[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7373 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7373
To amend the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to extend certain
waivers related to child nutrition, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 1, 2022
Mrs. Walorski introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to extend certain
waivers related to child nutrition, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Securing Nutrition for American
Communities and Kids Act of 2022'' or the ``SNACK Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Supply chain disruptions have made it difficult for
schools to get sufficient meals and supplies needed to serve
lunches to students.
(2) School food authorities are going the extra mile to
provide students with nutritious meals, given the ongoing
supply chain issues.
(3) In a 2021 survey of school nutrition directors, 97
percent expressed concerns with continued pandemic supply chain
disruptions, with 65 percent citing this as a serious concern.
(4) Eligible children should be spared the harmful
consequences of current supply chain shortages by receiving
school-based meals.
(5) School food authorities should have the necessary
flexibilities to address supply chain shortages.
(6) School food authorities should receive full meal
reimbursement for meals provided when impacted by supply chain
delays beyond their control.
(7) School food authorities have achieved extraordinary
success in keeping children fed throughout the pandemic. They
should be recognized for this service and supported in ongoing
work.
(8) Due to the uncertainty of supply chains and inflation,
school food authorities should have the ability to apply for
waivers retroactively, recognizing disruptions may occur as
late as the day of service.
(9) Before the pandemic, summer meal sites were required to
serve meals at a defined location, also known as congregate
meals. Due to the pandemic, sites and schools were allowed to
serve non-congregate meals, meaning parents could pick up meals
or organizations could drop off multiple meals at a child's
home.
(10) Non-congregate waivers for summer meals made it easier
for school food authorities to feed eligible kids during the
summer months. Allowing non-congregate waivers for the summer
of 2022 will give school food authorities the stability they
need to feed eligible kids for the remainder of the summer.
SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF WAIVERS.
Section 2202(e) of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (42
U.S.C. 1760 note) is amended to read as follows:
``(e) Sunsets.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and
(3), the authority of the Secretary to establish or grant a
waiver under this section shall expire on June 30, 2022:
Provided, That such waivers shall only apply to school year
2021-2022.
``(2) Non-congregate summer food service program waiver.--
The authority of the Secretary to grant or extend a waiver
under this section with respect to congregate feeding under the
qualified program described in subsection (f)(1)(D), and any
waiver so granted or extended, shall expire on September 30,
2022.
``(3) Supply chain meal pattern waiver.--The authority of
the Secretary to grant or extend a waiver under subsection (c),
and any waiver so granted or extended, shall expire on June 30,
2024.''.
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