[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 37 (Wednesday, March 5, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1654-S1655]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   NATIONAL SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM

  Mr. PRYOR. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 474, submitted 
earlier today by Senator Feingold.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 474) expressing the sense of the 
     Senate that providing breakfast in schools through the 
     National School Breakfast Program has a positive impact on 
     the lives and classroom performance of low-income children.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. CASEY. Madam President, I rise today in support of a Senate 
resolution that expresses the Senate's esteem for and commitment to the 
National School Breakfast Program. I am pleased to be joining Senator 
Feingold in both recognizing the good that this program accomplishes 
for low-income children and encouraging more States to participate.
  The United States is experiencing a hunger crisis. In 2006 alone, the 
U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA, reported that 35.5 million 
Americans did not have the money or resources needed to provide food 
for themselves or their families, and this number is sadly on the rise. 
Between 2005 and 2006, the number of hungry people in the United States 
increased by over 400,000. As we continue through hard economic times, 
we can only assume the number of hungry people in America will continue 
to increase.
  Hunger is not just a problem that plagues adults. Of the 35.5 million 
people who go hungry each year in America, 12.6 million of them are 
children. This means that 17.2 percent of all children are unsure where 
their next meal will come from--which poses a real problem. Hunger 
hinders growth and development and negatively affects

[[Page S1655]]

health, leading to increased illness, fatigue, and even 
hospitalizations. Studies have also shown that hunger impairs cognitive 
function; hungry children are more likely to perform poorly on tests 
and repeat grades.
  Recognizing the relationship between good nutrition and the ability 
to learn and be healthy, Congress established a pilot National School 
Breakfast Program in 1966. Because of its success in raising the 
nutrition level of needy children, Congress permanently authorized the 
program in 1975. Since its inception, the School Breakfast Program has 
experienced tremendous growth. According to the USDA, the number of 
participating students has increased from 0.5 million children in 1970 
to 9.7 million in 2006. This means that each day, more and more 
children receive a breakfast that provides them with one-fourth of the 
recommended dietary allowance for protein, calcium, iron, Vitamin A, 
Vitamin C, and calories. And because of improvements in implementation, 
including initiatives that provide breakfasts both in classrooms, in 
hallways, and as students exit buses, the number of students 
participating in the programs has doubled and in some cases tripled. 
Yet the number of students participating in the Breakfast Program is 
still much less than half of the number participating in the National 
Lunch Program. It is vitally important that we keep up the National 
Breakfast Program's momentum and provide the States with the tools they 
need to encourage as many needy children to take part as can.
  Appreciating the importance of the program, Pennsylvania has helped 
increase the number of schools that take advantage of this important 
program. Each year, Pennsylvania invests nearly $35.5 million in school 
breakfast and lunch, paying school districts 10 cents for each 
breakfast served and 10 cents for each lunch served. To increase the 
number of students receiving both breakfast and lunch, Pennsylvania 
pays an additional 2 cents per lunch if breakfast is offered in the 
school and an additional 4 cents per lunch if the school serves 
breakfast to at least 20 percent of enrolled students. As with national 
participation, Pennsylvania's participation is on the rise; over 100 
more schools participated in the program between 2005 and 2006 than the 
previous year. Through this resolution, we hope to encourage States, 
like Pennsylvania, to continue to work toward our common goal of 
reducing child hunger.
  This Senate resolution recognizes the positive impact the National 
School Breakfast Program has on needy children. The program not only 
gives students a balanced breakfast, it provides a solid foundation on 
which they can start their day. Eating breakfast alone increases 
student attentiveness and improves overall performance and wellness. 
The National School Breakfast Program is making great inroads into 
child hunger. This resolution recognizes the efforts of the States in 
implementing the program and encourages them to expand their efforts.
  Mr. PRYOR. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate, and any statements related to the resolution be printed in the 
Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 474) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 474

       Whereas participants in the National School Breakfast 
     Program established under section 4 of the Child Nutrition 
     Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) include public, private, 
     elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as schools in 
     rural, suburban, and urban areas;
       Whereas access to nutrition programs such as the National 
     School Lunch Program and the National School Breakfast 
     Program helps to create a stronger learning environment for 
     children and improves children's concentration in the 
     classroom;
       Whereas missing breakfast and the resulting hunger has been 
     shown to harm the ability of children to learn and hinders 
     academic performance;
       Whereas students who eat a complete breakfast have been 
     shown to make fewer mistakes and to work faster in math 
     exercises than those who eat a partial breakfast;
       Whereas implementing or improving classroom breakfast 
     programs has been shown to increase breakfast consumption 
     among eligible students dramatically, doubling and in some 
     cases tripling numbers of participants in school breakfast 
     programs, as evidenced by research in Minnesota, New York, 
     and Wisconsin;
       Whereas providing breakfast in the classroom has been shown 
     in several instances to improve attentiveness and academic 
     performance, while reducing absences, tardiness, and 
     disciplinary referrals;
       Whereas studies suggest that eating breakfast closer to the 
     time students arrive in the classroom and take tests improves 
     the students' performance on standardized tests;
       Whereas studies show that students who skip breakfast are 
     more likely to have difficulty distinguishing among similar 
     images, show increased errors, and have slower memory recall;
       Whereas children who live in families that experience 
     hunger are likely to have lower math scores, receive more 
     special education services, and face an increased likelihood 
     of repeating a grade;
       Whereas making breakfast widely available in different 
     venues or in a combination of venues, such as by providing 
     breakfast in the classroom, in the hallways outside 
     classrooms, or to students as they exit their school buses, 
     has been shown to lessen the stigma of receiving free or 
     reduced-price school breakfasts, which sometimes prevents 
     eligible students from obtaining traditional breakfast in the 
     cafeteria;
       Whereas, in fiscal year 2006, 7,700,000 students in the 
     United States consumed free or reduced-price school 
     breakfasts provided under the National School Breakfast 
     Program;
       Whereas less than half of the low-income students who 
     participate in the National School Lunch Program also 
     participate in the National School Breakfast Program;
       Whereas almost 17,000 schools that participate in the 
     National School Lunch Program do not participate in the 
     National School Breakfast Program;
       Whereas studies suggest that children who eat breakfast 
     take in more nutrients, such as calcium, fiber, protein, and 
     vitamins A, E, D, and B-6;
       Whereas studies show that children who participate in 
     school breakfast programs eat more fruits, drink more milk, 
     and consume less saturated fat than those who do not eat 
     breakfast; and
       Whereas children who do not eat breakfast, either in school 
     or at home, are more likely to be overweight than children 
     who eat a healthy breakfast on a daily basis: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the importance of the National School 
     Breakfast Program established under section 4 of the Child 
     Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) and the positive 
     impact of the Program on the lives of low-income children and 
     families and on children's overall classroom performance;
       (2) expresses strong support for States that have 
     successfully implemented school breakfast programs in order 
     to alleviate hunger and improve the test scores and grades of 
     participating students;
       (3) encourages all States to strengthen their school 
     breakfast programs, provide incentives for the expansion of 
     school breakfast programs, and promote improvements in the 
     nutritional quality of breakfasts served; and
       (4) recognizes the need to provide States with resources to 
     improve the availability of adequate and nutritious 
     breakfasts.

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