I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2987

To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to improve 

the nutrition of students served under child nutrition programs. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2003

Ms. WOOLSEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL

To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 

Act to improve the nutrition of students served under 

child nutrition programs.

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

3 SECTION 1. NUTRITIONAL IMPROVEMENT FOR CHILDREN 

4 SERVED UNDER CHILD NUTRITION PRO5 GRAMS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 18 of the Richard B. Rus7 sell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(h) HEALTHY SCHOOL NUTRITION ENVIRONMENT

10 INCENTIVE GRANTS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab2 lish a program under which the Secretary shall make 

3 competitive grants to selected local educational agen4 cies—

5 ‘‘(A) to create healthy school nutrition en6 vironments; and 

7 ‘‘(B) to assess the impact of the environ8 ments on the health and well-being of children 

9 enrolled in the schools. 

10 ‘‘(2) SELECTION OF SCHOOLS.—In selecting 

11 local educational agencies to receive incentive grants 

12 under this subsection, the Secretary shall—

13 ‘‘(A) ensure that not less than 75 percent 

14 of the schools under the jurisdiction of the 

15 agencies selected to participate in the program 

16 established under this subsection are schools in 

17 which not less than 50 percent of the students 

18 enrolled in each school are eligible for free or 

19 reduced price meals under this Act; 

20 ‘‘(B) ensure that, of the agencies selected 

21 to participate in the program, there is appro22 priate representation of rural, urban, and sub23 urban schools, as determined by the Secretary; 

24 ‘‘(C) ensure that, of the agencies selected 

25 to participate in the program, there is appro-
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1 priate representation of elementary, middle, and 

2 secondary schools, as determined by the Sec3 retary; 

4 ‘‘(D) ensure that agencies selected to re5 ceive a grant under this subsection meet the re6 quirements of paragraph (3); 

7 ‘‘(E) give priority to agencies that develop 

8 comprehensive plans that include the involve9 ment of a broad range of community stake10 holders in achieving healthy school nutrition en11 vironments; 

12 ‘‘(F) give priority to agencies that develop 

13 comprehensive plans that include a strategy for 

14 maintaining healthy school nutrition environ15 ments in the years following the fiscal years for 

16 which the agencies receive grants under this 

17 subsection; 

18 ‘‘(G) select only agencies that submit grant 

19 applications by May 1, 2004; and 

20 ‘‘(H) make grant awards effective not later 

21 than July 15, 2004. 

22 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—

23 ‘‘(A) INPUT.—Prior to the solicitation of 

24 proposals for grants under this subsection, the 

25 Secretary shall solicit input from appropriate 
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1 nutrition, health, and education organizations 

2 (such as the American School Food Service As3 sociation, the American Dietetic Association, 

4 and the National School Boards Association) 

5 regarding the appropriate criteria for a healthy 

6 school environment. 

7 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR HEALTHY SCHOOL EN8 VIRONMENTS.—The Secretary shall, taking into 

9 account input received under subparagraph (A), 

10 establish criteria for defining a healthy school 

11 environment, including criteria that—

12 ‘‘(i) provide program meals that meet 

13 nutritional standards for breakfasts and 

14 lunches established by the Secretary; 

15 ‘‘(ii) ensure that all food served (in16 cluding food served in participating schools 

17 and service institutions in competition with 

18 the programs authorized under this Act 

19 and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 

20 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.)) on school grounds 

21 during regular school hours is consistent 

22 with the nutritional standards for break23 fasts and lunches established by the Sec24 retary; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) promote the consumption of 

2 fruits and vegetables; 

3 ‘‘(iv) provide nutrition education to 

4 students and staff; and 

5 ‘‘(v) meet other criteria established by 

6 the Secretary. 

7 ‘‘(C) PLANS.—To be eligible to receive a 

8 grant under this subsection, a local educational 

9 agency shall submit to the Secretary a healthy 

10 school nutrition environment plan that describes 

11 the actions the schools under the jurisdiction of 

12 such agency will take to meet the criteria estab13 lished under subparagraph (B). 

14 ‘‘(4) GRANTS.—For each of fiscal years 2005 

15 through 2008, the Secretary shall make a grant to 

16 each agency selected under paragraph (2). 

17 ‘‘(5) EVALUATIONS.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

19 through the Administrator of the Food and Nu20 trition Service, shall conduct an evaluation of a 

21 representative sample of schools that receive 

22 grants under this subsection. 

23 ‘‘(B) CONTENT.—The evaluation shall 

24 measure, at a minimum, the effects of a healthy 

25 school nutrition environment on—
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1 ‘‘(i) overweight children and obesity; 

2 ‘‘(ii) dietary intake; 

3 ‘‘(iii) nutrition education and behav4 ior; 

5 ‘‘(iv) the adequacy of time to eat; 

6 ‘‘(v) physical activities; 

7 ‘‘(vi) parental and student attitudes 

8 and participation; and 

9 ‘‘(vii) related funding issues, including 

10 the cost of maintaining a healthy school 

11 nutrition environment. 

12 ‘‘(C) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall sub13 mit to the Committee on Education and the 

14 Workforce of the House of Representatives and 

15 the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

16 Forestry of the Senate—

17 ‘‘(i) not later than December 31, 

18 2005, an interim report on the activities of 

19 schools evaluated under this subsection; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(ii) not later than December 31, 

22 2007, a final report on the activities of 

23 schools evaluated under this subsection. 

24 ‘‘(6) FUNDING.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Out of any funds in 

2 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the 

3 Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the 

4 Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this sub5 section—

6 ‘‘(i) on October 1, 2003, $10,000,000; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) on October 1, 2004, and each 

9 October 1 thereafter through October 1, 

10 2006, $35,000,000. 

11 ‘‘(B) RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE.—The 

12 Secretary shall be entitled to receive, shall ac13 cept, and shall use to carry out this section the 

14 funds transferred under subparagraph (A), 

15 without further appropriation. 

16 ‘‘(C) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Funds 

17 transferred under subparagraph (A) shall re18 main available until expended. 

19 ‘‘(D) EVALUATIONS.—Of the funds made 

20 available under this paragraph, the Secretary 

21 shall use not more than $5,000,000 to conduct 

22 evaluations under paragraph (5).’’. 

23 (b) COMPETITIVE FOODS IN SCHOOLS.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 10 of the Child Nu25 trition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1779) is amended—
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1 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘, includ2 ing’’ and all that follows through ‘‘Lunch Act’’; 

3 and 

4 (B) by striking subsection (b) and insert5 ing the following: 

6 ‘‘(b) COMPETITIVE FOODS IN SCHOOLS.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The regulations under sub8 section (a) may include provisions that regulate the 

9 service of food in participating schools and service 

10 institutions in competition with the programs au11 thorized under this Act and the Richard B. Russell 

12 National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) 

13 (referred to in this subsection as ‘competitive 

14 foods’). 

15 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—The regulations promul16 gated under paragraph (1)—

17 ‘‘(A) shall apply to all school grounds dur18 ing the duration of the school day; 

19 ‘‘(B) shall not supersede or otherwise af20 fect State and local regulations on competitive 

21 foods that, as determined by the Secretary, con22 form to the nutritional goals of the regulations 

23 promulgated by the Secretary; 

24 ‘‘(C) shall require that the proceeds from 

25 the sale of competitive foods in schools be used 
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1 for the benefit of the schools or of organizations 

2 of students approved by the schools, if those 

3 sales are allowed by the regulations; 

4 ‘‘(D) shall take into account the differing 

5 needs of—

6 ‘‘(i) elementary schools; 

7 ‘‘(ii) middle schools and junior high 

8 schools; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) high schools; and 

10 ‘‘(E) shall implement the recommendations 

11 of the Institute of Medicine made under para12 graph (3). 

13 ‘‘(3) INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE RECOMMENDA14 TIONS.—

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Ag16 riculture shall offer to enter into an agreement 

17 with the Institute of Medicine of the National 

18 Academy of Sciences under which the Institute 

19 of Medicine, based on sound nutritional science, 

20 shall make recommendations to the Secretary 

21 regarding the regulation of competitive foods 

22 (as defined in section 10(b)(1) of the Child Nu23 trition Act of 1966 (as amended by paragraph 

24 (1)(B))). 
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1 ‘‘(B) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 

2 year after the date of receipt of final rec3 ommendations from the Institute of Medicine, 

4 the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to 

5 carry out section 10(b) of the Child Nutrition 

6 Act of 1966 (as amended by paragraph (1)(B)) 

7 in accordance with the recommendations of the 

8 Institute of Medicine. 

9 ‘‘(C) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year 

10 after the date of receipt of final recommenda11 tions from the Institute of Medicine, the Sec12 retary shall submit to the Committee on Edu13 cation and the Workforce of the House of Rep14 resentatives and the Committee on Agriculture, 

15 Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report 

16 that describes the actions of the Secretary 

17 under subparagraph (B).’’.

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