WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Debbie
Stabenow (D-MI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and 49 of their Senate colleagues
introduced the Support Kids Not Red Tape Act.
The bill extends USDA school meal flexibilities from June 30, 2022
to September 30, 2023. These flexibilities have been crucial to feeding
children throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. With 90% of our schools still facing
many challenges as they return to normal operations, these flexibilities give
our schools and summer meal programs much-needed support to deal with ongoing
food service issues and keep kids fed. The bill will also help schools
transition back to normal meal operations under the National School Lunch
Program. USDA requested this authority be extended in the omnibus.
“Ohio
families need to know the end of the school year doesn’t mean an end to healthy
meals for their children, and local communities know best how to support their
students,” said
Brown. “This will give local Ohio schools the flexibility they need,
support our local summer feeding programs, and make it easier for Ohio kids and
their families to access healthy lunch and snacks throughout the year.”
In addition to Sens. Brown, Stabenow, and Murkowski, this
legislation is cosponsored by Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Susan Collins
(R-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Bob Casey (D-PA), Chris
Van Hollen (D-MD), Tina Smith (D-MN), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Cory Booker (D-NJ),
Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Raphael Warnock
(D-GA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Bernie
Sanders (I-VT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ron Wyden (D-OR),
Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Jeff
Merkley (D-OR), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Mark Warner
(D-VA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine
Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tom Carper (D-DE), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Gary Peters
(D-MI), Angus King (I-ME), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bob
Menendez (D-NJ), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Murphy
(D-CT), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Mark Kelly (D-AZ),
Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Jon Tester (D-MT), Chuck Schumer
(D-NY), and Maria Cantwell (D-WA).
Last
month, Brown
sent a letter to Senate leadership urging
them to extend USDA’s waiver authority in the spending package to make sure
school administrators, staff, and industry partners that supply food to child
nutrition programs have continued support from the USDA.
In
June 2021, Brown
introduced bipartisan
legislation that would make summer meals for kids more accessible during the
months when schools are closed, while also highlighting the importance of
current summer food programs for children in Ohio.
In
April 2021, Brown and Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
reintroduced their
Kids
Eat Local Act, a bipartisan, bicameral bill to support local and
regional food systems and encourage healthy meal choices among school-aged
children.
Anti-hunger and nutrition advocates reiterated the importance of
these flexibilities and applauded the Senators’ bill to keep critical
flexibilities for school nutrition programs to feed children.
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