Congressman McGovern Introduces Legislation to Permanently Increase Federal Reimbursement Level for School Meals
- contacting Rep McGovern's team if you want to be listed as a supporting organization on his Dear Colleague letter,
- retweeting Rep McGovern's tween below, and
- tuning into CSPAN on Wednesday, or look out for his speech on twitter!
From: Hodgkins, Caitlin <caitlin.hodgkins@mail.house.
Date: Mon, Mar 6, 2023 at 12:32 PM
Subject: McGovern Introduces Legislation to Permanently Increase Federal Reimbursement Level for School Meals
Good afternoon, anti-hunger community!
Ranking Member McGovern has introduced legislation to permanently increase the reimbursement rate for school breakfasts by 28 cents and lunches by 45 cents, annually adjusted. If your organization would like to endorse this legislation, please let us know! We are happy to list you on the dear colleague that will be going out to Members later today and on a rolling basis.
Tweet thread posted here: https://twitter.com/
Please tune in to CSPAN on Wednesday around noon when Ranking Member McGovern will deliver a one-minute speech on the need to increase school meal funding. If you can’t catch it on CSPAN, we will also be clipping and tweeting his speech.
Thanks for all of your incredible work to #EndHungerNow!
In friendship,
Caitlin + Jenn
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 6, 2023
CONTACT
Matthew Bonaccorsi (202) 557-5773
McGovern Introduces New Bill to Permanently Increase Federal Reimbursement Level for School Meals
Legislation Increases Federal Funding for School Breakfasts and Lunches, Allowing Healthier Options and Expanded Services
**Full Text of Bill Here (PDF)**
WASHINGTON—Today, U.S. Representative James P. McGovern (D-MA), Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee and a nationwide leader in the fight to end hunger and improve nutrition, introduced legislation permanently increasing the federal reimbursement level for school meals to help address funding challenges, enhance menus, increase access to locally grown food, and support expanded services like afterschool snacks and breakfast in the classroom.
H.R. 1269, the Healthy Meals Help Kids Learn Act, permanently increases the federal reimbursement level for all free, reduced-price, and paid-rate school meals by 45 cents for every lunch served and 28 cents for every breakfast served, with a yearly adjustment. School meals help shape lifelong healthy eating habits, and research shows that students who participate in school meal programs have better overall diet quality than nonparticipants. Higher food costs are adding to the urgency of this legislation, and a permanent solution will give school districts certainty as they upgrade their meal programs and plan for the future.
“If we want America’s kids to remain competitive in the 21st century global economy, we can’t just teach them scienceand math. We need to ensure they have access to healthy, nutritious food at school,” said Congressman McGovern. “The next generation of Americans—our future doctors, nurses, engineers, mechanics, and leaders in every field across the country—all need us to step up and improve the quality of food in our schools. Food is just as important to their education as a textbook or a laptop. And if we can give our children healthy breakfasts and lunches as a part of their school day while supporting locally sourced foods and scratch-cooked meals, it will be a win-win for our economy, our farmers, and our students.”
“School meal programs face crippling cost increases for the food, labor and supplies that are critical to ensuring students receive nutritious school meals that fuel their success,” said School Nutrition Association President Lori Adkins, MS, SNS, CHE. “When the additional funds Congress provided in the bipartisan Keep Kids Fed Act expire in July, school meal programs will be incapable of covering costs. H.R. 1269 will help avert a financial crisis and ensure school meal programs can continue offering students meals that promote healthy eating habits.”
The Healthy Meals Help Kids Learn Act is endorsed by leading policy and advocacy organizations including the School Nutrition Association, American Heart Association, Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), Share our Strength, Save the Children, National Education Association, Mayors Alliance to End Childhood Hunger, Chef Ann Foundation, ScratchWorks, Project Bread, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), Chop Chop Family, Children’s HealthWatch, and the School Nutrition Association of Massachusetts.
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