This legislation will expand existing Federal funds to allow more
schools across the Nation to implement similar technology programs as
Lake County did, reduce the stigma for students, and reduce the
paperwork for schools.
I encourage my colleagues to vote for the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization Act of 2004. Let's help children eat their lunch with
pride.
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my
reservation of objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). Is there objection to the
request of the gentleman from Ohio?
There was no objection.
The Clerk read the Senate bill, as follows:
S. 2507
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; Table of contents.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO RICHARD B. RUSSELL NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH ACT
Sec. 101. Nutrition promotion.
Sec. 102. Nutrition requirements.
Sec. 103. Provision of information.
Sec. 104. Direct certification.
Sec. 105. Household applications.
Sec. 106. Duration of eligibility for free or reduced price meals.
Sec. 107. Runaway, homeless, and migrant youth.
Sec. 108. Certification by local educational agencies.
Sec. 109. Exclusion of military housing allowances.
Sec. 110. Waiver of requirement for weighted averages for nutrient
analysis.
[[Page H4937]]
Sec. 111. Food safety.
Sec. 112. Purchases of locally produced foods.
Sec. 113. Special assistance.
Sec. 114. Food and nutrition projects integrated with elementary
school curricula.
Sec. 115. Procurement training.
Sec. 116. Summer food service program for children.
Sec. 117. Commodity distribution program.
Sec. 118. Notice of irradiated food products.
Sec. 119. Child and adult care food program.
Sec. 120. Fresh fruit and vegetable program.
Sec. 121. Summer food service residential camp eligibility.
Sec. 122. Access to local foods and school gardens.
Sec. 123. Year-round services for eligible entities.
Sec. 124. Free lunch and breakfast eligibility.
Sec. 125. Training, technical assistance, and food service management
institute.
Sec. 126. Administrative error reduction.
Sec. 127. Compliance and accountability.
Sec. 128. Information clearinghouse.
Sec. 129. Program evaluation.
TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO CHILD NUTRITION ACT OF 1966
Sec. 201. Severe need assistance.
Sec. 202. State administrative expenses.
Sec. 203. Special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants,
and children.
Sec. 204. Local wellness policy.
Sec. 205. Team nutrition network.
Sec. 206. Review of best practices in the breakfast program.
TITLE III--COMMODITY DISTRIBUTION PROGRAMS
Sec. 301. Commodity distribution programs.
TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS
Sec. 401. Sense of Congress regarding efforts to prevent and reduce
childhood obesity.
TITLE V--IMPLEMENTATION
Sec. 501. Guidance and regulations.
Sec. 502. Effective dates.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO RICHARD B. RUSSELL NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH ACT
SEC. 101. NUTRITION PROMOTION.
The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act is amended
by inserting after section 4 (42 U.S.C. 1753) the following:
``SEC. 5. NUTRITION PROMOTION.
``(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of funds
made available under subsection (g), the Secretary shall make
payments to State agencies for each fiscal year, in
accordance with this section, to promote nutrition in food
service programs under this Act and the school breakfast
program established under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1771 et seq.).
``(b) Total Amount for Each Fiscal Year.--The total amount
of funds available for a fiscal year for payments under this
section shall equal not more than the product obtained by
multiplying--
``(1) \1/2\ cent; by
``(2) the number of lunches reimbursed through food service
programs under this Act during the second preceding fiscal
year in schools, institutions, and service institutions that
participate in the food service programs.
``(c) Payments to States.--
``(1) Allocation.--Subject to paragraph (2), from the
amount of funds available under subsection (g) for a fiscal
year, the Secretary shall allocate to each State agency an
amount equal to the greater of--
``(A) a uniform base amount established by the Secretary;
or
``(B) an amount determined by the Secretary, based on the
ratio that--
``(i) the number of lunches reimbursed through food service
programs under this Act in schools, institutions, and service
institutions in the State that participate in the food
service programs; bears to
``(ii) the number of lunches reimbursed through the food
service programs in schools, institutions, and service
institutions in all States that participate in the food
service programs.
``(2) Reductions.--The Secretary shall reduce allocations
to State agencies qualifying for an allocation under
paragraph (1)(B), in a manner determined by the Secretary, to
the extent necessary to ensure that the total amount of funds
allocated under paragraph (1) is not greater than the amount
appropriated under subsection (g).
``(d) Use of Payments.--
``(1) Use by state agencies.--A State agency may reserve,
to support dissemination and use of nutrition messages and
material developed by the Secretary, up to--
``(A) 5 percent of the payment received by the State for a
fiscal year under subsection (c); or
``(B) in the case of a small State (as determined by the
Secretary), a higher percentage (as determined by the
Secretary) of the payment.
``(2) Disbursement to schools and institutions.--Subject to
paragraph (3), the State agency shall disburse any remaining
amount of the payment to school food authorities and
institutions participating in food service programs described
in subsection (a) to disseminate and use nutrition messages
and material developed by the Secretary.
``(3) Summer food service program for children.--In
addition to any amounts reserved under paragraph (1), in the
case of the summer food service program for children
established under section 13, the State agency may--
``(A) retain a portion of the funds made available under
subsection (c) (as determined by the Secretary); and
``(B) use the funds, in connection with the program, to
disseminate and use nutrition messages and material developed
by the Secretary.
``(e) Documentation.--A State agency, school food
authority, and institution receiving funds under this section
shall maintain documentation of nutrition promotion
activities conducted under this section.
``(f) Reallocation.--The Secretary may reallocate, to carry
out this section, any amounts made available to carry out
this section that are not obligated or expended, as
determined by the Secretary.
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to
carry out this section, to remain available until
expended.''.
SEC. 102. NUTRITION REQUIREMENTS.
Section 9(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(a)) is amended by striking
paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
``(2) Fluid milk.--
``(A) In general.--Lunches served by schools participating
in the school lunch program under this Act--
``(i) shall offer students fluid milk in a variety of fat
contents;
``(ii) may offer students flavored and unflavored fluid
milk and lactose-free fluid milk; and
``(iii) shall provide a substitute for fluid milk for
students whose disability restricts their diet, on receipt of
a written statement from a licensed physician that identifies
the disability that restricts the student's diet and that
specifies the substitute for fluid milk.
``(B) Substitutes.--
``(i) Standards for substitution.--A school may substitute
for the fluid milk provided under subparagraph (A), a
nondairy beverage that is nutritionally equivalent to fluid
milk and meets nutritional standards established by the
Secretary (which shall, among other requirements to be
determined by the Secretary, include fortification of
calcium, protein, vitamin A, and vitamin D to levels found in
cow's milk) for students who cannot consume fluid milk
because of a medical or other special dietary need other than
a disability described in subparagraph (A)(iii).
``(ii) Notice.--The substitutions may be made if the school
notifies the State agency that the school is implementing a
variation allowed under this subparagraph, and if the
substitution is requested by written statement of a medical
authority or by a student's parent or legal guardian that
identifies the medical or other special dietary need that
restricts the student's diet, except that the school shall
not be required to provide beverages other than beverages the
school has identified as acceptable substitutes.
``(iii) Excess expenses borne by school food authority.--
Expenses incurred in providing substitutions under this
subparagraph that are in excess of expenses covered by
reimbursements under this Act shall be paid by the school
food authority.
``(C) Restrictions on sale of milk prohibited.--A school
that participates in the school lunch program under this Act
shall not directly or indirectly restrict the sale or
marketing of fluid milk products by the school (or by a
person approved by the school) at any time or any place--
``(i) on the school premises; or
``(ii) at any school-sponsored event.''.
SEC. 103. PROVISION OF INFORMATION.
Section 9(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(a)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(4) Provision of information.--
``(A) Guidance.--Prior to the beginning of the school year
beginning July 2004, the Secretary shall issue guidance to
States and school food authorities to increase the
consumption of foods and food ingredients that are
recommended for increased serving consumption in 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).
``(B) Rules.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall promulgate
rules, based on the most recent Dietary Guidelines for
Americans, that reflect specific recommendations, expressed
in serving recommendations, for increased consumption of
foods and food ingredients offered in school nutrition
programs under this Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966
(42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.).''.
SEC. 104. DIRECT CERTIFICATION.
(a) In General.--Section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (7) as
paragraphs (9) through (13), respectively; and
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (B)--
(i) by striking ``(B) Applications'' and inserting the
following:
``(B) Applications and descriptive material.--
``(i) In general.--Applications'';
(ii) in the second sentence, by striking ``Such forms and
descriptive material'' and inserting the following:
``(ii) Income eligibility guidelines.--Forms and
descriptive material distributed in accordance with clause
(i)''; and
[[Page H4938]]
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(iii) Contents of descriptive material.--
``(I) In general.--Descriptive material distributed in
accordance with clause (i) shall contain a notification
that--
``(aa) participants in the programs listed in subclause
(II) may be eligible for free or reduced price meals; and
``(bb) documentation may be requested for verification of
eligibility for free or reduced price meals.
``(II) Programs.--The programs referred to in subclause
(I)(aa) are--
``(aa) the special supplemental nutrition program for
women, infants, and children established by section 17 of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786);
``(bb) the food stamp program established under the Food
Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.);
``(cc) the food distribution program on Indian reservations
established under section 4(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977
(7 U.S.C. 2013(b)); and
``(dd) a State program funded under the program of block
grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families
established under part A of title IV of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).'';
(B) by striking ``(C)(i)'' and inserting ``(3)''; and
(C) by striking clause (ii) of subparagraph (C) (as it
existed before the amendment made by subparagraph (B)) and
all that follows through the end of subparagraph (D) and
inserting the following:
``(4) Direct certification for children in food stamp
households.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (D), each State
agency shall enter into an agreement with the State agency
conducting eligibility determinations for the food stamp
program established under the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7
U.S.C. 2011 et seq.).
``(B) Procedures.--Subject to paragraph (6), the agreement
shall establish procedures under which a child who is a
member of a household receiving assistance under the food
stamp program shall be certified as eligible for free lunches
under this Act and free breakfasts under the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), without further
application.
``(C) Certification.--Subject to paragraph (6), under the
agreement, the local educational agency conducting
eligibility determinations for a school lunch program under
this Act and a school breakfast program under the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.) shall certify
a child who is a member of a household receiving assistance
under the food stamp program as eligible for free lunches
under this Act and free breakfasts under the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), without further
application.
``(D) Applicability.--This paragraph applies to--
``(i) in the case of the school year beginning July 2006, a
school district that had an enrollment of 25,000 students or
more in the preceding school year;
``(ii) in the case of the school year beginning July 2007,
a school district that had an enrollment of 10,000 students
or more in the preceding school year; and
``(iii) in the case of the school year beginning July 2008
and each subsequent school year, each local educational
agency.''.
(b) Administration.--
(1) In general.--Section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)) (as amended by
subsection (a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph (4)
the following:
``(5) Discretionary certification.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to paragraph (6), any local
educational agency may certify any child as eligible for free
lunches or breakfasts, without further application, by
directly communicating with the appropriate State or local
agency to obtain documentation of the status of the child
as--
``(i) a member of a family that is receiving assistance
under the temporary assistance for needy families program
funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) that the Secretary determines
complies with standards established by the Secretary that
ensure that the standards under the State program are
comparable to or more restrictive than those in effect on
June 1, 1995;
``(ii) a homeless child or youth (defined as 1 of the
individuals described in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a(2));
``(iii) served by the runaway and homeless youth grant
program established under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act
(42 U.S.C. 5701 et seq.); or
``(iv) a migratory child (as defined in section 1309 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
6399)).''.
``(B) Children of households receiving food stamps.--
Subject to paragraph (6), any local educational agency may
certify any child as eligible for free lunches or breakfasts,
without further application, by directly communicating with
the appropriate State or local agency to obtain documentation
of the status of the child as a member of a household that is
receiving food stamps under the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7
U.S.C. 2011 et seq.).
``(6) Use or disclosure of information.--
``(A) In general.--The use or disclosure of any information
obtained from an application for free or reduced price meals,
or from a State or local agency referred to in paragraph
(3)(F), (4), or (5), shall be limited to--
``(i) a person directly connected with the administration
or enforcement of this Act or the Child Nutrition Act of 1966
(42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.) (including a regulation promulgated
under either Act);
``(ii) a person directly connected with the administration
or enforcement of--
``(I) a Federal education program;
``(II) a State health or education program administered by
the State or local educational agency (other than a program
carried out under title XIX or XXI of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.)); or
``(III) a Federal, State, or local means-tested nutrition
program with eligibility standards comparable to the school
lunch program under this Act;
``(iii)(I) the Comptroller General of the United States for
audit and examination authorized by any other provision of
law; and
``(II) notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
Federal, State, or local law enforcement official for the
purpose of investigating an alleged violation of any program
covered by this paragraph or paragraph (3)(F), (4), or (5);
``(iv) a person directly connected with the administration
of the State medicaid program under title XIX of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) or the State children's
health insurance program under title XXI of that Act (42
U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.) solely for the purposes of--
``(I) identifying children eligible for benefits under, and
enrolling children in, those programs, except that this
subclause shall apply only to the extent that the State and
the local educational agency or school food authority so
elect; and
``(II) verifying the eligibility of children for programs
under this Act or the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1771 et seq.); and
``(v) a third party contractor described in paragraph
(3)(G)(iv).
``(B) Limitation on information provided.--Information
provided under clause (ii) or (v) of subparagraph (A) shall
be limited to the income eligibility status of the child for
whom application for free or reduced price meal benefits is
made or for whom eligibility information is provided under
paragraph (3)(F), (4), or (5), unless the consent of the
parent or guardian of the child for whom application for
benefits was made is obtained.
``(C) Criminal penalty.--A person described in subparagraph
(A) who publishes, divulges, discloses, or makes known in any
manner, or to any extent not authorized by Federal law
(including a regulation), any information obtained under this
subsection shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned
not more than 1 year, or both.
``(D) Requirements for waiver of confidentiality.--A State
that elects to exercise the option described in subparagraph
(A)(iv)(I) shall ensure that any local educational agency or
school food authority acting in accordance with that option--
``(i) has a written agreement with 1 or more State or local
agencies administering health programs for children under
titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396
et seq. and 1397aa et seq.) that requires the health agencies
to use the information obtained under subparagraph (A) to
seek to enroll children in those health programs; and
``(ii)(I) notifies each household, the information of which
shall be disclosed under subparagraph (A), that the
information disclosed will be used only to enroll children in
health programs referred to in subparagraph (A)(iv); and
``(II) provides each parent or guardian of a child in the
household with an opportunity to elect not to have the
information disclosed.
``(E) Use of disclosed information.--A person to which
information is disclosed under subparagraph (A)(iv)(I) shall
use or disclose the information only as necessary for the
purpose of enrolling children in health programs referred to
in subparagraph (A)(iv).
``(7) Free and reduced price policy statement.--
``(A) In general.--After the initial submission, a local
educational agency shall not be required to submit a free and
reduced price policy statement to a State educational agency
under this Act unless there is a substantive change in the
free and reduced price policy of the local educational
agency.
``(B) Routine change.--A routine change in the policy of a
local educational agency (such as an annual adjustment of the
income eligibility guidelines for free and reduced price
meals) shall not be sufficient cause for requiring the local
educational agency to submit a policy statement.
``(8) Communications.--
``(A) In general.--Any communication with a household under
this subsection or subsection (d) shall be in an
understandable and uniform format and, to the maximum extent
practicable, in a language that parents and legal guardians
can understand.
``(B) Electronic availability.--In addition to the
distribution of applications and descriptive material in
paper form as provided for in this paragraph, the
applications and material may be made available
electronically via the Internet.''.
(2) Agreement for direct certification and cooperation.--
Section 11 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2020) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(u) Agreement for Direct Certification and Cooperation.--
[[Page H4939]]
``(1) In general.--Each State agency shall enter into an
agreement with the State agency administering the school
lunch program established under the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.).
``(2) Contents.--The agreement shall establish procedures
that ensure that--
``(A) any child receiving benefits under this Act shall be
certified as eligible for free lunches under the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.)
and free breakfasts under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), without further application; and
``(B) each State agency shall cooperate in carrying out
paragraphs (3)(F) and (4) of section 9(b) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)).''.
(c) Funding.--
(1) In general.--On October 1, 2005, out of any funds in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to
assist States in carrying out the amendments contained in
this section and the provisions of section 9(b)(3) of the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (as amended by
section 105(a)) $9,000,000, to remain available until
expended.
(2) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to assist
States in carrying out the amendments made by this section
and the provisions of section 9(b)(3) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (as amended by section
105(a)) the funds transferred under paragraph (1), without
further appropriation.
(d) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Effective July 1, 2008, paragraph (5) of section 9(b)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1758(b)) (as added by subsection (b)(1)) is amended--
(A) by striking subparagraph (B);
(B) by striking ``certification.--'' and all that follows
through ``In general.--'' and inserting ``certification.--'';
and
(C) by redesignating clauses (i) through (iv) as
subparagraphs (A) through (D), respectively, and indenting
appropriately.
(2) Section 9 of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758) (as amended by subsection (a)(1))
is amended--
(A) in subsection (b)(12)(B), by striking ``paragraph
(2)(C)'' and inserting ``this subsection''; and
(B) in the second sentence of subsection (d)(1), by
striking ``subsection (b)(2)(C)'' and inserting ``subsection
(b)(3)(G)''.
(3) Section 11(e) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1759a(e)) is amended in the first
sentence by striking ``section 9(b)(3)'' and inserting
``section 9(b)(9)''.
SEC. 105. HOUSEHOLD APPLICATIONS.
(a) In General.--Section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)) (as amended by
section 104(a)(2)(B)) is amended by striking paragraph (3)
and inserting the following:
``(3) Household applications.--
``(A) Definition of household application.--In this
paragraph, the term `household application' means an
application for a child of a household to receive free or
reduced price school lunches under this Act, or free or
reduced price school breakfasts under the Child Nutrition Act
of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), for which an eligibility
determination is made other than under paragraph (4) or (5).
``(B) Eligibility determination.--
``(i) In general.--An eligibility determination shall be
made on the basis of a complete household application
executed by an adult member of the household or in accordance
with guidance issued by the Secretary.
``(ii) Electronic signatures and applications.--A household
application may be executed using an electronic signature
if--
``(I) the application is submitted electronically; and
``(II) the electronic application filing system meets
confidentiality standards established by the Secretary.
``(C) Children in household.--
``(i) In general.--The household application shall identify
the names of each child in the household for whom meal
benefits are requested.
``(ii) Separate applications.--A State educational agency
or local educational agency may not request a separate
application for each child in the household that attends
schools under the same local educational agency.
``(D) Verification of sample.--
``(i) Definitions.--In this subparagraph:
``(I) Error prone application.--The term `error prone
application' means an approved household application that--
``(aa) indicates monthly income that is within $100, or an
annual income that is within $1,200, of the income
eligibility limitation for free or reduced price meals; or
``(bb) in lieu of the criteria established under item (aa),
meets criteria established by the Secretary.
``(II) Non-response rate.--The term `non-response rate'
means (in accordance with guidelines established by the
Secretary) the percentage of approved household applications
for which verification information has not been obtained by a
local educational agency after attempted verification under
subparagraphs (F) and (G).
``(ii) Verification of sample.--Each school year, a local
educational agency shall verify eligibility of the children
in a sample of household applications approved for the school
year by the local educational agency, as determined by the
Secretary in accordance with this subsection.
``(iii) Sample size.--Except as otherwise provided in this
paragraph, the sample for a local educational agency for a
school year shall equal the lesser of--
``(I) 3 percent of all applications approved by the local
educational agency for the school year, as of October 1 of
the school year, selected from error prone applications; or
``(II) 3,000 error prone applications approved by the local
educational agency for the school year, as of October 1 of
the school year.
``(iv) Alternative sample size.--
``(I) In general.--If the conditions described in subclause
(IV) are met, the verification sample size for a local
educational agency shall be the sample size described in
subclause (II) or (III), as determined by the local
educational agency.
``(II) 3,000/3 percent option.--The sample size described
in this subclause shall be the lesser of 3,000, or 3 percent
of, applications selected at random from applications
approved by the local educational agency for the school year,
as of October 1 of the school year.
``(III) 1,000/1 percent plus option.--
``(aa) In general.--The sample size described in this
subclause shall be the sum of--
``(AA) the lesser of 1,000, or 1 percent of, all
applications approved by the local educational agency for the
school year, as of October 1 of the school year, selected
from error prone applications; and
``(BB) the lesser of 500, or \1/2\ of 1 percent of,
applications approved by the local educational agency for the
school year, as of October 1 of the school year, that provide
a case number (in lieu of income information) showing
participation in a program described in item (bb) selected
from those approved applications that provide a case number
(in lieu of income information) verifying the participation.
``(bb) Programs.--The programs described in this item are--
``(AA) the food stamp program established under the Food
Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.);
``(BB) the food distribution program on Indian reservations
established under section 4(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977
(7 U.S.C. 2013(b)); and
``(CC) a State program funded under the program of block
grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families
established under part A of title IV of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) that the Secretary determines
complies with standards established by the Secretary that
ensure that the standards under the State program are
comparable to or more restrictive than those in effect on
June 1, 1995.
``(IV) Conditions.--The conditions referred to in subclause
(I) shall be met for a local educational agency for a school
year if--
``(aa) the nonresponse rate for the local educational
agency for the preceding school year is less than 20 percent;
or
``(bb) the local educational agency has more than 20,000
children approved by application by the local educational
agency as eligible for free or reduced price meals for the
school year, as of October 1 of the school year, and--
``(AA) the nonresponse rate for the preceding school year
is at least 10 percent below the nonresponse rate for the
second preceding school year; or
``(BB) in the case of the school year beginning July 2005,
the local educational agency attempts to verify all approved
household applications selected for verification through use
of public agency records from at least 2 of the programs or
sources of information described in subparagraph (F)(i).
``(v) Additional selected applications.--A sample for a
local educational agency for a school year under clauses
(iii) and (iv)(III)(AA) shall include the number of
additional randomly selected approved household applications
that are required to comply with the sample size requirements
in those clauses.
``(E) Preliminary review.--
``(i) Review for accuracy.--
``(I) In general.--Prior to conducting any other
verification activity for approved household applications
selected for verification, the local educational agency shall
ensure that the initial eligibility determination for each
approved household application is reviewed for accuracy by an
individual other than the individual making the initial
eligibility determination, unless otherwise determined by the
Secretary.
``(II) Waiver.--The requirements of subclause (I) shall be
waived for a local educational agency if the local
educational agency is using a technology-based solution that
demonstrates a high level of accuracy, to the satisfaction of
the Secretary, in processing an initial eligibility
determination in accordance with the income eligibility
guidelines of the school lunch program.
``(ii) Correct eligibility determination.--If the review
indicates that the initial eligibility determination is
correct, the local educational agency shall verify the
approved household application.
``(iii) Incorrect eligibility determination.--If the review
indicates that the initial eligibility determination is
incorrect, the local educational agency shall (as determined
by the Secretary)--
``(I) correct the eligibility status of the household;
``(II) notify the household of the change;
[[Page H4940]]
``(III) in any case in which the review indicates that the
household is not eligible for free or reduced-price meals,
notify the household of the reason for the ineligibility and
that the household may reapply with income documentation for
free or reduced-price meals; and
``(IV) in any case in which the review indicates that the
household is eligible for free or reduced-price meals, verify
the approved household application.
``(F) Direct verification.--
``(i) In general.--Subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), to
verify eligibility for free or reduced price meals for
approved household applications selected for verification,
the local educational agency may (in accordance with criteria
established by the Secretary) first obtain and use income and
program participation information from a public agency
administering--
``(I) the food stamp program established under the Food
Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.);
``(II) the food distribution program on Indian reservations
established under section 4(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977
(7 U.S.C. 2013(b));
``(III) the temporary assistance for needy families program
funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
``(IV) the State medicaid program under title XIX of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); or
``(V) a similar income-tested program or other source of
information, as determined by the Secretary.
``(ii) Free meals.--Public agency records that may be
obtained and used under clause (i) to verify eligibility for
free meals for approved household applications selected for
verification shall include the most recent available
information (other than information reflecting program
participation or income before the 180-day period ending on
the date of application for free meals) that is relied on to
administer--
``(I) a program or source of information described in
clause (i) (other than clause (i)(IV)); or
``(II) the State plan for medical assistance under title
XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) in--
``(aa) a State in which the income eligibility limit
applied under section 1902(l)(2)(C) of that Act (42 U.S.C.
1396a(l)(2)(C)) is not more than 133 percent of the official
poverty line described in section 1902(l)(2)(A) of that Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396a(l)(2)(A)); or
``(bb) a State that otherwise identifies households that
have income that is not more than 133 percent of the official
poverty line described in section 1902(l)(2)(A) of that Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396a(l)(2)(A)).
``(iii) Reduced price meals.--Public agency records that
may be obtained and used under clause (i) to verify
eligibility for reduced price meals for approved household
applications selected for verification shall include the most
recent available information (other than information
reflecting program participation or income before the 180-day
period ending on the date of application for reduced price
meals) that is relied on to administer--
``(I) a program or source of information described in
clause (i) (other than clause (i)(IV)); or
``(II) the State plan for medical assistance under title
XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) in--
``(aa) a State in which the income eligibility limit
applied under section 1902(l)(2)(C) of that Act (42 U.S.C.
1396a(l)(2)(C)) is not more than 185 percent of the official
poverty line described in section 1902(l)(2)(A) of that Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396a(l)(2)(A)); or
``(bb) a State that otherwise identifies households that
have income that is not more than 185 percent of the official
poverty line described in section 1902(l)(2)(A) of that Act
(42 U.S.C. 1396a(l)(2)(A)).
``(iv) Evaluation.--Not later than 3 years after the date
of enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary shall
complete an evaluation of--
``(I) the effectiveness of direct verification carried out
under this subparagraph in decreasing the portion of the
verification sample that must be verified under subparagraph
(G) while ensuring that adequate verification information is
obtained; and
``(II) the feasibility of direct verification by State
agencies and local educational agencies.
``(v) Expanded use of direct verification.--If the
Secretary determines that direct verification significantly
decreases the portion of the verification sample that must be
verified under subparagraph (G), while ensuring that adequate
verification information is obtained, and can be conducted by
most State agencies and local educational agencies, the
Secretary may require a State agency or local educational
agency to implement direct verification through 1 or more of
the programs described in clause (i), as determined by the
Secretary, unless the State agency or local educational
agency demonstrates (under criteria established by the
Secretary) that the State agency or local educational agency
lacks the capacity to conduct, or is unable to implement,
direct verification.
``(G) Household verification.--
``(i) In general.--If an approved household application is
not verified through the use of public agency records, a
local educational agency shall provide to the household
written notice that--
``(I) the approved household application has been selected
for verification; and
``(II) the household is required to submit verification
information to confirm eligibility for free or reduced price
meals.
``(ii) Phone number.--The written notice in clause (i)
shall include a toll-free phone number that parents and legal
guardians in households selected for verification can call
for assistance with the verification process.
``(iii) Followup activities.--If a household does not
respond to a verification request, a local educational agency
shall make at least 1 attempt to obtain the necessary
verification from the household in accordance with guidelines
and regulations promulgated by the Secretary.
``(iv) Contract authority for school food authorities.--A
local educational agency may contract (under standards
established by the Secretary) with a third party to assist
the local educational agency in carrying out clause (iii).
``(H) Verification deadline.--
``(i) General deadline.--
``(I) In general.--Subject to subclause (II), not later
than November 15 of each school year, a local educational
agency shall complete the verification activities required
for the school year (including followup activities).
``(II) Extension.--Under criteria established by the
Secretary, a State may extend the deadline established under
subclause (I) for a school year for a local educational
agency to December 15 of the school year.
``(ii) Eligibility changes.--Based on the verification
activities, the local educational agency shall make
appropriate modifications to the eligibility determinations
made for household applications in accordance with criteria
established by the Secretary.
``(I) Local conditions.--In the case of a natural disaster,
civil disorder, strike, or other local condition (as
determined by the Secretary), the Secretary may substitute
alternatives for--
``(i) the sample size and sample selection criteria
established under subparagraph (D); and
``(ii) the verification deadline established under
subparagraph (H).
``(J) Individual review.--In accordance with criteria
established by the Secretary, the local educational agency
may, on individual review--
``(i) decline to verify no more than 5 percent of approved
household applications selected under subparagraph (D); and
``(ii) replace the approved household applications with
other approved household applications to be verified.
``(K) Feasibility study.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct a study of
the feasibility of using computer technology (including data
mining) to reduce--
``(I) overcertification errors in the school lunch program
under this Act;
``(II) waste, fraud, and abuse in connection with this
paragraph; and
``(III) errors, waste, fraud, and abuse in other nutrition
programs, as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary.
``(ii) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall submit to
the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition,
and Forestry of the Senate a report describing--
``(I) the results of the feasibility study conducted under
this subsection;
``(II) how a computer system using technology described in
clause (i) could be implemented;
``(III) a plan for implementation; and
``(IV) proposed legislation, if necessary, to implement the
system.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 1902(a)(7) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(7)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``connected with the'' and inserting
``connected with--
``(A) the'';
(2) by adding ``and'' after the semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) at State option, the exchange of information
necessary to verify the certification of eligibility of
children for free or reduced price breakfasts under the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 and free or reduced price lunches under
the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, in
accordance with section 9(b) of that Act, using data
standards and formats established by the State agency;''.
(c) Evaluation Funding.--
(1) In general.--On October 1, 2005, out of any funds in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to
conduct the evaluation required by section 9(b)(3)(F)(iv) of
the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (as amended
by subsection (a)) $2,000,000, to remain available until
expended.
(2) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary of Agriculture
shall be entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to
carry out this section the funds transferred under paragraph
(1), without further appropriation.
SEC. 106. DURATION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR FREE OR REDUCED PRICE
MEALS.
Paragraph (9) of section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.1758(b)) (as redesignated
by section 104(a)(1)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``(9) Any'' and inserting the following:
``(9) Eligibility for free and reduced price lunches.--
[[Page H4941]]
``(A) Free lunches.--Any'';
(2) by striking ``Any'' in the second sentence and
inserting the following:
``(B) Reduced price lunches.--
``(i) In general.--Any'';
(3) by striking ``The'' in the last sentence and inserting
the following:
``(ii) Maximum price.--The''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Duration.--Except as otherwise specified in paragraph
(3)(E), (3)(H)(ii), and section 11(a), eligibility for free
or reduced price meals for any school year shall remain in
effect--
``(i) beginning on the date of eligibility approval for the
current school year; and
``(ii) ending on a date during the subsequent school year
determined by the Secretary.''.
SEC. 107. RUNAWAY, HOMELESS, AND MIGRANT YOUTH.
(a) Categorical Eligibility for Free Lunches and
Breakfasts.--Section 9(b)(12)(A) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (as redesignated by section
104(a)(1) of this Act) is amended--
(1) in clause (ii), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) a homeless child or youth (defined as 1 of the
individuals described in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a(2));
``(v) served by the runaway and homeless youth grant
program established under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act
(42 U.S.C. 5701 et seq.); or
``(vi) a migratory child (as defined in section 1309 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
6399)).''.
(b) Documentation.--Section 9(d)(2) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(d)(2)) is
amended--
(1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or'';
(2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end
and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
``(D) documentation has been provided to the appropriate
local educational agency showing that the child meets the
criteria specified in clauses (iv) or (v) of subsection
(b)(12)(A); or
``(E) documentation has been provided to the appropriate
local educational agency showing the status of the child as a
migratory child (as defined in section 1309 of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6399)).''.
SEC. 108. CERTIFICATION BY LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.
(a) Certification by Local Educational Agency.--Section 9
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1758) is amended--
(1) in the second sentence of subsection (b)(11) (as
redesignated by section 104(a)(1)), by striking ``Local
school authorities'' and inserting ``Local educational
agencies''; and
(2) in subsection (d)(2)--
(A) by striking ``local school food authority'' each place
it appears and inserting ``local educational agency''; and
(B) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``such authority'' and
inserting ``the local educational agency''.
(b) Definition of Local Educational Agency.--Section 12(d)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1760(d)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraph (8) as paragraph (3) and
moving the paragraph to appear after paragraph (2);
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (7) (as those
paragraphs existed before the amendment made by paragraph
(1)) as paragraphs (5) through (9), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3) (as redesignated by
paragraph (1)) the following:
``(4) Local educational agency.--
``(A) In general.--The term `local educational agency' has
the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
``(B) Inclusion.--The term `local educational agency'
includes, in the case of a private nonprofit school, an
appropriate entity determined by the Secretary.''.
(c) School Breakfast Program.--Section 4(b)(1)(E)) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773(b)(1)(E)) is
amended by striking ``school food authority'' each place it
appears and inserting ``local educational agency''.
SEC. 109. EXCLUSION OF MILITARY HOUSING ALLOWANCES.
Section 9(b) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)) (as amended by section
104(a)(1)) is amended in paragraph (13) by striking ``For
each of fiscal years 2002 and 2003 and through June 30, 2004,
the'' and inserting ``The''.
SEC. 110. WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT FOR WEIGHTED AVERAGES FOR
NUTRIENT ANALYSIS.
Section 9(f)(5) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(f)(5)) is amended by striking
``September 30, 2003'' and inserting ``September 30, 2009''.
SEC. 111. FOOD SAFETY.
Section 9(h) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(h)) is amended--
(1) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Inspections'';
(2) in paragraph (1)--
(A) by striking ``Except as provided in paragraph (2), a''
and inserting ``A'';
(B) by striking ``shall, at least once'' and inserting:
``shall--
``(A) at least twice'';
(C) by striking the period at the end and inserting a
semicolon; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) post in a publicly visible location a report on the
most recent inspection conducted under subparagraph (A); and
``(C) on request, provide a copy of the report to a member
of the public.''; and
(3) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
``(2) State and local government inspections.--Nothing in
paragraph (1) prevents any State or local government from
adopting or enforcing any requirement for more frequent food
safety inspections of schools.
``(3) Audits and reports by states.--For each of fiscal
years 2006 through 2009, each State shall annually--
``(A) audit food safety inspections of schools conducted
under paragraphs (1) and (2); and
``(B) submit to the Secretary a report of the results of
the audit.
``(4) Audit by the secretary.--For each of fiscal years
2006 through 2009, the Secretary shall annually audit State
reports of food safety inspections of schools submitted under
paragraph (3).
``(5) School food safety program.--Each school food
authority shall implement a school food safety program, in
the preparation and service of each meal served to children,
that complies with any hazard analysis and critical control
point system established by the Secretary.''.
SEC. 112. PURCHASES OF LOCALLY PRODUCED FOODS.
Section 9(j)(2)(A) of the Richard B. Russell National
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(j)(2)(A)) is amended by
striking ``2007'' and inserting ``2009''.
SEC. 113. SPECIAL ASSISTANCE.
Section 11(a)(1) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1759a(a)(1)) is amended by inserting
``or school district'' after ``school'' each place it appears
in subparagraphs (C) through (E) (other than as part of
``school year'', ``school years'', ``school lunch'', ``school
breakfast'', and ``4-school-year period'').
SEC. 114. FOOD AND NUTRITION PROJECTS INTEGRATED WITH
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CURRICULA.
Section 12 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1760) is amended by striking subsection (m).
SEC. 115. PROCUREMENT TRAINING.
Section 12 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1760) (as amended by section 114) is amended
by inserting after subsection (l) the following:
``(m) Procurement Training.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds
made available under paragraph (4), the Secretary shall
provide technical assistance and training to States, State
agencies, schools, and school food authorities in the
procurement of goods and services for programs under this Act
or the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.)
(other than section 17 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 1786)).
``(2) Buy american training.--Activities carried out under
paragraph (1) shall include technical assistance and training
to ensure compliance with subsection (n).
``(3) Procuring safe foods.--Activities carried out under
paragraph (1) shall include technical assistance and training
on procuring safe foods, including the use of model
specifications for procuring safe foods.
``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $1,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009, to remain
available until expended.''.
SEC. 116. SUMMER FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM FOR CHILDREN.
(a) Seamless Summer Option.--Section 13(a) of the Richard
B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1761(a)) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(8) Seamless summer option.--Except as otherwise
determined by the Secretary, a service institution that is a
public or private nonprofit school food authority may provide
summer or school vacation food service in accordance with
applicable provisions of law governing the school lunch
program established under this Act or the school breakfast
program established under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1771 et seq.).''.
(b) Seamless Summer Reimbursements.--Section 13(b)(1) of
the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1761(b)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(D) Seamless summer reimbursements.--A service
institution described in subsection (a)(8) shall be
reimbursed for meals and meal supplements in accordance with
the applicable provisions under this Act (other than
subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of this paragraph and
paragraph (4)) and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1771 et seq.), as determined by the Secretary.''.
(c) Summer Food Service Eligibility Criteria.--Section
13(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1761(a)) (as amended by subsection (a)) is amended by
adding at the end the following--
``(9) Exemption.--
``(A) In general.--For each of calendar years 2005 and 2006
in rural areas of the State of Pennsylvania (as determined by
the Secretary), the threshold for determining `areas in which
poor economic conditions exist' under paragraph (1)(C) shall
be 40 percent.
[[Page H4942]]
``(B) Evaluation.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, shall
evaluate the impact of the eligibility criteria described in
subparagraph (A) as compared to the eligibility criteria
described in paragraph (1)(C).
``(ii) Impact.--The evaluation shall assess the impact of
the threshold in subparagraph (A) on--
``(I) the number of sponsors offering meals through the
summer food service program;
``(II) the number of sites offering meals through the
summer food service program;
``(III) the geographic location of the sites;
``(IV) services provided to eligible children; and
``(V) other factors determined by the Secretary.
``(iii) Report.--Not later than January 1, 2008, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a
report describing the results of the evaluation under this
subparagraph.
``(iv) Funding.--
``(I) In general.--On January 1, 2005, out of any funds in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to
carry out this subparagraph $400,000, to remain available
until expended.
``(II) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this subparagraph the funds transferred under subclause (I),
without further appropriation.''.
(d) Summer Food Service Rural Transportation.--Section
13(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1761(a)) (as amended by subsection (c)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(10) Summer food service rural transportation.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall provide grants,
through not more than 5 eligible State agencies selected by
the Secretary, to not more than 60 eligible service
institutions selected by the Secretary to increase
participation at congregate feeding sites in the summer food
service program for children authorized by this section
through innovative approaches to limited transportation in
rural areas.
``(B) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
this paragraph--
``(i) a State agency shall submit an application to the
Secretary, in such manner as the Secretary shall establish,
and meet criteria established by the Secretary; and
``(ii) a service institution shall agree to the terms and
conditions of the grant, as established by the Secretary.
``(C) Duration.--A service institution that receives a
grant under this paragraph may use the grant funds during the
3-fiscal year period beginning in fiscal year 2005.
``(D) Reports.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committee
on Education and the Workforce of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition,
and Forestry of the Senate--
``(i) not later than January 1, 2007, an interim report
that describes--
``(I) the use of funds made available under this paragraph;
and
``(II) any progress made by using funds from each grant
provided under this paragraph; and
``(ii) not later than January 1, 2008, a final report that
describes--
``(I) the use of funds made available under this paragraph;
``(II) any progress made by using funds from each grant
provided under this paragraph;
``(III) the impact of this paragraph on participation in
the summer food service program for children authorized by
this section; and
``(IV) any recommendations by the Secretary concerning the
activities of the service institutions receiving grants under
this paragraph.
``(E) Funding.--
``(i) In general.--Out of any funds in the Treasury not
otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall
transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this
paragraph--
``(I) on October 1, 2005, $2,000,000; and
``(II) on October 1, 2006, and October 1, 2007, $1,000,000.
``(ii) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this paragraph the funds transferred under clause (i),
without further appropriation.
``(iii) Availability of funds.--Funds transferred under
clause (i) shall remain available until expended.
``(iv) Reallocation.--The Secretary may reallocate any
amounts made available to carry out this paragraph that are
not obligated or expended, as determined by the Secretary.''.
(e) Reauthorization.--Section 13(q) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1761(q)) is
amended by striking ``June 30, 2004'' and inserting
``September 30, 2009''.
(f) Simplified Summer Food Programs.--
(1) Definition of eligible state.--Section 18(f) of the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1769(f)) is amended by striking paragraph (1) and inserting
the following:
``(1) Definition of eligible state.--In this subsection,
the term `eligible State' means--
``(A) a State participating in the program under this
subsection as of May 1, 2004; and
``(B) a State in which (based on data available in April
2004)--
``(i) the percentage obtained by dividing--
``(I) the sum of--
``(aa) the average daily number of children attending the
summer food service program in the State in July 2003; and
``(bb) the average daily number of children receiving free
or reduced price meals under the school lunch program in the
State in July 2003; by
``(II) the average daily number of children receiving free
or reduced price meals under the school lunch program in the
State in March 2003; is less than
``(ii) 66.67 percent of the percentage obtained by
dividing--
``(I) the sum of--
``(aa) the average daily number of children attending the
summer food service program in all States in July 2003; and
``(bb) the average daily number of children receiving free
or reduced price meals under the school lunch program in all
States in July 2003; by
``(II) the average daily number of children receiving free
or reduced price meals under the school lunch program in all
States in March 2003.''.
(2) Duration.--Section 18(f)(2) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769(f)(2)) is amended
by striking ``During the period beginning October 1, 2000,
and ending June 30, 2004, the'' and inserting ``The''.
(3) Private nonprofit organizations.--Section 18(f)(3) of
the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1769(f)(3)) is amended in subparagraphs (A) and (B) by
striking ``(other than a service institution described in
section 13(a)(7))'' both places it appears.
(4) Report.--Section 18(f) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769(f)) is amended by
striking paragraph (6) and inserting the following:
``(6) Report.--Not later than April 30, 2007, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report
that includes--
``(A) the evaluations completed by the Secretary under
paragraph (5); and
``(B) any recommendations of the Secretary concerning the
programs.''.
(5) Conforming amendments.--Section 18(f) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769(f)) is
amended--
(A) by striking the subsection heading and inserting the
following:
``(f) Simplified Summer Food Programs.--'';
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking the paragraph heading and inserting the
following:
``(2) Programs.--''; and
(ii) by striking ``pilot project'' and inserting
``program'';
(C) in subparagraph (A) and (B) of paragraph (3), by
striking ``pilot project'' both places it appears and
inserting ``program''; and
(D) in paragraph (5)--
(i) in the paragraph heading by striking ``pilot projects''
and inserting ``programs''; and
(ii) by striking ``pilot project'' each place it appears
and inserting ``program''.
SEC. 117. COMMODITY DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM.
Section 14(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1762a(a)) is amended by striking ``,
during the period beginning July 1, 1974, and ending June 30,
2004,''.
SEC. 118. NOTICE OF IRRADIATED FOOD PRODUCTS.
Section 14 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1762a) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(h) Notice of Irradiated Food Products.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop a policy and
establish procedures for the purchase and distribution of
irradiated food products in school meals programs under this
Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et
seq.).
``(2) Minimum requirements.--The policy and procedures
shall ensure, at a minimum, that--
``(A) irradiated food products are made available only at
the request of States and school food authorities;
``(B) reimbursements to schools for irradiated food
products are equal to reimbursements to schools for food
products that are not irradiated;
``(C) States and school food authorities are provided
factual information on the science and evidence regarding
irradiation technology, including--
``(i) notice that irradiation is not a substitute for safe
food handling techniques; and
``(ii) any other similar information determined by the
Secretary to be necessary to promote food safety in school
meals programs;
``(D) States and school food authorities are provided model
procedures for providing to school food authorities, parents,
and students--
``(i) factual information on the science and evidence
regarding irradiation technology; and
``(ii) any other similar information determined by the
Secretary to be necessary to promote food safety in school
meals;
``(E) irradiated food products distributed to the Federal
school meals program under this
[[Page H4943]]
Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et
seq.) are labeled with a symbol or other printed notice
that--
``(i) indicates that the product was irradiated; and
``(ii) is prominently displayed in a clear and
understandable format on the container;
``(F) irradiated food products are not commingled in
containers with food products that are not irradiated; and
``(G) schools that offer irradiated food products are
encouraged to offer alternatives to irradiated food products
as part of the meal plan used by the schools.''.
SEC. 119. CHILD AND ADULT CARE FOOD PROGRAM.
(a) Definition of Institution.--
(1) In general.--Section 17(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1766(a)(2)(B)(i)) is amended by striking ``during'' and all
that follows through ``2004,''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 17 of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766) is amended
by striking subsection (p).
(b) Duration of Determination as Tier I Family or Group Day
Care Home.--Section 17(f)(3)(E)(iii) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1766(f)(3)(E)(iii)) is amended by striking ``3 years'' and
inserting ``5 years''.
(c) Audits.--Section 17(i) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766(i)) is amended by
striking ``(i) The'' and inserting the following:
``(i) Audits.--
``(1) Disregards.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), in
conducting management evaluations, reviews, or audits under
this section, the Secretary or a State agency may disregard
any overpayment to an institution for a fiscal year if the
total overpayment to the institution for the fiscal year does
not exceed an amount that is consistent with the disregards
allowed in other programs under this Act and recognizes the
cost of collecting small claims, as determined by the
Secretary.
``(B) Criminal or fraud violations.--In carrying out this
paragraph, the Secretary and a State agency shall not
disregard any overpayment for which there is evidence of a
violation of a criminal law or civil fraud law.
``(2) Funding.--The''.
(d) Duration of Agreements.--Section 17(j) of the Richard
B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766(j)) is
amended--
(1) by striking ``(j) The'' and inserting the following:
``(j) Agreements.--
``(1) In general.--The''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Duration.--An agreement under paragraph (1) shall
remain in effect until terminated by either party to the
agreement.''.
(e) Rural Area Eligibility Determination for Day Care
Homes.--Section 17 of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766) (as amended by subsection (a)(2))
is amended by inserting after subsection (o) the following:
``(p) Rural Area Eligibility Determination for Day Care
Homes.--
``(1) Definition of selected tier i family or group day
care home.--In this subsection, the term `selected tier I
family or group day care home' means a family or group day
home that meets the definition of tier I family or group day
care home under subclause (I) of subsection (f)(3)(A)(ii)
except that items (aa) and (bb) of that subclause shall be
applied by substituting `40 percent' for `50 percent'.
``(2) Eligibility.--For each of fiscal years 2006 and 2007,
in rural areas of the State of Nebraska (as determined by the
Secretary), the Secretary shall provide reimbursement to
selected tier I family or group day care homes (as defined in
paragraph (1)) under subsection (f)(3) in the same manner as
tier I family or group day care homes (as defined in
subsection (f)(3)(A)(ii)(I)).
``(3) Evaluation.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, shall
evaluate the impact of the eligibility criteria described in
paragraph (2) as compared to the eligibility criteria
described in subsection (f)(3)(A)(ii)(I).
``(B) Impact.--The evaluation shall assess the impact of
the change in eligibility requirements on--
``(i) the number of family or group day care homes offering
meals under this section;
``(ii) the number of family or group day care homes
offering meals under this section that are defined as tier I
family or group day care homes as a result of paragraph (1)
that otherwise would be defined as tier II family or group
day care homes under subsection (f)(3)(A)(iii);
``(iii) the geographic location of the family or group day
care homes;
``(iv) services provided to eligible children; and
``(v) other factors determined by the Secretary.
``(C) Report.--Not later than March 31, 2008, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report
describing the results of the evaluation under this
subsection.
``(D) Funding.--
``(i) In general.--On October 1, 2005, out of any funds in
the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to
carry out this paragraph $400,000, to remain available until
expended.
``(ii) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this paragraph the funds transferred under clause (i),
without further appropriation.''.
(f) Management Support.--Section 17(q)(3) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766(q)(3)) is
amended by striking ``1999 through 2003'' and inserting
``2005 and 2006''.
(g) Age Limits.--Section 17(t)(5)(A)(i) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766(t)(5)(A)(i)
is amended--
(1) in subclause (I)--
(A) by striking ``12'' and inserting ``18''; and
(B) by inserting ``or'' after the semicolon;
(2) by striking subclause (II); and
(3) by redesignating subclause (III) as subclause (II).
(h) Technical Amendments.--Section 17 of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(6)(B), by inserting ``and adult''
after ``child''; and
(2) in subsection (t)(3), by striking ``subsection (a)(1)''
and inserting ``subsection (a)(5)''.
(i) Paperwork Reduction.--The Secretary of Agriculture, in
conjunction with States and participating institutions, shall
examine the feasibility of reducing paperwork resulting from
regulations and recordkeeping requirements for State
agencies, family child care homes, child care centers, and
sponsoring organizations participating in the child and adult
care food program established under section 17 of the Richard
B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766).
(j) Early Child Nutrition Education.--
(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds made
available under paragraph (6), for a period of 4 successive
years, the Secretary of Agriculture shall award to 1 or more
entities with expertise in designing and implementing health
education programs for limited-English-proficient individuals
1 or more grants to enhance obesity prevention activities for
child care centers and sponsoring organizations providing
services to limited-English-proficient individuals through
the child and adult care food program under section 17 of the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766)
in each of 4 States selected by the Secretary in accordance
with paragraph (2).
(2) States.--The Secretary shall provide grants under this
subsection in States that have experienced a growth in the
limited-English-proficient population of the States of at
least 100 percent between the years 1990 and 2000, as
measured by the census.
(3) Required activities.--Activities carried out under
paragraph (1) shall include--
(A) developing an interactive and comprehensive tool kit
for use by lay health educators and training activities;
(B) conducting training and providing ongoing technical
assistance for lay health educators; and
(C) establishing collaborations with child care centers and
sponsoring organizations participating in the child and adult
care food program under section 17 of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766) to--
(i) identify limited-English-proficient children and
families; and
(ii) enhance the capacity of the child care centers and
sponsoring organizations to use appropriate obesity
prevention strategies.
(4) Evaluation.--Each grant recipient shall identify an
institution of higher education to conduct an independent
evaluation of the effectiveness of the grant.
(5) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committee on
Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives,
and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, of
the Senate a report that includes--
(A) the evaluation completed by the institution of higher
education under paragraph (4);
(B) the effectiveness of lay health educators in reducing
childhood obesity; and
(C) any recommendations of the Secretary concerning the
grants.
(6) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $250,000 for
each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009.
SEC. 120. FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLE PROGRAM.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended by striking subsection (g)
and inserting the following:
``(g) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.--
``(1) In general.--For the school year beginning July 2004
and each subsequent school year, the Secretary shall carry
out a program to make free fresh fruits and vegetables
available, to the maximum extent practicable, to--
``(A) 25 elementary or secondary schools in each of the 4
States authorized to participate in the program under this
subsection on May 1, 2004;
``(B) 25 elementary or secondary schools (as selected by
the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (3)) in each of 4
States (including a State for which funds were allocated
under the program described in paragraph (3)(B)(ii)) that are
not participating in
[[Page H4944]]
the program under this subsection on May 1, 2004; and
``(C) 25 elementary or secondary schools operated on 3
Indian reservations (including the reservation authorized to
participate in the program under this subsection on May 1,
2004), as selected by the Secretary.
``(2) Program.--A school participating in the program shall
make free fresh fruits and vegetables available to students
throughout the school day in 1 or more areas designated by
the school.
``(3) Selection of schools.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
in selecting additional schools to participate in the program
under paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall--
``(i) to the maximum extent practicable, ensure that the
majority of schools selected are those in which not less than
50 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced price
meals under this Act;
``(ii) solicit applications from interested schools that
include--
``(I) information pertaining to the percentage of students
enrolled in the school submitting the application who are
eligible for free or reduced price school lunches under this
Act;
``(II) a certification of support for participation in the
program signed by the school food manager, the school
principal, and the district superintendent (or equivalent
positions, as determined by the school); and
``(III) such other information as may be requested by the
Secretary;
``(iii) for each application received, determine whether
the application is from a school in which not less than 50
percent of students are eligible for free or reduced price
meals under this Act; and
``(iv) give priority to schools that submit a plan for
implementation of the program that includes a partnership
with 1 or more entities that provide non-Federal resources
(including entities representing the fruit and vegetable
industry) for--
``(I) the acquisition, handling, promotion, or distribution
of fresh and dried fruits and fresh vegetables; or
``(II) other support that contributes to the purposes of
the program.
``(B) Nonapplicability to existing participants.--
Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to a school, State, or
Indian reservation authorized--
``(i) to participate in the program on May 1, 2004; or
``(ii) to receive funding for free fruits and vegetables
under funds provided for public health improvement under the
heading `disease control, research, and training' under the
heading `Centers for Disease Control and Prevention' in title
II of the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services,
and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004
(Division E of Public Law 108-199; 118 Stat. 238).
``(4) Notice of availability.--To be eligible to
participate in the program under this subsection, a school
shall widely publicize within the school the availability of
free fresh fruits and vegetables under the program.
``(5) Reports.--
``(A) Interim reports.--Not later than September 30 of each
of fiscal years 2005 through 2008, the Secretary, acting
through the Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service,
shall submit to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate an interim
report that describes the activities carried out under this
subsection during the fiscal year covered by the report.
``(B) Final report.--Not later than December 31, 2008, the
Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Food and
Nutrition Service, shall submit to the Committee on Education
and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the
Senate a final report that describes the results of the
program under this subsection.
``(6) Funding.--
``(A) Existing funds.--The Secretary shall use to carry out
this subsection any funds that remain under this subsection
on the day before the date of enactment of this subparagraph.
``(B) Mandatory funds.--
``(i) In general.--On October 1, 2004, and on each October
1 thereafter, out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise
appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to
the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this subsection
$9,000,000, to remain available until expended.
``(ii) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this subsection the funds made available under this
subparagraph, without further appropriation.
``(C) Authorization of appropriations.--In addition to any
amounts made available under subparagraphs (A) and (B), there
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary
to expand the program carried out under this subsection.
``(D) Reallocation.--The Secretary may reallocate any
amounts made available to carry out this subsection that are
not obligated or expended, as determined by the Secretary.''.
SEC. 121. SUMMER FOOD SERVICE RESIDENTIAL CAMP ELIGIBILITY.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(h) Summer Food Service Residential Camp Eligibility.--
``(1) In general.--During the month after the date of
enactment of this subsection through September, 2004, and the
months of May through September, 2005, the Secretary shall
modify eligibility criteria, at not more than 1 private
nonprofit residential camp in each of not more than 2 States,
as determined by the Secretary, for the purpose of
identifying and evaluating alternative methods of determining
the eligibility of residential private nonprofit camps to
participate in the summer food service program for children
established under section 13.
``(2) Eligibility.--To be eligible for the criteria
modified under paragraph (1), a residential camp--
``(A) shall be a service institution (as defined in section
13(a)(1));
``(B) may not charge a fee to any child in residence at the
camp; and
``(C) shall serve children who reside in an area in which
poor economic conditions exist (as defined in section
13(a)(1)).
``(3) Payments.--
``(A) In general.--Under this subsection, the Secretary
shall provide reimbursement for meals served to all children
at a residential camp at the payment rates specified in
section 13(b)(1).
``(B) Reimbursable meals.--A residential camp selected by
the Secretary may receive reimbursement for not more than 3
meals, or 2 meals and 1 supplement, during each day of
operation.
``(4) Evaluation.--
``(A) Information from residential camps.--Not later than
December 31, 2005, a residential camp selected under
paragraph (1) shall report to the Secretary such information
as is required by the Secretary concerning the requirements
of this subsection.
``(B) Report to congress.--Not later than March 31, 2006,
the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Education and
the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the
Senate a report that evaluates the effect of this subsection
on program participation and other factors, as determined by
the Secretary.''.
SEC. 122. ACCESS TO LOCAL FOODS AND SCHOOL GARDENS.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) (as amended by section 121) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(i) Access to Local Foods and School Gardens.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary may provide assistance,
through competitive matching grants and technical assistance,
to schools and nonprofit entities for projects that--
``(A) improve access to local foods in schools and
institutions participating in programs under this Act and
section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773)
through farm-to-cafeteria activities, including school
gardens, that may include the acquisition of food and
appropriate equipment and the provision of training and
education;
``(B) are, at a minimum, designed to--
``(i) procure local foods from small- and medium-sized
farms for school meals; and
``(ii) support school garden programs;
``(C) support nutrition education activities or curriculum
planning that incorporates the participation of school
children in farm-based agricultural education activities,
that may include school gardens;
``(D) develop a sustained commitment to farm-to-cafeteria
projects in the community by linking schools, State
departments of agriculture, agricultural producers, parents,
and other community stakeholders;
``(E) require $100,000 or less in Federal contributions;
``(F) require a Federal share of costs not to exceed 75
percent;
``(G) provide matching support in the form of cash or in-
kind contributions (including facilities, equipment, or
services provided by State and local governments and private
sources); and
``(H) cooperate in an evaluation carried out by the
Secretary.
``(2) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to
carry out this subsection for each of fiscal years 2004
through 2009.''.
SEC. 123. YEAR-ROUND SERVICES FOR ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) (as amended by section 122) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(j) Year-Round Services for Eligible Entities.--
``(1) In general.--A service institution that is described
in section 13(a)(6) (excluding a public school), or a private
nonprofit organization described in section 13(a)(7), and
that is located in the State of California may be
reimbursed--
``(A) for up to 2 meals during each day of operation
served--
``(i) during the months of May through September;
``(ii) in the case of a service institution that operates a
food service program for children on school vacation, at
anytime under a continuous school calendar; and
``(iii) in the case of a service institution that provides
meal service at a nonschool site to children who are not in
school for a period during the school year due to a natural
disaster, building repair, court order, or
[[Page H4945]]
similar case, at anytime during such a period; and
``(B) for a snack served during each day of operation after
school hours, weekends, and school holidays during the
regular school calendar.
``(2) Payments.--The service institution shall be
reimbursed consistent with section 13(b)(1).
``(3) Administration.--To receive reimbursement under this
subsection, a service institution shall comply with section
13, other than subsections (b)(2) and (c)(1) of that section.
``(4) Evaluation.--Not later than September 30, 2007, the
State agency shall submit to the Secretary a report on the
effect of this subsection on participation in the summer food
service program for children established under section 13.
``(5) Funding.--The Secretary shall provide to the State of
California such sums as are necessary to carry out this
subsection for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009.''.
SEC. 124. FREE LUNCH AND BREAKFAST ELIGIBILITY.
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) (as amended by section 123) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``(k) Free Lunch and Breakfast Eligibility.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds
under paragraph (4), the Secretary shall expand the service
of free lunches and breakfasts provided at schools
participating in the school lunch program under this Act or
the school breakfast program under section 4 of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) in all or part of 5
States selected by the Secretary (of which at least 1 shall
be a largely rural State with a significant Native American
population).
``(2) Income eligibility.--The income guidelines for
determining eligibility for free lunches or breakfasts under
this subsection shall be 185 percent of the applicable family
size income levels contained in the nonfarm income poverty
guidelines prescribed by the Office of Management and Budget,
as adjusted annually in accordance with section 9(b)(1)(B).
``(3) Evaluation.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the
implementation of this subsection, the Secretary shall
conduct an evaluation to assess the impact of the changed
income eligibility guidelines by comparing the school food
authorities operating under this subsection to school food
authorities not operating under this subsection.
``(B) Impact assessment.--
``(i) Children.--The evaluation shall assess the impact of
this subsection separately on--
``(I) children in households with incomes less than 130
percent of the applicable family income levels contained in
the nonfarm poverty income guidelines prescribed by the
Office of Management and Budget, as adjusted annually in
accordance with section 9(b)(1)(B); and
``(II) children in households with incomes greater than 130
percent and not greater than 185 percent of the applicable
family income levels contained in the nonfarm poverty income
guidelines prescribed by the Office of Management and Budget,
as adjusted annually in accordance with section 9(b)(1)(B).
``(ii) Factors.--The evaluation shall assess the impact of
this subsection on--
``(I) certification and participation rates in the school
lunch and breakfast programs;
``(II) rates of lunch- and breakfast-skipping;
``(III) academic achievement;
``(IV) the allocation of funds authorized in title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (20 U.S.C. 6301) to
local educational agencies and public schools; and
``(V) other factors determined by the Secretary.
``(C) Cost assessment.--The evaluation shall assess the
increased costs associated with providing additional free,
reduced price, or paid meals in the school food authorities
operating under this subsection.
``(D) Report.--On completion of the evaluation, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a
report describing the results of the evaluation under this
paragraph.
``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to
carry out this subsection, to remain available until
expended.''.
SEC. 125. TRAINING, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, AND FOOD SERVICE
MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE.
(a) In General.--Section 21(a)(1) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769b-1(a)(1)) is
amended by striking ``activities and'' and all that follows
and inserting ``activities and provide--
``(A) training and technical assistance to improve the
skills of individuals employed in--
``(i) food service programs carried out with assistance
under this Act and, to the maximum extent practicable, using
individuals who administer exemplary local food service
programs in the State;
``(ii) school breakfast programs carried out with
assistance under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966
(42 U.S.C. 1773); and
``(iii) as appropriate, other federally assisted feeding
programs; and
``(B) assistance, on a competitive basis, to State agencies
for the purpose of aiding schools and school food authorities
with at least 50 percent of enrolled children certified to
receive free or reduced price meals (and, if there are any
remaining funds, other schools and school food authorities)
in meeting the cost of acquiring or upgrading technology and
information management systems for use in food service
programs carried out under this Act and section 4 of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), if the school
or school food authority submits to the State agency an
infrastructure development plan that--
``(i) addresses the cost savings and improvements in
program integrity and operations that would result from the
use of new or upgraded technology;
``(ii) ensures that there is not any overt identification
of any child by special tokens or tickets, announced or
published list of names, or by any other means;
``(iii) provides for processing and verifying applications
for free and reduced price school meals;
``(iv) integrates menu planning, production, and serving
data to monitor compliance with section 9(f)(1); and
``(v) establishes compatibility with statewide reporting
systems;
``(C) assistance, on a competitive basis, to State agencies
with low proportions of schools or students that--
``(i) participate in the school breakfast program under
section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1773); and
``(ii) demonstrate the greatest need, for the purpose of
aiding schools in meeting costs associated with initiating or
expanding a school breakfast program under section 4 of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), including
outreach and informational activities; and''.
(b) Duties of Food Service Management Institute.--Section
21(c)(2)(B) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch
Act (42 U.S.C. 1769b-1(c)(2)(B)) is amended--
(1) by striking clauses (vi) and (vii) and inserting the
following:
``(vi) safety, including food handling, hazard analysis and
critical control point plan implementation, emergency
readiness, responding to a food recall, and food biosecurity
training;''; and
(2) by redesignating clauses (viii) through (x) as clauses
(vii) through (ix), respectively.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) Training activities and technical assistance.--Section
21(e)(1) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act
(42 U.S.C. 1769b-1(e)(1)) is amended by striking ``2003'' and
inserting ``2009''.
(2) Food service management institute.--Section 21(e)(2)(A)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1769b-1(e)(2)(A) is amended in the first sentence--
(A) by striking ``provide to the Secretary'' and all that
follows through ``1998, and'' and inserting ``provide to the
Secretary''; and
(B) by striking ``1999 and'' and inserting ``2004 and
$4,000,000 for fiscal year 2005''.
SEC. 126. ADMINISTRATIVE ERROR REDUCTION.
(a) Federal Support for Training and Technical
Assistance.--Section 21 of the Richard B. Russell National
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769b-1) is amended by adding at
the end the following:
``(f) Administrative Training and Technical Assistance
Material.--In collaboration with State educational agencies,
local educational agencies, and school food authorities of
varying sizes, the Secretary shall develop and distribute
training and technical assistance material relating to the
administration of school meals programs that are
representative of the best management and administrative
practices.
``(g) Federal Administrative Support.--
``(1) Funding.--
``(A) In general.--Out of any funds in the Treasury not
otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall
transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this
subsection--
``(i) on October 1, 2004, and October 1, 2005, $3,000,000;
and
``(ii) on October 1, 2006, October 1, 2007, and October 1,
2008, $2,000,000.
``(B) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this subsection the funds transferred under subparagraph (A),
without further appropriation.
``(C) Availability of funds.--Funds transferred under
subparagraph (A) shall remain available until expended.
``(2) Use of funds.--The Secretary may use funds provided
under this subsection--
``(A) to provide training and technical assistance and
material related to improving program integrity and
administrative accuracy in school meals programs; and
``(B) to assist State educational agencies in reviewing the
administrative practices of local educational agencies, to
the extent determined by the Secretary.''.
(b) Selected Administrative Reviews.--
(1) In general.--Section 22(b) of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769c(b)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(3) Additional review requirement for selected local
educational agencies.--
``(A) Definition of selected local educational agencies.--
In this paragraph, the term `selected local educational
agency' means a local educational agency that has a
demonstrated high level of, or a high risk for,
administrative error, as determined by the Secretary.
[[Page H4946]]
``(B) Additional administrative review.--In addition to any
review required by subsection (a) or paragraph (1), each
State educational agency shall conduct an administrative
review of each selected local educational agency during the
review cycle established under subsection (a).
``(C) Scope of review.--In carrying out a review under
subparagraph (B), a State educational agency shall only
review the administrative processes of a selected local
educational agency, including application, certification,
verification, meal counting, and meal claiming procedures.
``(D) Results of review.--If the State educational agency
determines (on the basis of a review conducted under
subparagraph (B)) that a selected local educational agency
fails to meet performance criteria established by the
Secretary, the State educational agency shall--
``(i) require the selected local educational agency to
develop and carry out an approved plan of corrective action;
``(ii) except to the extent technical assistance is
provided directly by the Secretary, provide technical
assistance to assist the selected local educational agency in
carrying out the corrective action plan; and
``(iii) conduct a followup review of the selected local
educational agency under standards established by the
Secretary.
``(4) Retaining funds after administrative reviews.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), if
the local educational agency fails to meet administrative
performance criteria established by the Secretary in both an
initial review and a followup review under paragraph (1) or
(3) or subsection (a), the Secretary may require the State
educational agency to retain funds that would otherwise be
paid to the local educational agency for school meals
programs under procedures prescribed by the Secretary.
``(B) Amount.--The amount of funds retained under
subparagraph (A) shall equal the value of any overpayment
made to the local educational agency or school food authority
as a result of an erroneous claim during the time period
described in subparagraph (C).
``(C) Time period.--The period for determining the value of
any overpayment under subparagraph (B) shall be the period--
``(i) beginning on the date the erroneous claim was made;
and
``(ii) ending on the earlier of the date the erroneous
claim is corrected or--
``(I) in the case of the first followup review conducted by
the State educational agency of the local educational agency
under this section after July 1, 2005, the date that is 60
days after the beginning of the period under clause (i); or
``(II) in the case of any subsequent followup review
conducted by the State educational agency of the local
educational agency under this section, the date that is 90
days after the beginning of the period under clause (i).
``(5) Use of retained funds.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), funds
retained under paragraph (4) shall--
``(i) be returned to the Secretary, and may be used--
``(I) to provide training and technical assistance related
to administrative practices designed to improve program
integrity and administrative accuracy in school meals
programs to State educational agencies and, to the extent
determined by the Secretary, to local educational agencies
and school food authorities;
``(II) to assist State educational agencies in reviewing
the administrative practices of local educational agencies in
carrying out school meals programs; and
``(III) to carry out section 21(f); or
``(ii) be credited to the child nutrition programs
appropriation account.
``(B) State share.--A State educational agency may retain
not more than 25 percent of an amount recovered under
paragraph (4), to carry out school meals program integrity
initiatives to assist local educational agencies and school
food authorities that have repeatedly failed, as determined
by the Secretary, to meet administrative performance
criteria.
``(C) Requirement.--To be eligible to retain funds under
subparagraph (B), a State educational agency shall--
``(i) submit to the Secretary a plan describing how the
State educational agency will use the funds to improve school
meals program integrity, including measures to give priority
to local educational agencies from which funds were retained
under paragraph (4);
``(ii) consider using individuals who administer exemplary
local food service programs in the provision of training and
technical assistance; and
``(iii) obtain the approval of the Secretary for the
plan.''.
(2) Interpretation.--Nothing in the amendment made by
paragraph (1) affects the requirements for fiscal actions as
described in the regulations issued pursuant to section 22(a)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1769c(a)).
(c) Training and Technical Assistance.--Section 7 of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1776) is amended--
(1) in subsection (e)--
(A) by striking ``(e) Each'' and inserting the following:
``(e) Plans for Use of Administrative Expense Funds.--
``(1) In general.--Each''; and
(B) by striking ``After submitting'' and all that follows
through ``change in the plan.'' and inserting the following:
``(2) Updates and information management systems.--
``(A) In general.--After submitting the initial plan, a
State shall be required to submit to the Secretary for
approval only a substantive change in the plan.
``(B) Plan contents.--Each State plan shall, at a minimum,
include a description of how technology and information
management systems will be used to improve program integrity
by--
``(i) monitoring the nutrient content of meals served;
``(ii) training local educational agencies, school food
authorities, and schools in how to use technology and
information management systems (including verifying
eligibility for free or reduced price meals using program
participation or income data gathered by State or local
agencies); and
``(iii) using electronic data to establish benchmarks to
compare and monitor program integrity, program participation,
and financial data.
``(3) Training and technical assistance.--Each State shall
submit to the Secretary for approval a plan describing the
manner in which the State intends to implement subsection (g)
and section 22(b)(3) of the Richard B. Russell National
School Lunch Act.'';
(2) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (j); and
(3) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
``(g) State Training.--
``(1) In general.--At least annually, each State shall
provide training in administrative practices (including
training in application, certification, verification, meal
counting, and meal claiming procedures) to local educational
agency and school food authority administrative personnel and
other appropriate personnel, with emphasis on the
requirements established by the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization Act of 2004 and the amendments made by that
Act.
``(2) Federal role.--The Secretary shall--
``(A) provide training and technical assistance to a State;
or
``(B) at the option of the Secretary, directly provide
training and technical assistance described in paragraph (1).
``(3) Required participation.--In accordance with
procedures established by the Secretary, each local
educational agency or school food authority shall ensure that
an individual conducting or overseeing administrative
procedures described in paragraph (1) receives training at
least annually, unless determined otherwise by the Secretary.
``(h) Funding for Training and Administrative Reviews.--
``(1) Funding.--
``(A) In general.--On October 1, 2004, and on each October
1 thereafter, out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise
appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to
the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this subsection
$4,000,000, to remain available until expended.
``(B) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this subsection the funds transferred under subparagraph (A),
without further appropriation.
``(2) Use of funds.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the Secretary shall use funds provided under this subsection
to assist States in carrying out subsection (g) and
administrative reviews of selected local educational agencies
carried out under section 22 of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769c).
``(B) Exception.--The Secretary may retain a portion of the
amount provided to cover costs of activities carried out by
the Secretary in lieu of the State.
``(3) Allocation.--The Secretary shall allocate funds
provided under this subsection to States based on the number
of local educational agencies that have demonstrated a high
level of, or a high risk for, administrative error, as
determined by the Secretary, taking into account the
requirements established by the Child Nutrition and WIC
Reauthorization Act of 2004 and the amendments made by that
Act.
``(4) Reallocation.--The Secretary may reallocate, to carry
out this section, any amounts made available to carry out
this subsection that are not obligated or expended, as
determined by the Secretary.''.
SEC. 127. COMPLIANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
Section 22(d) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769c(d)) is amended by striking
``$3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1994 through 2003''
and inserting ``$6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004
through 2009''.
SEC. 128. INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE.
Section 26(d) of the Richard B. Russell National School
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769g(d)) is amended in the first
sentence--
(1) by striking ``1998, and'' and inserting ``1998,''; and
(2) by striking ``through 2003'' and inserting ``through
2004, and $250,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through
2009''.
SEC. 129. PROGRAM EVALUATION.
The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1751 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 28. PROGRAM EVALUATION.
``(a) Performance Assessments.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds
made available under paragraph (3), the Secretary, acting
through the
[[Page H4947]]
Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, may conduct
annual national performance assessments of the meal programs
under this Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1771 et seq.).
``(2) Components.--In conducting an assessment, the
Secretary may assess--
``(A) the cost of producing meals and meal supplements
under the programs described in paragraph (1); and
``(B) the nutrient profile of meals, and status of menu
planning practices, under the programs.
``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $5,000,000
for fiscal year 2004 and each subsequent fiscal year.
``(b) Certification Improvements.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds
made available under paragraph (5), the Secretary, acting
through the Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service,
shall conduct a study of the feasibility of improving the
certification process used for the school lunch program
established under this Act.
``(2) Pilot projects.--In carrying out this subsection, the
Secretary may conduct pilot projects to improve the
certification process used for the school lunch program.
``(3) Components.--In carrying out this subsection, the
Secretary shall examine the use of--
``(A) other income reporting systems;
``(B) an integrated benefit eligibility determination
process managed by a single agency;
``(C) income or program participation data gathered by
State or local agencies; and
``(D) other options determined by the Secretary.
``(4) Waivers.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the
Secretary may waive such provisions of this Act and the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.) as are
necessary to carry out this subsection.
``(B) Provisions.--The protections of section 9(b)(6) shall
apply to any study or pilot project carried out under this
subsection.
``(5) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this subsection such sums as
are necessary.''.
TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO CHILD NUTRITION ACT OF 1966
SEC. 201. SEVERE NEED ASSISTANCE.
Section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1773) is amended by striking subsection (d) and inserting the
following:
``(d) Severe Need Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--Each State educational agency shall
provide additional assistance to schools in severe need,
which shall include only those schools (having a breakfast
program or desiring to initiate a breakfast program) in
which--
``(A) during the most recent second preceding school year
for which lunches were served, 40 percent or more of the
lunches served to students at the school were served free or
at a reduced price; or
``(B) in the case of a school in which lunches were not
served during the most recent second preceding school year,
the Secretary otherwise determines that the requirements of
subparagraph (A) would have been met.
``(2) Additional assistance.--A school, on the submission
of appropriate documentation about the need circumstances in
that school and the eligibility of the school for additional
assistance, shall be entitled to receive the meal
reimbursement rate specified in subsection (b)(2).''.
SEC. 202. STATE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.
(a) Minimum State Administrative Expense Grants.--Section 7
of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1776) is
amended--
(1) by striking the section heading and all that follows
through ``(a)(1) Each'' and inserting the following:
``SEC. 7. STATE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.
``(a) Amount and Allocation of Funds.--
``(1) Amount available.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
each'';
(2) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by inserting after the first sentence the following:
``(B) Minimum amount.--In the case of each of fiscal years
2005 through 2007, the Secretary shall make available to each
State for administrative costs not less than the initial
allocation made to the State under this subsection for fiscal
year 2004.'';
(ii) by striking ``The Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(C) Allocation.--The Secretary''; and
(iii) by striking the last sentence; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking ``(2) The'' and inserting the following:
``(2) Expense grants.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the'';
(ii) in the second sentence--
(I) by striking ``In no case'' and inserting the following:
``(B) Minimum amount.--
``(i) In general.--In no case'';
(II) by striking ``this subsection'' and inserting ``this
paragraph''; and
(III) by striking ``$100,000'' and inserting ``$200,000 (as
adjusted under clause (ii)''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(ii) Adjustment.--On October 1, 2008, and each October 1
thereafter, the minimum dollar amount for a fiscal year
specified in clause (i) shall be adjusted to reflect the
percentage change between--
``(I) the value of the index for State and local government
purchases, as published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of
the Department of Commerce, for the 12-month period ending
June 30 of the second preceding fiscal year; and
``(II) the value of that index for the 12-month period
ending June 30 of the preceding fiscal year.''.
(b) Technology Infrastructure Improvement.--Section 7 of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1776) is amended
by inserting after subsection (h) (as added by section
126(c)(3)) the following:
``(i) Technology Infrastructure Improvement.--
``(1) In general.--Each State shall submit to the
Secretary, for approval by the Secretary, an amendment to the
plan required by subsection (e) that describes the manner in
which funds provided under this section will be used for
technology and information management systems.
``(2) Requirements.--The amendment shall, at a minimum,
describe the manner in which the State will improve program
integrity by--
``(A) monitoring the nutrient content of meals served;
``(B) providing training to local educational agencies,
school food authorities, and schools on the use of technology
and information management systems for activities including--
``(i) menu planning;
``(ii) collection of point-of-sale data; and
``(iii) the processing of applications for free and reduced
price meals; and
``(C) using electronic data to establish benchmarks to
compare and monitor program integrity, program participation,
and financial data across schools and school food
authorities.
``(3) Technology infrastructure grants.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds
made available under paragraph (4) to carry out this
paragraph, the Secretary shall, on a competitive basis,
provide funds to States to be used to provide grants to local
educational agencies, school food authorities, and schools to
defray the cost of purchasing or upgrading technology and
information management systems for use in programs authorized
by this Act (other than section 17) and the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.).
``(B) Infrastructure development plan.--To be eligible to
receive a grant under this paragraph, a school or school food
authority shall submit to the State a plan to purchase or
upgrade technology and information management systems that
addresses potential cost savings and methods to improve
program integrity, including--
``(i) processing and verification of applications for free
and reduced price meals;
``(ii) integration of menu planning, production, and
serving data to monitor compliance with section 9(f)(1) of
the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1758(f)(1)); and
``(iii) compatibility with statewide reporting systems.
``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection
such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal years 2005
through 2009, to remain available until expended.''.
(c) Reauthorization.--Subsection (j) of section 7 of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1776) (as redesignated
by section 126(c)(2)) is amended by striking ``2003'' and
inserting ``2009''.
SEC. 203. SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION PROGRAM FOR WOMEN,
INFANTS, AND CHILDREN.
(a) Definitions.--
(1) Nutrition education.--Section 17(b) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(b)) is amended by
striking paragraph (7) and inserting the following:
``(7) Nutrition education.--The term `nutrition education'
means individual and group sessions and the provision of
material that are designed to improve health status and
achieve positive change in dietary and physical activity
habits, and that emphasize the relationship between
nutrition, physical activity, and health, all in keeping with
the personal and cultural preferences of the individual.''.
(2) Supplemental foods.--Section 17(b)(14) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(b)(14)) is amended in
the first sentence by inserting after ``children'' the
following: ``and foods that promote the health of the
population served by the program authorized by this section,
as indicated by relevant nutrition science, public health
concerns, and cultural eating patterns''.
(3) Other terms.--Section 17(b) of the Child Nutrition Act
of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(b)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(22) Primary contract infant formula.--The term `primary
contract infant formula' means the specific infant formula
for which manufacturers submit a bid to a State agency in
response to a rebate solicitation under this section and for
which a contract is awarded by the State agency as a result
of that bid.
``(23) State alliance.--The term `State alliance' means 2
or more State agencies that
[[Page H4948]]
join together for the purpose of procuring infant formula
under the program by soliciting competitive bids for infant
formula.''.
(b) Eligibility.--
(1) Certification period.--Section 17(d)(3) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(d)(3)) is amended--
(A) by striking ``(3)(A) Persons'' and inserting the
following:
``(3) Certification.--
``(A) Procedures.--
``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), a person''; and
(B) by adding at the end of subparagraph (A) the following:
``(ii) Breastfeeding women.--A State may elect to certify a
breastfeeding woman for a period of 1 year postpartum or
until a woman discontinues breastfeeding, whichever is
earlier.''.
(2) Physical presence.--Section 17(d)(3)(C)(ii) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(d)(3)(C)(ii)) is
amended--
(A) in subclause (I)(bb), by striking ``from a provider
other than the local agency; or'' and inserting a semicolon;
(B) in subclause (II), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(III) an infant under 8 weeks of age--
``(aa) who cannot be present at certification for a reason
determined appropriate by the local agency; and
``(bb) for whom all necessary certification information is
provided.''.
(c) Administration.--
(1) Processing vendor applications; participant access.--
Section 17(f)(1)(C) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1786(f)(1)(C)) is amended--
(A) in clause (i) by inserting ``at any of the authorized
retail stores under the program'' after ``the program'';
(B) by redesignating clauses (ii) through (x) as clauses
(iii) through (xi), respectively; and
(C) by inserting after clause (i) the following:
``(ii) procedures for accepting and processing vendor
applications outside of the established timeframes if the
State agency determines there will be inadequate access to
the program, including in a case in which a previously
authorized vendor sells a store under circumstances that do
not permit timely notification to the State agency of the
change in ownership;''.
(2) Allowable use of funds.--
(A) In general.--Section 17(f)(11) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)(11) is amended--
(i) by striking ``(11) The Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(11) Supplemental foods.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary'';
(ii) in the second sentence, by striking ``To the degree''
and inserting the following:
``(B) Appropriate content.--To the degree''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Allowable use of funds.--Subject to the availability
of funds, the Secretary shall award grants to not more than
10 local sites determined by the Secretary to be
geographically and culturally representative of State, local,
and Indian agencies, to evaluate the feasibility of including
fresh, frozen, or canned fruits and vegetables (to be made
available through private funds) as an addition to the
supplemental foods prescribed under this section.
``(D) Review of available supplemental foods.--As
frequently as determined by the Secretary to be necessary to
reflect the most recent scientific knowledge, the Secretary
shall--
``(i) conduct a scientific review of the supplemental foods
available under the program; and
``(ii) amend the supplemental foods available, as
necessary, to reflect nutrition science, public health
concerns, and cultural eating patterns.''.
(B) Rulemaking.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
receiving the review initiated by the National Academy of
Sciences, Institute of Medicine in September 2003 of the
supplemental foods available for the special supplemental
nutrition program for women, infants, and children authorized
under section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1786), the Secretary shall promulgate a final rule
updating the prescribed supplemental foods available through
the program.
(3) Use of claims from local agencies.--Section 17(f)(21)
of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)(21)) is
amended--
(A) in the paragraph heading, by striking ``vendors'' and
inserting ``local agencies, vendors,''; and
(B) by striking ``vendors'' and inserting ``local agencies,
vendors,''.
(4) Infant formula benefits.--
(A) In general.--Section 17(f) of the Child Nutrition Act
of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(25) Infant formula benefits.--A State agency may round
up to the next whole can of infant formula to allow all
participants under the program to receive the full-authorized
nutritional benefit specified by regulation.''.
(B) Applicability.--The amendment made by subparagraph (A)
applies to infant formula provided under a contract resulting
from a bid solicitation issued on or after October 1, 2004.
(5) Notification of violations.--Section 17(f) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)) (as amended by
paragraph (4)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(26) Notification of violations.--If a State agency finds
that a vendor has committed a violation that requires a
pattern of occurrences in order to impose a penalty or
sanction, the State agency shall notify the vendor of the
initial violation in writing prior to documentation of
another violation, unless the State agency determines that
notifying the vendor would compromise an investigation.''.
(d) Reauthorization of WIC Program.--Section 17(g) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(g)) is amended by
striking ``(g)(1)'' and all that follows through ``As
authorized'' in paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--
``(A) Authorization.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section such sums as are
necessary for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2009.
``(B) Advance appropriations; availability.--As
authorized''.
(e) Nutrition Services and Administration Funds;
Competitive Bidding; Retailers.--
(1) In general.--Section 17(h)(2)(A) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(2)(A)) is amended by striking
``For each of the fiscal years 1995 through 2003, the'' and
inserting ``The''.
(2) Healthy people 2010 initiative.--Section 17(h)(4) of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(4)) is
amended--
(A) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``; and'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(B) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(F) partner with communities, State and local agencies,
employers, health care professionals, and other entities in
the private sector to build a supportive breastfeeding
environment for women participating in the program under this
section to support the breastfeeding goals of the Healthy
People 2010 initiative.''.
(3) Size of state alliances.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) Size of state alliances.--
``(I) In general.--Except as provided in subclauses (II)
through (IV), no State alliance may exist among States if the
total number of infants served by States participating in the
alliance as of October 1, 2003, or such subsequent date
determined by the Secretary for which data is available,
would exceed 100,000.
``(II) Addition of infant participants.--In the case of a
State alliance that exists on the date of enactment of this
clause, the alliance may continue and may expand to serve
more than 100,000 infants but, except as provided in
subclause (III), may not expand to include any additional
State agency.
``(III) Addition of small state agencies and indian state
agencies.--Any State alliance may expand to include any State
agency that served less than 5,000 infant participants as of
October 1, 2003, or such subsequent date determined by the
Secretary for which data is available, or any Indian State
agency, if the State agency or Indian State agency requests
to join the State alliance.
``(IV) Secretarial waiver.--The Secretary may waive the
requirements of this clause not earlier than 30 days after
submitting to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of
the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a written
report that describes the cost-containment and competitive
benefits of the proposed waiver.''.
(4) Primary contract infant formula.--
(A) In general.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(8)(A)) (as amended by paragraph
(3)) is amended--
(i) in clause (ii)(I), by striking ``contract brand of''
and inserting ``primary contract'';
(ii) in clause (iii), by inserting ``for a specific infant
formula for which manufacturers submit a bid'' after ``lowest
net price''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(v) First choice of issuance.--The State agency shall use
the primary contract infant formula as the first choice of
issuance (by formula type), with all other infant formulas
issued as an alternative to the primary contract infant
formula.''.
(B) Applicability.--The amendments made by subparagraph (A)
apply to a contract resulting from a bid solicitation issued
on or after October 1, 2004.
(5) Rebate invoices.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)) (as amended
by paragraph (4)(A)(iii)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(vi) Rebate invoices.--Each State agency shall have a
system to ensure that infant formula rebate invoices, under
competitive bidding, provide a reasonable estimate or an
actual count of the number of units sold to participants in
the program under this section.''.
(6) Uncoupling milk and soy bids.--
(A) In general.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)) (as amended by
paragraph (5)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(vii) Separate solicitations.--In soliciting bids for
infant formula under a competitive bidding system, any State
agency,
[[Page H4949]]
or State alliance, that served under the program a monthly
average of more than 100,000 infants during the preceding 12-
month period shall solicit bids from infant formula
manufacturers under procedures that require that bids for
rebates or discounts are solicited for milk-based and soy-
based infant formula separately.''.
(B) Applicability.--The amendment made by this paragraph
applies to a bid solicitation issued on or after October 1,
2004.
(7) Cent-for-cent adjustments.--
(A) In general.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)) (as amended by
paragraph (6)(A)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(viii) Cent-for-cent adjustments.--A bid solicitation for
infant formula under the program shall require the
manufacturer to adjust for price changes subsequent to the
opening of the bidding process in a manner that requires--
``(I) a cent-for-cent increase in the rebate amounts if
there is an increase in the lowest national wholesale price
for a full truckload of the particular infant formula; and
``(II) a cent-for-cent decrease in the rebate amounts if
there is a decrease in the lowest national wholesale price
for a full truckload of the particular infant formula.''.
(B) Conforming amendment.--Section 17(h)(8)(A)(ii) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)(ii)) is
amended by striking ``rise'' and inserting ``change''.
(C) Applicability.--The amendments made by this paragraph
apply to a bid solicitation issued on or after October 1,
2004.
(8) List of infant formula wholesalers, distributors,
retailers, and manufacturers.--Section 17(h)(8)(A) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)(8)(A)) (as
amended by paragraph (7)(A)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(ix) List of infant formula wholesalers, distributors,
retailers, and manufacturers.--The State agency shall
maintain a list of--
``(I) infant formula wholesalers, distributors, and
retailers licensed in the State in accordance with State law
(including regulations); and
``(II) infant formula manufacturers registered with the
Food and Drug Administration that provide infant formula.
``(x) Purchase requirement.--A vendor authorized to
participate in the program under this section shall only
purchase infant formula from the list described in clause
(ix).''.
(9) Funds for infrastructure, management information
systems, and special nutrition education.--Section 17(h) of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)) is
amended by striking paragraph (10) and inserting the
following:
``(10) Funds for infrastructure, management information
systems, and special nutrition education.--
``(A) In general.--For each of fiscal years 2006 through
2009, the Secretary shall use for the purposes specified in
subparagraph (B), $64,000,000 or the amount of nutrition
services and administration funds and supplemental food funds
for the prior fiscal year that have not been obligated,
whichever is less.
``(B) Purposes.--Of the amount made available under
subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year, not more than--
``(i) $14,000,000 shall be used for--
``(I) infrastructure for the program under this section;
``(II) special projects to promote breastfeeding, including
projects to assess the effectiveness of particular
breastfeeding promotion strategies; and
``(III) special State projects of regional or national
significance to improve the services of the program;
``(ii) $30,000,000 shall be used to establish, improve, or
administer management information systems for the program,
including changes necessary to meet new legislative or
regulatory requirements of the program; and
``(iii) $20,000,000 shall be used for special nutrition
education such as breast feeding peer counselors and other
related activities.
``(C) Proportional distribution.--In a case in which less
than $64,000,000 is available to carry out this paragraph,
the Secretary shall make a proportional distribution of funds
allocated under subparagraph (B).''.
(10) Vendor cost containment.--
(A) Section 17(h) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42
U.S.C. 1786(h)) is amended by striking paragraph (11) and
inserting the following:
``(11) Vendor cost containment.--
``(A) Peer groups.--
``(i) In general.--The State agency shall--
``(I) establish a vendor peer group system;
``(II) in accordance with subparagraphs (B) and (C),
establish competitive price criteria and allowable
reimbursement levels for each vendor peer group; and
``(III) if the State agency elects to authorize any types
of vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I)--
``(aa) distinguish between vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) and other vendors by establishing--
``(AA) separate peer groups for vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I);or
``(BB) distinct competitive price criteria and allowable
reimbursement levels for vendors described in subparagraph
(D)(ii)(I) within a peer group that contains both vendors
described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) and other vendors; and
``(bb) establish competitive price criteria and allowable
reimbursement levels that comply with subparagraphs (B) and
(C), respectively, and that do not result in higher food
costs if program participants redeem supplemental food
vouchers at vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I)
rather than at vendors other than vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I).
Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to compel a
State agency to achieve lower food costs if program
participants redeem supplemental food vouchers at vendors
described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) rather than at vendors
other than vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I).
``(ii) Exemptions.--The Secretary may exempt from the
requirements of clause (i)--
``(I) a State agency that elects not to authorize any types
of vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) and that
demonstrates to the Secretary that--
``(aa) compliance with clause (i) would be inconsistent
with efficient and effective operation of the program
administered by the State under this section; or
``(bb) an alternative cost-containment system would be as
effective as a vendor peer group system; or
``(II) a State agency--
``(aa) in which the sale of supplemental foods that are
obtained with food instruments from vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) constituted less than 5 percent of
total sales of supplemental foods that were obtained with
food instruments in the State in the year preceding a year in
which the exemption is effective; and
``(bb) that demonstrates to the Secretary that an
alternative cost-containment system would be as effective as
the vendor peer group system and would not result in higher
food costs if program participants redeem supplemental food
vouchers at vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I)
rather than at vendors other than vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I).
``(B) Competitive pricing.--
``(i) In general.--The State agency shall establish
competitive price criteria for each peer group for the
selection of vendors for participation in the program that--
``(I) ensure that the retail prices charged by vendor
applicants for the program are competitive with the prices
charged by other vendors; and
``(II) consider--
``(aa) the shelf prices of the vendor for all buyers; or
``(bb) the prices that the vendor bid for supplemental
foods, which shall not exceed the shelf prices of the vendor
for all buyers.
``(ii) Participant access.--In establishing competitive
price criteria, the State agency shall consider participant
access by geographic area.
``(iii) Subsequent price increases.--The State agency shall
establish procedures to ensure that a retail store selected
for participation in the program does not, subsequent to
selection, increase prices to levels that would make the
store ineligible for selection to participate in the program.
``(C) Allowable reimbursement levels.--
``(i) In general.--The State agency shall establish
allowable reimbursement levels for supplemental foods for
each vendor peer group that ensure--
``(I) that payments to vendors in the vendor peer group
reflect competitive retail prices; and
``(II) that the State agency does not reimburse a vendor
for supplemental foods at a level that would make the vendor
ineligible for authorization under the criteria established
under subparagraph (B).
``(ii) Price fluctuations.--The allowable reimbursement
levels may include a factor to reflect fluctuations in
wholesale prices.
``(iii) Participant access.--In establishing allowable
reimbursement levels, the State agency shall consider
participant access in a geographic area.
``(D) Exemptions.--The State agency may exempt from
competitive price criteria and allowable reimbursement levels
established under this paragraph--
``(i) pharmacy vendors that supply only exempt infant
formula or medical foods that are eligible under the program;
and
``(ii) vendors--
``(I)(aa) for which more than 50 percent of the annual
revenue of the vendor from the sale of food items consists of
revenue from the sale of supplemental foods that are obtained
with food instruments; or
``(bb) who are new applicants likely to meet the criteria
of item (aa) under criteria approved by the Secretary; and
``(II) that are nonprofit.
``(E) Cost containment.--If a State agency elects to
authorize any types of vendors described in subparagraph
(D)(ii)(I), the State agency shall demonstrate to the
Secretary, and the Secretary shall certify, that the
competitive price criteria and allowable reimbursement levels
established under this paragraph for vendors described in
subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) do not result in average payments per
voucher to vendors described in subparagraph (D)(ii)(I) that
are higher than average payments per voucher to comparable
vendors other than vendors described in subparagraph
(D)(ii)(I).
``(F) Limitation on private rights of action.--Nothing in
this paragraph may be construed as creating a private right
of action.
``(G) Implementation.--A State agency shall comply with
this paragraph not later
[[Page H4950]]
than 18 months after the date of enactment of this
paragraph.''.
(B) Conforming amendment.--Section 17(f)(1)(C)(i) of the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)(1)(C)(i)) is
amended by inserting before the semicolon the following: ``,
including a description of the State agency's vendor peer
group system, competitive price criteria, and allowable
reimbursement levels that demonstrate that the State is in
compliance with the cost-containment provisions in subsection
(h)(11).''.
(11) Imposition of costs on retail stores.--Section 17(h)
of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)) is
amended by striking paragraph (12) and inserting the
following:
``(12) Imposition of costs on retail stores.--The Secretary
may not impose, or allow a State agency to impose, the costs
of any equipment, system, or processing required for
electronic benefit transfers on any retail store authorized
to transact food instruments, as a condition for
authorization or participation in the program.''.
(12) Universal product codes database.--Section 17(h) of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)) (as
amended by paragraph (11)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(13) Universal product codes database.--The Secretary
shall--
``(A) establish a national universal product code database
for use by all State agencies in carrying out the program;
and
``(B) make available from appropriated funds such sums as
are required for hosting, hardware and software
configuration, and support of the database.''.
(13) Incentive items.--Section 17(h) of the Child Nutrition
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(h)) (as amended by paragraph
(12)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(14) Incentive items.--A State agency shall not authorize
or make payments to a vendor described in paragraph
(11)(D)(ii)(I) that provides incentive items or other free
merchandise, except food or merchandise of nominal value (as
determined by the Secretary), to program participants unless
the vendor provides to the State agency proof that the vendor
obtained the incentive items or merchandise at no cost.''.
(f) Spend Forward Authority.--Section 17(i)(3)(A)(ii)(I) of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1786(i)(3)(A)(ii)(I)) is amended by striking ``1 percent''
and inserting ``3 percent''.
(g) Migrant and Community Health Centers Initiative.--
Section 17(j) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.
1786(j)) is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (4); and
(2) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (4).
(h) Farmers' Market Nutrition Program.--
(1) Roadside stands.--Section 17(m)(1) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(1)) is amended by
inserting ``and (at the option of a State) roadside stands''
after ``farmers' markets''.
(2) Matching funds.--Section 17(m)(3) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(3)) is amended by
striking ``total'' both places it appears and inserting
``administrative''.
(3) Benefit value.--Section 17(m)(5)(C)(ii) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(5)(C)(ii)) is
amended by striking ``$20'' and inserting ``$30''.
(4) Reauthorization.--Section 17(m)(9)(A) of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(9)(A)) is amended by
striking clause (i) and inserting the following:
``(i) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection
such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal years 2004
through 2009.''.
(i) Demonstration Project Relating to Use of WIC Program
for Identification and Enrollment of Children in Certain
Health Programs.--
(1) In general.--Section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786) is amended by striking subsection (r).
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 12 of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1760) is amended
by striking subsection (p).
SEC. 204. LOCAL WELLNESS POLICY.
(a) In General.--Not later than the first day of the school
year beginning after June 30, 2006, each local educational
agency participating in a program authorized by the Richard
B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.)
or the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.)
shall establish a local school wellness policy for schools
under the local educational agency that, at a minimum--
(1) includes goals for nutrition education, physical
activity, and other school-based activities that are designed
to promote student wellness in a manner that the local
educational agency determines is appropriate;
(2) includes nutrition guidelines selected by the local
educational agency for all foods available on each school
campus under the local educational agency during the school
day with the objectives of promoting student health and
reducing childhood obesity;
(3) provides an assurance that guidelines for reimbursable
school meals shall not be less restrictive than regulations
and guidance issued by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant
to subsections (a) and (b) of section 10 of the Child
Nutrition Act (42 U.S.C. 1779) and sections 9(f)(1) and 17(a)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1758(f)(1), 1766(a)), as those regulations and
guidance apply to schools;
(4) establishes a plan for measuring implementation of the
local wellness policy, including designation of 1 or more
persons within the local educational agency or at each
school, as appropriate, charged with operational
responsibility for ensuring that the school meets the local
wellness policy; and
(5) involves parents, students, representatives of the
school food authority, the school board, school
administrators, and the public in the development of the
school wellness policy.
(b) Technical Assistance and Best Practices.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary, in coordination with the
Secretary of Education and in consultation with the Secretary
of Health and Human Services, acting through the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, shall make available to local
educational agencies, school food authorities, and State
educational agencies, on request, information and technical
assistance for use in--
(A) establishing healthy school nutrition environments;
(B) reducing childhood obesity; and
(C) preventing diet-related chronic diseases.
(2) Content.--Technical assistance provided by the
Secretary under this subsection shall--
(A) include relevant and applicable examples of schools and
local educational agencies that have taken steps to offer
healthy options for foods sold or served in schools;
(B) include such other technical assistance as is required
to carry out the goals of promoting sound nutrition and
establishing healthy school nutrition environments that are
consistent with this section;
(C) be provided in such a manner as to be consistent with
the specific needs and requirements of local educational
agencies; and
(D) be for guidance purposes only and not be construed as
binding or as a mandate to schools, local educational
agencies, school food authorities, or State educational
agencies.
(3) Funding.--
(A) In general.--On July 1, 2006, out of any funds in the
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the
Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary of Agriculture to
carry out this subsection $4,000,000, to remain available
until September 30, 2009.
(B) Receipt and acceptance.--The Secretary shall be
entitled to receive, shall accept, and shall use to carry out
this subsection the funds transferred under subparagraph (A),
without further appropriation.
SEC. 205. TEAM NUTRITION NETWORK.
(a) Team Nutrition Network.--Section 19 of the Child
Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1788) is amended to read as
follows:
``SEC. 19. TEAM NUTRITION NETWORK.
``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of the team nutrition network
are--
``(1) to establish State systems to promote the nutritional
health of school children of the United States through
nutrition education and the use of team nutrition messages
and material developed by the Secretary, and to encourage
regular physical activity and other activities that support
healthy lifestyles for children, including those based on 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);
``(2) to provide assistance to States for the development
of comprehensive and integrated nutrition education and
active living programs in schools and facilities that
participate in child nutrition programs;
``(3) to provide training and technical assistance and
disseminate team nutrition messages to States, school and
community nutrition programs, and child nutrition food
service professionals;
``(4) to coordinate and collaborate with other nutrition
education and active living programs that share similar goals
and purposes; and
``(5) to identify and share innovative programs with
demonstrated effectiveness in helping children to maintain a
healthy weight by enhancing student understanding of
healthful eating patterns and the importance of regular
physical activity.
``(b) Definition of Team Nutrition Network.--In this
section, the term `team nutrition network' means a statewide
multidisciplinary program for children to promote healthy
eating and physical activity based on scientifically valid
information and sound educational, social, and marketing
principles.
``(c) Grants.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds for
use in carrying out this section, in addition to any other
funds made available to the Secretary for team nutrition
purposes, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary
of Education, may make grants to State agencies for each
fiscal year, in accordance with this section, to establish
team nutrition networks to promote nutrition education
through--
``(A) the use of team nutrition network messages and other
scientifically based information; and
``(B) the promotion of active lifestyles.
``(2) Form.--A portion of the grants provided under this
subsection may be in the form of competitive grants.
``(3) Funds from nongovernmental sources.--In carrying out
this subsection,
[[Page H4951]]
the Secretary may accept cash contributions from
nongovernmental organizations made expressly to further the
purposes of this section, to be managed by the Food and
Nutrition Service, for use by the Secretary and the States in
carrying out this section.
``(d) Allocation.--Subject to the availability of funds for
use in carrying out this section, the total amount of funds
made available for a fiscal year for grants under this
section shall equal not more than the sum of--
``(1) the product obtained by multiplying \1/2\ cent by the
number of lunches reimbursed through food service programs
under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) during the second preceding fiscal year
in schools, institutions, and service institutions that
participate in the food service programs; and
``(2) the total value of funds received by the Secretary in
support of this section from nongovernmental sources.
``(e) Requirements for State Participation.--To be eligible
to receive a grant under this section, a State agency shall
submit to the Secretary a plan that--
``(1) is subject to approval by the Secretary; and
``(2) is submitted at such time and in such manner, and
that contains such information, as the Secretary may require,
including--
``(A) a description of the goals and proposed State plan
for addressing the health and other consequences of children
who are at risk of becoming overweight or obese;
``(B) an analysis of the means by which the State agency
will use and disseminate the team nutrition messages and
material developed by the Secretary;
``(C) an explanation of the ways in which the State agency
will use the funds from the grant to work toward the goals
required under subparagraph (A), and to promote healthy
eating and physical activity and fitness in schools
throughout the State;
``(D) a description of the ways in which the State team
nutrition network messages and activities will be coordinated
at the State level with other health promotion and education
activities;
``(E) a description of the consultative process that the
State agency employed in the development of the model
nutrition and physical activity programs, including
consultations with individuals and organizations with
expertise in promoting public health, nutrition, or physical
activity;
``(F) a description of how the State agency will evaluate
the effectiveness of each program developed by the State
agency;
``(G) an annual summary of the team nutrition network
activities;
``(H) a description of the ways in which the total school
environment will support healthy eating and physical
activity; and
``(I) a description of how all communications to parents
and legal guardians of students who are members of a
household receiving or applying for assistance under the
program shall be in an understandable and uniform format and,
to the maximum extent practicable, in a language that parents
and legal guardians can understand.
``(f) State Coordinator.--Each State that receives a grant
under this section shall appoint a team nutrition network
coordinator who shall--
``(1) administer and coordinate the team nutrition network
within and across schools, school food authorities, and other
child nutrition program providers in the State; and
``(2) coordinate activities of the Secretary, acting
through the Food and Nutrition Service, and State agencies
responsible for other children's health, education, and
wellness programs to implement a comprehensive, coordinated
team nutrition network program.
``(g) Authorized Activities.--A State agency that receives
a grant under this section may use funds from the grant--
``(1)(A) to collect, analyze, and disseminate data
regarding the extent to which children and youths in the
State are overweight, physically inactive, or otherwise
suffering from nutrition-related deficiencies or disease
conditions; and
``(B) to identify the programs and services available to
meet those needs;
``(2) to implement model elementary and secondary education
curricula using team nutrition network messages and material
developed by the Secretary to create a comprehensive,
coordinated nutrition and physical fitness awareness and
obesity prevention program;
``(3) to implement pilot projects in schools to promote
physical activity and to enhance the nutritional status of
students;
``(4) to improve access to local foods through farm-to-
cafeteria activities that may include the acquisition of food
and the provision of training and education;
``(5) to implement State guidelines in health (including
nutrition education and physical education guidelines) and to
emphasize regular physical activity during school hours;
``(6) to establish healthy eating and lifestyle policies in
schools;
``(7) to provide training and technical assistance to
teachers and school food service professionals consistent
with the purposes of this section;
``(8) to collaborate with public and private organizations,
including community-based organizations, State medical
associations, and public health groups, to develop and
implement nutrition and physical education programs targeting
lower income children, ethnic minorities, and youth at a
greater risk for obesity.
``(h) Local Nutrition and Physical Activity Grants.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds to
carry out this subsection, the Secretary, in consultation
with the Secretary of Education, shall provide assistance to
selected local educational agencies to create healthy school
nutrition environments, promote healthy eating habits, and
increase physical activity, consistent with the Dietary
Guidelines for Americans published under section 301 of the
National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of
1990 (7 U.S.C. 5341), among elementary and secondary
education students.
``(2) Selection of schools.--In selecting local educational
agencies for grants under this subsection, the Secretary
shall--
``(A) provide for the equitable distribution of grants
among--
``(i) urban, suburban, and rural schools; and
``(ii) schools with varying family income levels;
``(B) consider factors that affect need, including local
educational agencies with significant minority or low-income
student populations; and
``(C) establish a process that allows the Secretary to
conduct an evaluation of how funds were used.
``(3) Requirement for participation.--To be eligible to
receive assistance under this subsection, a local educational
agency shall, in consultation with individuals who possess
education or experience appropriate for representing the
general field of public health, including nutrition and
fitness professionals, submit to the Secretary an application
that shall include--
``(A) a description of the need of the local educational
agency for a nutrition and physical activity program,
including an assessment of the nutritional environment of the
school;
``(B) a description of how the proposed project will
improve health and nutrition through education and increased
access to physical activity;
``(C) a description of how the proposed project will be
aligned with the local wellness policy required under section
204 of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of
2004;
``(D) a description of how funds under this subsection will
be coordinated with other programs under this Act, the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751
et seq.), or other Acts, as appropriate, to improve student
health and nutrition;
``(E) a statement of the measurable goals of the local
educational agency for nutrition and physical education
programs and promotion;
``(F) a description of the procedures the agency will use
to assess and publicly report progress toward meeting those
goals; and
``(G) a description of how communications to parents and
guardians of participating students regarding the activities
under this subsection shall be in an understandable and
uniform format, and, to the extent maximum practicable, in a
language that parents can understand.
``(4) Duration.--Subject to the availability of funds made
available to carry out this subsection, a local educational
agency receiving assistance under this subsection shall
conduct the project during a period of 3 successive school
years beginning with the initial fiscal year for which the
local educational agency receives funds.
``(5) Authorized activities.--An eligible applicant that
receives assistance under this subsection--
``(A) shall use funds provided to--
``(i) promote healthy eating through the development and
implementation of nutrition education programs and curricula
based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans published under
section 301 of the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related
Research Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5341); and
``(ii) increase opportunities for physical activity through
after school programs, athletics, intramural activities, and
recess; and
``(B) may use funds provided to--
``(i) educate parents and students about the relationship
of a poor diet and inactivity to obesity and other health
problems;
``(ii) develop and implement physical education programs
that promote fitness and lifelong activity;
``(iii) provide training and technical assistance to food
service professionals to develop more appealing, nutritious
menus and recipes;
``(iv) incorporate nutrition education into physical
education, health education, and after school programs,
including athletics;
``(v) involve parents, nutrition professionals, food
service staff, educators, community leaders, and other
interested parties in assessing the food options in the
school environment and developing and implementing an action
plan to promote a balanced and healthy diet;
``(vi) provide nutrient content or nutrition information on
meals served through the school lunch program established
under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42
U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) and the school breakfast program
established by section 4 of this Act and items sold a la
carte during meal times;
``(vii) encourage the increased consumption of a variety of
healthy foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains,
and low-fat dairy products, through new initiatives to
creatively market healthful foods, such as salad bars and
fruit bars;
[[Page H4952]]
``(viii) offer healthy food choices outside program meals,
including by making low-fat and nutrient dense options
available in vending machines, school stores, and other
venues; and
``(ix) provide nutrition education, including sports
nutrition education, for teachers, coaches, food service
staff, athletic trainers, and school nurses.
``(6) Report.--Not later than 18 months after completion of
the projects and evaluations under this subsection, the
Secretary shall--
``(A) submit to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee
on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry of the Senate a report
describing the results of the evaluation under this
subsection; and
``(B) make the report available to the public, including
through the Internet.
``(i) Nutrition Education Support.--In carrying out the
purpose of this section to support nutrition education, the
Secretary may provide for technical assistance and grants to
improve the quality of school meals and access to local foods
in schools and institutions.
``(j) Limitation.--Material prepared under this section
regarding agricultural commodities, food, or beverages, must
be factual and without bias.
``(k) Team Nutrition Network Independent Evaluation.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds to
carry out this subsection, the Secretary shall offer to enter
into an agreement with an independent, nonpartisan, science-
based research organization--
``(A) to conduct a comprehensive independent evaluation of
the effectiveness of the team nutrition initiative and the
team nutrition network under this section; and
``(B) to identify best practices by schools in--
``(i) improving student understanding of healthful eating
patterns;
``(ii) engaging students in regular physical activity and
improving physical fitness;
``(iii) reducing diabetes and obesity rates in school
children;
``(iv) improving student nutrition behaviors on the school
campus, including by increasing healthier meal choices by
students, as evidenced by greater inclusion of fruits,
vegetables, whole grains, and lean dairy and protein in meal
and snack selections;
``(v) providing training and technical assistance for food
service professionals resulting in the availability of
healthy meals that appeal to ethnic and cultural taste
preferences;
``(vi) linking meals programs to nutrition education
activities;
``(vii) successfully involving parents, school
administrators, the private sector, public health agencies,
nonprofit organizations, and other community partners;
``(viii) ensuring the adequacy of time to eat during school
meal periods; and
``(ix) successfully generating revenue through the sale of
food items, while providing healthy options to students
through vending, student stores, and other venues.
``(2) Report.--Not later than 3 years after funds are made
available to carry out this subsection, the Secretary shall
submit to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the
House of Representatives, the Committee on Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Agriculture,
Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report describing the
findings of the independent evaluation.
``(l) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to
carry out this section.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 21(c)(2)(E) of the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1769b-1(c)(2)(E)) is amended by striking ``, including'' and
all that follows through ``1966''.
SEC. 206. REVIEW OF BEST PRACTICES IN THE BREAKFAST PROGRAM.
(a) Review.--
(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of funds under
subsection (c), the Secretary of Agriculture shall enter into
an agreement with a research organization to collect and
disseminate a review of best practices to assist school food
authorities in addressing existing impediments at the State
and local level that hinder the growth of the school
breakfast program under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act
of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773).
(2) Recommendations.--The review shall describe model
breakfast programs and offer recommendations for schools to
overcome obstacles, including--
(A) the length of the school day;
(B) bus schedules; and
(C) potential increases in costs at the State and local
level.
(b) Dissemination.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall--
(1) make the review required under subsection (a) available
to school food authorities via the Internet, including
recommendations to improve participation in the school
breakfast program; and
(2) transmit to Committee on Education and the Workforce of
the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a copy of
the review.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out
this section.
TITLE III--COMMODITY DISTRIBUTION PROGRAMS
SEC. 301. COMMODITY DISTRIBUTION PROGRAMS.
Section 15 of the Commodity Distribution Reform Act and WIC
Amendments of 1987 (7 U.S.C. 612c note; Public Law 100-237)
is amended by striking subsection (e).
TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS
SEC. 401. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING EFFORTS TO PREVENT AND
REDUCE CHILDHOOD OBESITY.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) childhood obesity in the United States has reached
critical proportions;
(2) childhood obesity is associated with numerous health
risks and the incidence of chronic disease later in life;
(3) the prevention of obesity among children yields
significant benefits in terms of preventing disease and the
health care costs associated with such diseases;
(4) further scientific and medical data on the prevalence
of childhood obesity is necessary in order to inform efforts
to fight childhood obesity; and
(5) the State of Arkansas--
(A) is the first State in the United States to have a
comprehensive statewide initiative to combat and prevent
childhood obesity by--
(i) annually measuring the body mass index of public school
children in the State from kindergarten through 12th grade;
and
(ii) providing that information to the parents of each
child with associated information about the health
implications of the body mass index of the child;
(B) maintains, analyzes, and reports on annual and
longitudinal body mass index data for the public school
children in the State; and
(C) develops and implements appropriate interventions at
the community and school level to address obesity, the risk
of obesity, and the condition of being overweight, including
efforts to encourage healthy eating habits and increased
physical activity.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the State of Arkansas, in partnership with the
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and the Arkansas
Center for Health Improvement, should be commended for its
leadership in combating childhood obesity; and
(2) the efforts of the State of Arkansas to implement a
statewide initiative to combat and prevent childhood obesity
are exemplary and could serve as a model for States across
the United States.
TITLE V--IMPLEMENTATION
SEC. 501. GUIDANCE AND REGULATIONS.
(a) Guidance.--As soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall
issue guidance to implement the amendments made by sections
102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 111, 116, 119(c), 119(g), 120,
126(b), 126(c), 201, 203(a)(3), 203(b), 203(c)(5), 203(e)(3),
203(e)(4), 203(e)(5), 203(e)(6), 203(e)(7), 203(e)(10), and
203(h)(1).
(b) Interim Final Regulations.--The Secretary may
promulgate interim final regulations to implement the
amendments described in subsection (a).
(c) Regulations.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate final
regulations to implement the amendments described in
subsection (a).
SEC. 502. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act,
this Act and the amendments made by this Act take effect on
the date of enactment of this Act.
(b) Special Effective Dates.--
(1) July 1, 2004.--The amendments made by sections 106,
107, 126(c), and 201 take effect on July 1, 2004.
(2) October 1, 2004.--The amendments made by sections
119(c), 119(g), 202(a), 203(a), 203(b), 203(c)(1), 203(c)(5),
203(e)(5), 203(e)(8), 203(e)(10), 203(e)(13), 203(f),
203(h)(1), and 203(h)(2) take effect on October 1, 2004.
(3) January 1, 2005.--The amendments made by sections
116(f)(1) and 116(f)(3) take effect on January 1, 2005.
(4) July 1, 2005.--The amendments made by sections 102,
104, 105, 111, and 126(b) take effect on July 1, 2005.
(5) October 1, 2005.--The amendments made by sections
116(d) and 203(e)(9) take effect on October 1, 2005.
The Senate bill was ordered to be read a third time, was read the
third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the
table.
____________________