I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4121 

To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to provide greater access 

to the supplemental nutrition assistance program by reducing duplicative 

and burdensome administrative requirements, authorize the Secretary 

of Agriculture to award grants to certain community-based nonprofit 

feeding and anti-hunger groups for the purpose of establishing and implementing a Beyond the Soup Kitchen Pilot Program for certain socially 

and economically disadvantaged populations, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 19, 2015 

Mr. SERRANO (for himself, Mr. FATTAH, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. MEEKS, Mrs. 

NAPOLITANO, and Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to provide 

greater access to the supplemental nutrition assistance 

program by reducing duplicative and burdensome administrative requirements, authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to award grants to certain community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups for the purpose 

of establishing and implementing a Beyond the Soup 

Kitchen Pilot Program for certain socially and economically disadvantaged populations, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Anti-hunger Empower3 ment Act of 2015’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 The Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) In 2014 the number of Americans facing 

7 hunger or food insecurity was 48,100,000, and 

8 15,300,000 children lived in these households. 

9 5,400,000 seniors ages 60 and up were also experi10 encing food hardship. 

11 (2) In August 2015 approximately 45,500,000 

12 people participate in the supplemental nutrition as13 sistance program (SNAP). In fiscal year 2014 on a 

14 monthly average, 47,600,000 people participated in 

15 this program, about 15 percent of the United States 

16 population. SNAP, the Special Supplemental Nutri17 tion Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and 

18 Children (WIC), and the National School Lunch 

19 Program (NSLP) are the largest nutrition assist20 ance programs, and 61 percent of food-insecure 

21 households participated in 1 or more of the 3 pro22 grams. 

23 (3) Administrative burdens involved in securing 

24 supplemental nutrition assistance benefits are par25 ticularly burdensome for working families. 


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1 (4) Each year tens of millions people in the 

2 United States, including children and seniors, are 

3 forced to rely on soup kitchens, food pantries, and 

4 other charitable feeding programs. 

5 (5) The charitable food distribution system in 

6 the United States would benefit from increased co7 ordination and technical assistance. 

8 (6) Helping those who use feeding programs to 

9 move ‘‘beyond the soup kitchen’’, by promoting the 

10 values of community, opportunity, and responsibility, 

11 is a national priority. 

12 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE 

13 FOOD AND NUTRITION ACT 

14 OF 2008 

15 SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO THE FOOD AND NUTRITION ACT 

16 OF 2008. 

17 (a) ADMINISTRATIVE COST SHARING AND QUALITY

18 CONTROL.—Section 16(k) of the Food and Nutrition Act 

19 of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2025(k)) is amended by striking sub20 section (k) and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(k) ADMINISTRATIVE COST FOR INCREASING AC22 CESS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this sec23 tion, the Secretary is authorized to pay to each State 

24 agency an amount equal to 75 percent of the administraVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:52 Nov 25, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4121.IH H4121

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1 tive costs incurred by the State agency in carrying out 

2 new activities not previously funded by the State— 

3 ‘‘(1) to increase the number of hours that sup4 plemental nutrition assistance offices are open on 

5 weekends and nights if there is neither a decrease in 

6 the total number of supplemental nutrition assist7 ance offices that are open in the State nor a de8 crease in the number of hours such offices are open 

9 during the regular work week; 

10 ‘‘(2) to conduct verifiable activities to reduce 

11 the average wait time that applicants spend at sup12 plemental nutrition assistance offices or to reduce 

13 the average number of office visits required of appli14 cants; 

15 ‘‘(3) to accept applications for supplemental nu16 trition assistance benefit by means of the Internet; 

17 ‘‘(4) to upgrade computer systems and tech18 nology in ways that specifically increase access to 

19 the supplemental nutrition assistance program; 

20 ‘‘(5) at the time of application, to provide appli21 cants with a checklist listing all documents required 

22 for a complete supplemental nutrition assistance ap23 plication.’’. 

24 (b) REDUCTION OF BURDENSOME AND DUPLICATIVE

25 OFFICE VISITS; PROHIBITION OF FINGERPRINTING.— 


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1 Section 11(e)(2) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 

2 (7 U.S.C. 2020(e)(2)) is amended— 

3 (1) in subparagraph (A) by striking the period 

4 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’, 

5 (2) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘In’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘that in’’, 

7 (3) in subparagraph (D) by inserting the fol8 lowing before the semicolon at the end: ‘‘, and the 

9 fingerprint of any member of a household shall not 

10 be required for the purpose of participating in the 

11 supplemental nutrition assistance program or for 

12 issuance of benefits for which the household would 

13 otherwise be eligible’’, 

14 (4) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

15 (D) as subparagraphs (D) and (E), respectively, and 

16 (5) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(C) that the State agency shall inform house19 holds, at the time of application, that— 

20 ‘‘(i) household members are not required 

21 to appear in person at the time of application, 

22 or at any other time, unless— 

23 ‘‘(I) expressly required by this Act; or 

24 ‘‘(II) in accordance with clause (ii); 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) if the State agency has a basis to rea2 sonably believe that information provided by a 

3 household is incorrect or that a household has 

4 failed to provide information required for par5 ticipation in the supplemental nutrition assist6 ance program, then the State agency shall— 

7 ‘‘(I) provide to the household a writ8 ten statement notifying the household of 

9 such belief; specifying the factual basis of 

10 such belief, informing the household of the 

11 applicable information that is believed to 

12 be incorrect or missing, and instructing the 

13 household how to correct or to provide the 

14 appropriate information; and 

15 ‘‘(II) not require any member of such 

16 household to appear in person unless either 

17 the household fails to provide the appro18 priate information or the State agency can19 not verify the accuracy of information the 

20 household provides in response to the re21 quest made under this subparagraph by 

22 the State agency;’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. COMPARATIVE PROGRESS REPORT. 

2 Section 18 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 

3 (7 U.S.C. 2027) is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(i) The Secretary shall submit a single, unified, an6 nual report to the appropriate committees of the Congress 

7 on the comparative progress of States in improving access 

8 to the supplemental nutrition assistance program. The fol9 lowing statistics shall be included in the report with re10 spect to each particular State: 

11 ‘‘(1) The percentage of supplemental nutrition 

12 assistance program applications processed within the 

13 30-day period required by this Act. 

14 ‘‘(2) The average number of days required to 

15 process expedited applications for supplemental nu16 trition assistance benefits. 

17 ‘‘(3) The average number of days required to 

18 process regular applications for supplemental nutri19 tion assistance benefits. 

20 ‘‘(4) The average number of office visits that 

21 each applicant makes to receive supplemental nutri22 tion assistance benefits. 

23 ‘‘(5) Statewide negative errors rates. 

24 ‘‘(6) The overall participation rate of house25 holds that are eligible to participate in the supple26 mental nutrition assistance program. 


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1 ‘‘(7) The information specified in paragraphs 

2 (1) through (6) for a particular geographical area in 

3 such State.’’. 

4 TITLE II—ANTI-HUNGER GRANTS 

5 PROGRAM 

6 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Beyond the Soup 

8 Kitchen Grants Program Act of 2015’’. 

9 SEC. 202. BEYOND THE SOUP KITCHEN PILOT PROGRAM. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The Sec11 retary shall establish a pilot program, to be known as the 

12 ‘‘Beyond the Soup Kitchen Pilot Program’’, in accordance 

13 with this title. 

14 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the pilot program 

15 are— 

16 (1) to provide grant assistance to a primary 

17 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

18 group in each pilot community for purposes of allo19 cating subgrants to other community-based non20 profit feeding and anti-hunger groups in such com21 munity; and 

22 (2) to provide technical assistance grants. 


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1 SEC. 203. SELECTION OF PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED 

2 NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER 

3 GROUPS AND SUBGRANTEES. 

4 (a) GRANTS TO PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED NON5 PROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUPS.—Under 

6 the pilot program and for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall 

7 award not more than 30 grants to primary community8 based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups, in ac9 cordance with this section. 

10 (b) APPLICATION.—To be eligible for an award of a 

11 grant for a fiscal year under this section, a community12 based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group shall sub13 mit to the Secretary an application that contains a de14 scription of how the applicant proposes to use the grant 

15 funds to implement the components of the pilot program 

16 listed in subsection (c) in the pilot community of the com17 munity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group. 

18 The application shall be submitted in such form, at such 

19 time, and containing such other information as the Sec20 retary may require. 

21 (c) PILOT PROGRAM COMPONENTS.—An application 

22 for a grant under this section shall contain the following 

23 components: 

24 (1) PROGRAMS COMPONENT.—A program com25 ponent that describes, with respect to a target popu26 lation of a pilot community and in accordance with 


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1 section 204, programs designed for the following 

2 purposes: 

3 (A) To reduce hunger in such target popu4 lation. 

5 (B) To increase the use of nutrition assist6 ance and anti-poverty programs by such target 

7 population. 

8 (C) To bolster food security within such 

9 target population. 

10 (D) To assist individuals and families 

11 within such target population to develop assets. 

12 (E) To promote the economic independence 

13 of individuals and families within such target 

14 population. 

15 (F) To improve the nutrition of such tar16 get population. 

17 (G) To reduce the occurrence of obesity in 

18 such target population. 

19 (2) COMMUNITY FOOD COUNCIL.—A community 

20 food council component that describes the formation 

21 and operation of a community food council designed 

22 to engage emergency feeding groups, Federal, State, 

23 and local government agencies, the cooperative ex24 tension system, land-grant colleges and universities, 

25 and historically African-American, Hispanic, and 


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1 American Indian educational institutes for the pur2 poses described under paragraph (1). 

3 (3) SUBGRANTS COMPONENT.—A subgrants 

4 component that describes a plan for the allocation of 

5 grants funds to subgrantees by the primary commu6 nity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group, 

7 in accordance with subsection (e). 

8 (d) CRITERIA.—In evaluating an application of a 

9 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

10 group, the Secretary shall consider, in addition to such 

11 other criteria as the Secretary determines appropriate, the 

12 extent to which the application of the group demonstrates 

13 the following: 

14 (1) The capacity to serve as a leader for other 

15 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

16 groups in the pilot community and to successfully 

17 provide technical assistance and other assistance to 

18 the greatest number of such groups. 

19 (2) Successful experience— 

20 (A) in conducting a program described in 

21 section 204(b); 

22 (B) in working with a national service, 

23 community service, or volunteer service group 

24 that conducts a program described in section 

25 204(b); 


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1 (C) in managing and using Federal grant 

2 funds, including grants for community food and 

3 nutrition programs authorized under section 

4 681(a) of the Community Services Block Grant 

5 Act (42 U.S.C. 9922(a)); 

6 (D) in working cooperatively with a nutri7 tion assistance and anti-poverty program, other 

8 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti9 hunger groups, and faith-based and other com10 munity programs in the pilot community; and 

11 (E) in researching, monitoring, and evalu12 ating the hunger problems in the pilot commu13 nity of such organization and nutrition assist14 ance and anti-poverty programs. 

15 (3) In the case of a community-based nonprofit 

16 feeding and anti-hunger group with a large budget, 

17 the existence of a financial mechanism to implement 

18 the proposal and staff expertise to handle large Fed19 eral and private grants, or in the case of a commu20 nity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group 

21 with a small budget, proven effectiveness in the de22 livery and coordination of a program described in 

23 section 204(b). 

24 (4) The ability to influence other community, 

25 government, and private resources to assist in the 


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1 creation and implementation of the pilot program in 

2 the pilot community of the community-based non3 profit feeding and anti-hunger group. 

4 (e) SUBGRANTS.— 

5 (1) SELECTION BY PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED

6 NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUP RE7 QUIRED.—Under the pilot program, the Secretary 

8 shall require a primary community-based nonprofit 

9 feeding and anti-hunger group that is awarded a 

10 grant under subsection (a) to select at least 10, but 

11 no more than 200, subgrantees to carry out sub12 grants under the grants. Such subgrants shall be 

13 used in support of the pilot program in the pilot 

14 community of such group, in accordance with section 

15 204. 

16 (2) SELECTION OF SUBGRANTEES.—A primary 

17 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

18 group shall select subgrantees for purposes of para19 graph (1)— 

20 (A) by selecting the subgrantee in the ap21 plication submitted under subsection (b); or 

22 (B) in consultation with the Secretary of 

23 Agriculture after evaluating proposals sub24 mitted by subgrantee applicants. 


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1 SEC. 204. USES OF GRANTS. 

2 (a) REQUIRED USES BY PRIMARY COMMUNITY3 BASED NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER

4 GROUPS.—A primary community-based nonprofit feeding 

5 and anti-hunger group that is awarded a grant under sec6 tion 203(a) shall— 

7 (1) allocate at least 60 percent of the grant for 

8 subgrants in accordance with section 203(e); and 

9 (2) spend at least 5 percent of the grant on 

10 evaluation of the pilot program in the pilot commu11 nity of such group. 

12 (b) ELIGIBLE USES BY PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED

13 NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUPS AND

14 SUBGRANTEES.—Grant funds awarded to a primary com15 munity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group or 

16 allocated to a subgrantee under the pilot program may be 

17 used for any of the following purposes: 

18 (1) ELIGIBLE PROGRAMS.—With respect to a 

19 target population in a pilot community, any of the 

20 following programs: 

21 (A) A program that informs such popu22 lation about benefits under nutrition assistance 

23 and anti-poverty programs, pre-screens mem24 bers of such population to determine the eligi25 bility of such members to receive such benefits, 


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1 and assists such members to access relevant 

2 benefits. 

3 (B) A program to assist such population to 

4 transition successfully from welfare to work. 

5 (C) A program that is likely to result in 

6 job creation or that involves job training, readi7 ness, placement, or retention activities. 

8 (D) A program to increase the supply of 

9 donated foods to community-based nonprofit 

10 feeding and anti-hunger groups, especially of 

11 fresh fruits, vegetables, and other nutritious 

12 foods. 

13 (E) A program that increases the access of 

14 such population to fresh fruits, vegetables, and 

15 other nutritious foods. 

16 (F) A program that promotes the use of 

17 farmers’ markets, urban farms, and food-pro18 ducing agriculture projects, especially a pro19 gram that promotes the use of such markets, 

20 farms, and projects by nutrition assistance and 

21 anti-poverty programs. 

22 (G) A program to assess the flow of food, 

23 from production through consumption, in a 

24 community. 


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1 (H) A program that involves nutrition edu2 cation, obesity reduction, or financial manage3 ment activities, especially such activities that 

4 have hands-on demonstrations or that promote 

5 physical activity. 

6 (I) A program that promotes microenter7 prise and small business development, especially 

8 the development of such a business that is food9 related. 

10 (J) A program that assists government 

11 agencies and nonprofit groups to increase the 

12 number of sites (and participation in existing 

13 sites) for after-school snacks and meals pro14 grams under the summer food service program 

15 for children authorized under section 13 of the 

16 Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act 

17 (42 U.S.C. 1766) and the child and adult care 

18 food program authorized under section 17 of 

19 such Act (42 U.S.C. 1761). 

20 (K) A program that creates a customer ad21 visory council at a community-based nonprofit 

22 feeding and anti-hunger group to enable an in23 dividual who obtains food from such group to 

24 consult with the council on ways to improve the 

25 operations of such group. 


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1 (L) A program to increase the assistance 

2 of national and community service programs, 

3 including AmeriCorps, Volunteers in Service to 

4 America (AmeriCorps–VISTA), Learn and 

5 Serve America, Senior Corps, Freedom Corps, 

6 and any other volunteer program to aid commu7 nity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

8 groups. 

9 (M) A program to increase the involvement 

10 of volunteers who have professional skills with 

11 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti12 hunger groups and other nonprofit groups. 

13 (N) A program that relates nutrition im14 provement and the problem of hunger within 

15 such population to broader issues within the 

16 pilot community, including community develop17 ment and economic improvement. 

18 (O) A program that promotes the use of 

19 individual development accounts, as defined in 

20 section 404(5) of the Assets for Independence 

21 Act (title IV of Public Law 105–285; 42 U.S.C. 

22 604 note), or any other such asset-development 

23 program. 


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1 (P) With respect to a community-based 

2 nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group, a pro3 gram to— 

4 (i) provide technical assistance to such 

5 group to increase the technical capacities 

6 of such group; or 

7 (ii) enable the group to more effi8 ciently and effectively use computer tech9 nology, recruit volunteers, write grants, or 

10 otherwise increase the fundraising and op11 eration of such group. 

12 (Q) A program that provides for the provi13 sion of technical assistance and informational 

14 materials on the Internet that relate to any pro15 gram described in subparagraphs (A) through 

16 (P). 

17 (R) A program to coordinate activities of 

18 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti19 hunger groups within the pilot community, in20 cluding activities that further any of the fol21 lowing goals: 

22 (i) Creation of joint advertising, com23 munications, and referral systems. 

24 (ii) Coordination of hours of oper25 ations and services provided. 


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1 (iii) Creation of joint client, funding, 

2 and other databases, tracking systems, and 

3 benefits referral systems. 

4 (iv) Implementation of joint activities 

5 to reduce hunger, strengthen local food 

6 systems, reduce poverty, improve economic 

7 self-sufficiency, and reduce obesity. 

8 (2) ELIGIBLE FOOD-RELATED USES.—Subject 

9 to the limitation in subsection (c)(1), any of the fol10 lowing food-related purposes: 

11 (A) Gathering food. 

12 (B) The collection of perishable, but safe, 

13 food from entities such as restaurants, caterers, 

14 and farms, for distribution to a target popu15 lation. 

16 (C) Packing food. 

17 (D) Sorting food. 

18 (E) Processing food. 

19 (F) Transportation of food. 

20 (G) Heating, cooling, or freezing of food. 

21 (H) Storage of food. 

22 (I) Administrative expenses necessary to 

23 increase the supply of nutritious food (especially 

24 fresh fruit and vegetables) distributed by comVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:52 Nov 25, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4121.IH H4121

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1 munity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

2 groups. 

3 (J) Administrative staff and volunteer 

4 management for purposes of performing activi5 ties listed in subparagraphs (A) through (H). 

6 (3) ELIGIBLE STIPENDS.—For the provision of 

7 stipends to customers for expenses incurred by such 

8 customers for participating in a customer advisory 

9 council described in subsection (b)(1)(K). 

10 (c) LIMITATIONS.— 

11 (1) LIMITATION ON FOOD PURCHASES.—No 

12 more than 20 percent of the total amount of grant 

13 funds awarded to a primary community-based non14 profit feeding and anti-hunger group or allocated to 

15 a subgrantee under the pilot program may be used 

16 to directly purchase food. 

17 (2) LIMITATION ON FUNDS EXPENDED TO NA18 TIONAL OR COMMUNITY SERVICE PROGRAM.—Grant 

19 funds awarded to a primary community-based non20 profit feeding and anti-hunger group or allocated to 

21 a subgrantee under the pilot program may not be 

22 used to provide a volunteer in a national or commu23 nity service program listed in subsection (b)(1)(L) 

24 with any educational funding, stipend, health care, 

25 or child care. 


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1 SEC. 205. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

2 (a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—Under the 

3 pilot program and for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall 

4 award grants to technical assistance community-based 

5 nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups, in accordance 

6 with this section. 

7 (b) APPLICATION FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

8 GRANTS.—To be eligible for an award of a grant under 

9 this section, a technical assistance community-based non10 profit feeding and anti-hunger group shall submit to the 

11 Secretary an application containing a description of how 

12 the applicant proposes to use the grant funds to provide 

13 technical assistance to all pilot communities. The applica14 tion shall be submitted in such form, at such time, and 

15 containing such other information as the Secretary may 

16 require. 

17 (c) CRITERIA TO RECEIVE GRANTS.—In evaluating 

18 an application of a technical assistance community-based 

19 nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group, the Secretary 

20 shall consider, in addition to such other criteria as the 

21 Secretary determines appropriate, the extent to which the 

22 application of the technical assistance group demonstrates 

23 the following: 

24 (1) The ability to provide capacity-building 

25 technical assistance to community-based nonprofit 

26 feeding and anti-hunger groups. 


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1 (2) Organizational and staff experience in— 

2 (A) national issues related to emergency 

3 food programs, food banks, food rescue organi4 zations, the hunger problem, food insecurity, 

5 anti-poverty programs, and nutrition education; 

6 (B) providing technical assistance to com7 munity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

8 groups and conducting outreach programs on 

9 nutrition assistance and anti-poverty programs; 

10 (C) successfully working with national and 

11 community service programs, including such 

12 programs listed in section 204(b)(1)(L); 

13 (D) working cooperatively or in a leader14 ship role with other national, regional, State, 

15 and local eligible technical entities; and 

16 (E) working with a wide variety of faith17 based and community organizations and with 

18 community-wide religious and civic organiza19 tions. 

20 (3) Proven financial control mechanisms and 

21 staff expertise to work with large Federal and pri22 vate grants, or in the case of a technical assistance 

23 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

24 group with a small operating budget, effectiveness in 

25 program delivery and coordination. 


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1 (d) DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TECHNICAL AS2 SISTANCE AUTHORIZED.— 

3 (1) ASSISTANCE FROM DEPARTMENT OF AGRI4 CULTURE.—The Secretary may provide technical 

5 and evaluation assistance to— 

6 (A) a technical assistance community7 based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group 

8 awarded a grant under subsection (a); 

9 (B) a primary community-based nonprofit 

10 feeding and anti-hunger group awarded a grant 

11 under section 203(a) or a subgrantee selected 

12 under section 203(e); or 

13 (C) any community-based nonprofit feed14 ing and anti-hunger group or technical assist15 ance community-based nonprofit feeding and 

16 anti-hunger group that does not receive a grant 

17 under this Act, but that carries out activities 

18 similar to those of such a group or subgrantee. 

19 (2) ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL DEPARTMENTS

20 AND AGENCIES.—The head of any Federal depart21 ment or agency may provide technical assistance to 

22 a group or subgrantee referred to in subparagraph 

23 (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1) to carry out activi24 ties described in subparagraph (C) of such para25 graph. 


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1 (3) ASSISTANCE FROM STATE AND LOCAL

2 AGENCIES AND LAND-GRANT COLLEGES AND UNI3 VERSITIES.—The Secretary may encourage any ap4 propriate State or local agency or land-grant college 

5 or university to provide technical assistance to such 

6 groups or subgrantees to carry out such activities. 

7 SEC. 206. ALLOCATION OF GRANTS. 

8 (a) ALLOCATION BY TYPE OF GRANT.—Of the 

9 amounts made available to carry out this title for a fiscal 

10 year— 

11 (1) $190,000,000 is available for grants to pri12 mary community-based nonprofit feeding and anti13 hunger groups authorized under section 203(a); and 

14 (2) $8,000,000 is available for technical assist15 ance grants authorized under section 205(a). 

16 (b) ALLOCATION TO PILOT COMMUNITIES.—Of the 

17 amounts made available under subsection (a)(1) to pri18 mary community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

19 groups for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall allocate such 

20 amounts to one primary community-based nonprofit feed21 ing and anti-hunger group in each of the pilot commu22 nities listed in subsection (c) and may allocate such 

23 amounts to one such group in each pilot community des24 ignated by the Secretary under subsection (d)(2). The 


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1 amount allocated to a primary community-based nonprofit 

2 feeding and anti-hunger group— 

3 (1) shall not be less than $500,000, nor more 

4 than $20,000,000; and 

5 (2) shall be in proportion to the number of indi6 viduals and families within the target population of 

7 the pilot community involved. 

8 (c) PILOT COMMUNITIES LISTED.—For purposes of 

9 subsection (b), a pilot community listed in this subsection 

10 is each of the following areas: 

11 (1) New York, New York. 

12 (2) Chicago, Illinois. 

13 (3) Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

14 (4) Puerto Rico. 

15 (5) Indianapolis, Indiana. 

16 (6) Des Moines, Iowa. 

17 (7) Toledo, Ohio. 

18 (8) Savannah, Georgia. 

19 (9) New Haven, Connecticut. 

20 (10) Roanoke, Virginia. 

21 (11) Santa Cruz County, Santa Clara County, 

22 and Monterey County in California. 

23 (12) Onondaga County in New York. 

24 (13) The rural boroughs in Alaska. 

25 (14) Washington metropolitan region. 


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1 (15) Pittsburgh and the suburban and rural 

2 areas in southwestern Pennsylvania. 

3 (16) Rural counties in eastern Kentucky. 

4 (17) Counties in northern West Virginia. 

5 (18) Rural counties in southern Texas. 

6 (19) Rural counties in southern Missouri. 

7 (20) Rural counties in north, west, and central 

8 Wisconsin. 

9 (d) SPECIFICATION OF AREAS; DESIGNATION OF AD10 DITIONAL PILOT COMMUNITIES.— 

11 (1) SPECIFICATION OF AREAS.—The Secretary 

12 shall specify the counties or other areas to be in13 cluded in each of the pilot communities described in 

14 paragraphs (15) through (20) of subsection (c). 

15 (2) DESIGNATION OF ADDITIONAL PILOT COM16 MUNITIES.—The Secretary may designate not more 

17 than 10 pilot communities in addition to those listed 

18 in subsection (c). 

19 SEC. 207. REPORTS AND EVALUATION. 

20 (a) SUBGRANTEE REPORT TO PRIMARY COMMUNITY21 BASED NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER

22 GROUP.—Not later than 90 days after the end of the fiscal 

23 year for which a subgrantee received a subgrant under sec24 tion 203(e), the subgrantee shall submit to the primary 

25 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group 


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1 that selected the subgrantee under such section a report 

2 that evaluates the results of the activities, including finan3 cial expenditures, during such fiscal year of the subgrantee 

4 in carrying out the subgrant. 

5 (b) PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFIT FEED6 ING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUP REPORTS TO SEC7 RETARY.—Not later than 180 days after the end of the 

8 fiscal year for which a primary community-based nonprofit 

9 feeding and anti-hunger group received a grant under sec10 tion 203(a), the group shall submit to the Secretary a re11 port that evaluates the results of the activities, including 

12 financial expenditures, during the preceding fiscal year of 

13 the group in carrying out the grant. Such report shall in14 clude each report submitted to the group by a subgrantee 

15 under subsection (a) for such fiscal year. 

16 (c) ANNUAL REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

17 than October 31 of each of calendar years 2016 through 

18 2020, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on 

19 the progress of the pilot program. 

20 (d) FINAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

21 April 30, 2020, the Secretary shall submit to Congress 

22 a report that evaluates the successes and challenges of the 

23 pilot program and that makes such recommendations as 

24 the Secretary considers appropriate for similar future 

25 grants programs. 


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1 SEC. 208. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

2 (a) ONE-YEAR EXTENSION OF GRANTS.— 

3 (1) BEYOND THE SOUP KITCHEN GRANTS.— 

4 Upon the expiration of a grant awarded to a com5 munity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

6 group under section 203(a) and the request of such 

7 group, the Secretary, in accordance with procedures 

8 established by the Secretary, may extend the dura9 tion of the grant once, by one fiscal year, if the Sec10 retary determines that the programs established and 

11 implemented by such group with the grant resulted 

12 in (or are likely to result in) significant progress in 

13 satisfying the purposes of the pilot program de14 scribed in section 203(c)(1). 

15 (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—Upon 

16 the expiration of a grant awarded to a technical as17 sistance community-based nonprofit feeding and 

18 anti-hunger group under section 205(a) and the re19 quest of such entity, the Secretary, in accordance 

20 with procedures established by the Secretary, may 

21 extend the duration of the grant once, by one fiscal 

22 year, if the Secretary determines that such technical 

23 assistance group has successfully provided all pilot 

24 programs with technical assistance. 

25 (b) FORM OF GRANTS.—The Secretary, if the Sec26 retary finds it appropriate, may use cooperative agreeVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:52 Nov 25, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4121.IH H4121

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1 ments, as described in section 6305 of title 31, United 

2 States Code, for purposes of awarding grants to primary 

3 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

4 groups under section 203(a) and to technical assistance 

5 community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

6 groups under section 205(a). 

7 SEC. 209. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this title: 

9 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

11 (2) PILOT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘pilot pro12 gram’’ means the Beyond the Soup Kitchen Pilot 

13 Program established under section 202(a). 

14 (3) COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFIT FEEDING

15 AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUP.—The term ‘‘community16 based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group’’ 

17 means an anti-hunger organization, food bank, food 

18 pantry, soup kitchen, food rescue group, or commu19 nity food security organization that— 

20 (A) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the 

21 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt 

22 from tax under section 501(a) of such Code; 

23 and 

24 (B) is located in (or regularly provides 

25 service to) a pilot community. 


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1 (4) PRIMARY COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFIT

2 FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUP.—The term 

3 ‘‘primary community-based nonprofit feeding and 

4 anti-hunger group’’ means a community-based non5 profit feeding and anti-hunger group awarded a 

6 grant under section 203(a). 

7 (5) SUBGRANTEE.—The term ‘‘subgrantee’’ 

8 means a community-based nonprofit feeding and 

9 anti-hunger group (other than a primary commu10 nity-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 

11 group)— 

12 (A) that is selected under section 203(e) 

13 by a primary community-based nonprofit feed14 ing and anti-hunger group; and 

15 (B) that is located in (or regularly provides 

16 service to) the pilot community in which the 

17 primary nonprofit feeding group is located (or 

18 to which the primary nonprofit feeding group 

19 provides regular service). 

20 (6) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE COMMUNITY-BASED

21 NONPROFIT FEEDING AND ANTI-HUNGER GROUP.— 

22 The term ‘‘technical assistance community-based 

23 nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group’’ means a 

24 national, State, or local group that— 


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1 (A) is an anti-hunger group, food bank, 

2 food pantry, soup kitchen, food rescue group, or 

3 community food security organization; 

4 (B) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the 

5 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt 

6 from tax under section 501(a) of such Code; 

7 and 

8 (C) has the capacity to provide technical 

9 assistance to all pilot communities. 

10 (7) PILOT COMMUNITY.—The term ‘‘pilot com11 munity’’ means a community specified in section 

12 206(b). 

13 (8) TARGET POPULATION.—The term ‘‘target 

14 population’’ includes an individual who (or family 

15 that)— 

16 (A) earns an income below 200 percent of 

17 the Federal poverty line; 

18 (B) suffers from food insecurity; 

19 (C) earns insufficient income to ensure 

20 food security for such individual or family; 

21 (D) lives in a community that suffers from 

22 poverty, hunger, or food insecurity; 

23 (E) is homeless; 

24 (F) receives (or recently received) assist25 ance under a State program funded under part 


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1 A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 

2 U.S.C. et seq.), relating to temporary assistance 

3 to needy families; or 

4 (G) is eligible for benefits under any nutri5 tion assistance or anti-poverty program. 

6 (9) NUTRITION ASSISTANCE AND ANTI-POVERTY

7 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘nutrition assistance and 

8 anti-poverty program’’ means any Federal, State, or 

9 local government assistance program offered to low10 income individuals or families, including the fol11 lowing programs: 

12 (A) The supplemental nutrition assistance 

13 program established under section 4 of the 

14 Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 

15 2013). 

16 (B) A program authorized under the Rich17 ard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) or Child Nutrition Act of 

19 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), including the 

20 national school lunch program, the national 

21 school breakfast program, the summer food 

22 service program for children, the special supple23 mental nutrition program for women, infants, 

24 and children, and the child and adult care food 

25 program. 


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1 (C) The earned income tax credit allowed 

2 under section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code 

3 of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 32). 

4 (10) FOOD INSECURITY.—The term ‘‘food inse5 curity’’ means a lack of consistent access to food. 

6 (11) WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN REGION.— 

7 The term ‘‘Washington metropolitan region’’ in8 cludes the District of Columbia, the counties of 

9 Montgomery and Prince George’s in Maryland, and 

10 the counties of Arlington and Fairfax and the cities 

11 of Alexandria and Falls Church in Virginia. 

12 SEC. 210. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated $200,000,000 

14 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020 to carry out 

15 this title. 

16 TITLE III—EFFECTIVE DATE 

17 SEC. 301. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

18 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, this Act and 

19 the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on Oc20 tober 1, 2015. 

Æ 


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