I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1382 

To require the President to call a White House Conference on Food and 

Nutrition. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 6, 2011 

Mr. MCGOVERN (for himself and Mrs. EMERSON) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To require the President to call a White House Conference 

on Food and Nutrition. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘White House Con5 ference on Food and Nutrition Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Hunger and undernutrition are political 

9 conditions that can be solved. 


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1 (2) Access to healthy food and good nutrition 

2 should be a fundamental right of all Americans. 

3 (3) More than 40 years have passed since the 

4 United States convened a White House conference to 

5 comprehensively address the issues of food, hunger, 

6 health, and nutrition in America. 

7 (4) More than 50,000,000 Americans live in 

8 households that face a struggle against hunger; 

9 17,200,000 of whom are children. 

10 (5) The Government spends more than 

11 $100,000,000 every year responding to the concur12 rent epidemics of hunger and undernutrition, yet the 

13 number of Americans facing hunger continues to 

14 grow and our Nation’s nutritional health is declin15 ing. 

16 (6) Appropriate food and nutrition can save the 

17 United States billions of dollars in health care costs 

18 by preventing or delaying the progression to late19 stage disease for tens of millions of Americans who 

20 live with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, HIV, 

21 AIDS, and heart disease. The costs of the effects 

22 and treatments of those diseases are significantly ex23 acerbated by hunger, food insecurity, and under24 nutrition. 


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1 (7) A national discussion of the root causes of 

2 hunger, food insecurity, and undernutrition, as well 

3 as identification of solutions to these epidemics, can 

4 lead to action to implement such solutions and to 

5 end hunger in America. 

6 SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF THE CONFERENCE. 

7 (a) AUTHORITY TO CALL CONFERENCE.—Not later 

8 than December 31, 2012, the President shall call the 

9 White House Conference on Food and Nutrition (in this 

10 Act referred to as the ‘‘Conference’’) to be convened not 

11 later than 18 months after the selection of the Policy Com12 mittee established in section 4, in order to make funda13 mental policy recommendations on ways to end hunger 

14 and to improve nutrition in the United States and to im15 plement the purposes set forth in subsection (c). 

16 (b) PLANNING AND DIRECTION.—The Secretary of 

17 Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Agriculture, 

18 and the Secretary of the Treasury (in this Act referred 

19 to as the ‘‘Cochairs’’) shall plan, conduct, and convene the 

20 Conference, in consultation with the Surgeon General. 

21 (c) PURPOSES OF THE CONFERENCE.—The purposes 

22 of the Conference are to— 

23 (1) identify viable solutions for ending hunger 

24 in the United States; 


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1 (2) review the current structure, scope, and ef2 fectiveness of existing legislation and programs at 

3 the Federal, State, and local levels that provide for 

4 the nutritional needs of food-insecure people living in 

5 the United States; 

6 (3) determine the extent to which current Fed7 eral, State, and local programs that provide for the 

8 nutritional health of Americans can better use avail9 able resources and ensure greater coordination 

10 among such programs; 

11 (4) identify new ways to utilize the abundant 

12 agricultural resources of the United States to meet 

13 the nutritional needs of all Americans; 

14 (5) highlight emerging and innovative programs 

15 from the public and private sectors, including com16 munity-based and faith-based organizations that ef17 fectively address the nutrition needs of vulnerable 

18 Americans and recommend such programs as can be 

19 reasonably and cost-effectively replicated; 

20 (6) identify opportunities for effective partner21 ships between the Government, industry, labor, 

22 healthcare, and the nonprofit sectors to fight hunger 

23 in the United States; 

24 (7) explore the possibility of creating a Federal 

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1 see the Nation’s response to persistent and wide2 spread hunger and food insecurity, to include the 

3 oversight and coordination of all Federal, State, and 

4 local antihunger programs; 

5 (8) bring public attention to the more than 

6 50,000,000 people living in the United States that 

7 face a constant struggle against hunger, food insecu8 rity, and inadequate nutrition; 

9 (9) illustrate the medical, developmental, and 

10 educational impact of hunger, food insecurity, and 

11 inadequate nutrition, and the potential savings to 

12 the United States health care system, educational 

13 system, and other sectors when appropriate food is 

14 available to the critically and chronically ill; 

15 (10) build understanding of the true cost of 

16 hunger in the United States, to include lost wages, 

17 diminished stamina, reduced capacity to learn, and 

18 the impact of despair; and 

19 (11) build understanding that the ever-bur20 geoning dual epidemic of hunger and undernutrition 

21 is a matter of national security. 

22 SEC. 4. POLICY COMMITTEE; RELATED COMMITTEES. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than June 30, 

24 2011, there is established a Policy Committee comprising 

25 of 17 members to be selected as follows: 


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1 (1) PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTEES.—Nine mem2 bers shall be selected by the President and shall in3 clude— 

4 (A) 3 members who are officers or employ5 ees of the United States, including the Surgeon 

6 General; and 

7 (B) 6 members with experience in address8 ing the needs of food-insecure and undernour9 ished people in the United States. 

10 (2) HOUSE APPOINTEES.— 

11 (A) Two members shall be selected by the 

12 Speaker of the House of Representatives after 

13 consultation with the chairperson of the Com14 mittee on Education and the Workforce, the 

15 chairperson of the Committee on Ways and 

16 Means, and the chairperson of the Committee 

17 on Agriculture, of the House of Representa18 tives. 

19 (B) Two members shall be selected by the 

20 minority leader of the House of Representa21 tives, after consultation with the ranking minor22 ity members of such committees. 

23 (3) SENATE APPOINTEES.— 

24 (A) Two members shall be selected by the 

25 majority leader of the Senate, after consultation 


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1 with members of the Committee on Health, 

2 Education, Labor, and Pensions, the Committee 

3 on Agriculture, and the Committee on Finance, 

4 of the Senate. 

5 (B) Two members shall be selected by the 

6 minority leader of the Senate, after consultation 

7 with members of such committees. 

8 (b) VOTING; CHAIRPERSON.— 

9 (1) The Policy Committee shall act by the vote 

10 of a majority of the members present. A quorum of 

11 Committee members shall not be required to conduct 

12 Committee business. 

13 (2) The Surgeon General shall serve as the 

14 chairperson of the Policy Committee. The chair15 person may vote only to break a tie vote of the other 

16 members of the Policy Committee. 

17 (c) DUTIES OF THE POLICY COMMITTEE.—The Pol18 icy Committee shall initially meet at the call of the Co19 chairs, not later than 30 days after the last member is 

20 selected under subsection (a). Subsequent meetings of the 

21 Policy Committee shall be held at the call of the chair22 person. Through meetings, hearings, and working ses23 sions, the Policy Committee shall— 

24 (1) make recommendations to the Cochairs to 

25 facilitate the timely convening of the Conference; 


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1 (2) submit to the Cochairs a proposed agenda 

2 for the Conference not later than 90 days after the 

3 first meeting of the Policy Committee; 

4 (3) make recommendations for the delegates of 

5 the Conference; 

6 (4) establish the number of delegates to be se7 lected under section 5; and 

8 (5) establish an executive committee consisting 

9 of 3 members of the Policy Committee to work with 

10 delegates of the Conference. 

11 SEC. 5. CONFERENCE DELEGATES. 

12 To carry out the purposes of the Conference, the Co13 chairs shall bring together delegates representative of the 

14 spectrum of thought in the field of food and nutrition, 

15 without regard to political affiliation or past partisan ac16 tivity, who shall include— 

17 (1) representatives of Federal, State, and local 

18 governments; 

19 (2) professional people and laypeople who are 

20 working in the field of food, health, nutrition, and 

21 economic security; and 

22 (3) representatives of the general public who 

23 are affected by hunger in the United States. 


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1 SEC. 6. CONFERENCE ADMINISTRATION. 

2 (a) ADMINISTRATION.—In administering this section, 

3 the Cochairs shall— 

4 (1) provide written notice to all members of the 

5 Policy Committee of each meeting, hearing, or work6 ing session of such Committee not later than 48 

7 hours before the occurrence of such meeting, hear8 ing, or working session; 

9 (2) request the cooperation and assistance of 

10 the heads of such other Federal departments and 

11 agencies as may be appropriate, including the detail12 ing of personnel; 

13 (3) make available for public comment a pro14 posed agenda prepared by the Policy Committee, 

15 which will reflect to the greatest extent possible the 

16 major issues facing the field of food and nutrition 

17 consistent with the purposes of the Conference set 

18 forth in section 3(c); 

19 (4) prepare and make available background ma20 terials that the Cochairs deem necessary for the use 

21 of delegates to the Conference; and 

22 (5) employ such additional personnel as may be 

23 necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act 

24 without regard to provisions of title 5, United States 

25 Code, governing appointments in the competitive 

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1 chapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to 

2 classification and General Schedule pay rates. 

3 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the Cochairs’s respon4 sibilities and functions under this section, the Cochairs 

5 shall ensure that— 

6 (1) the proposed agenda prepared under sub7 section (a)(3) is published in the Federal Register 

8 not later than 30 days after such agenda is approved 

9 by the Policy Committee; 

10 (2) the personnel employed under subsection 

11 (a)(5) are fairly balanced in terms of points of views 

12 represented and are appointed without regard to po13 litical affiliation or previous partisan activities; 

14 (3) the recommendations of the Conference are 

15 not inappropriately influenced by any public official 

16 or by any special interest, but instead are the result 

17 of the independent and collective judgment of the 

18 delegates of the Conference; and 

19 (4) before the Conference is convened— 

20 (A) current and adequate statistical data 

21 (including decennial census data) and other in22 formation on food and nutrition in the United 

23 States; and 


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1 (B) such information as may be necessary 

2 to evaluate Federal programs and policies relat3 ing to food and nutrition; 

4 which the Cochairs may obtain by making grants to 

5 or entering into an agreement with, public agencies 

6 or nonprofit organizations, are readily available in 

7 advance of the Conference to the delegates. 

8 (c) GIFTS.—The Cochairs may accept, on behalf of 

9 the United States, gifts (in cash or in kind, including vol10 untary and uncompensated services), which shall be avail11 able to carry out this Act. Gifts of cash shall be available 

12 in addition to amounts appropriated to carry out this title. 

13 Gifts may be earmarked by the donor or the executive 

14 committee for a specific purpose. 

15 (d) RECORDS.—The Cochairs shall maintain records 

16 regarding— 

17 (1) the sources, amounts, and uses of gifts ac18 cepted under subsection (c); and 

19 (2) the identity of each person receiving assist20 ance to carry out this Act, and the amount of such 

21 assistance received by each such person. 

22 SEC. 7. REPORT OF THE CONFERENCE. 

23 (a) PRELIMINARY REPORT.—Not later than 100 days 

24 after the Conference adjourns, the Policy Committee shall 

25 prepare a preliminary report on the Conference which 


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1 shall be published in the Federal Register and submitted 

2 to the chief executive officers of the States. The Policy 

3 Committee shall request that the chief executive officers 

4 of the States submit to the Policy Committee, not later 

5 than 45 days after receiving such report, their views and 

6 findings on such report. 

7 (b) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 

8 the date on which the Conference adjourns, the Policy 

9 Committee shall— 

10 (1) prepare a final report of the Conference 

11 which shall include a compilation of the views and 

12 findings of the chief executive officers of the States 

13 received under subsection (a); and 

14 (2) publish in the Federal Register, and trans15 mit to the President and to Congress, the rec16 ommendations for the administrative action and the 

17 legislation necessary to implement the recommenda18 tions contained in such report. 

19 SEC. 8. STATUS REPORTS. 

20 (a) INITIAL STATUS REPORT.—Not later than 2 

21 years after the date on which the Conference adjourns, 

22 the Surgeon General shall— 

23 (1) prepare a status report documenting the im24 plementation of the recommendations contained in 

25 the final report described in section 7(b)(1); and 


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1 (2) publish in the Federal Register, and trans2 mit to the President and to Congress, such status 

3 report. 

4 (b) SUBSEQUENT STATUS REPORTS.—Not later than 

5 5 years after the date on which the Conference adjourns, 

6 and every 5 years thereafter until all recommendations in 

7 the final report described in section 7(b)(1) are achieved, 

8 the Comptroller General shall— 

9 (1) prepare a status report documenting the im10 plementation of the recommendations contained in 

11 such final report; and 

12 (2) publish in the Federal Register, and trans13 mit to the President and to Congress, such status 

14 report. 

15 SEC. 9. DEFINITION OF STATE. 

16 For the purposes of this Act, the term ‘‘State’’ means 

17 any of the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

18 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, 

19 the Virgin Islands of the United States, or the Common20 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

21 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 (a) AUTHORIZATION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

24 appropriated to carry out this Act— 


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1 (A) such sums as may be necessary for the 

2 first fiscal year in which the Policy Committee 

3 plans the Conference and for the following fis4 cal year; and 

5 (B) such sums as may be necessary for the 

6 fiscal year in which the Conference is held. 

7 (2) LIMITATION.—Any new spending authority 

8 or new authority to enter into contracts under this 

9 Act, and under which the United States is obligated 

10 to make outlays, shall be effective only to the extent, 

11 and in such amounts, as are provided in advance in 

12 appropriations Acts. 

13 (b) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para15 graph (3), funds appropriated to carry out this Act 

16 and funds received as gifts under section 6(c) shall 

17 remain available for obligation or expenditure until 

18 the expiration of the 1-year period beginning on the 

19 date the Conference adjourns. 

20 (2) UNOBLIGATED FUNDS.—Except as provided 

21 in paragraph (3), any such funds neither expended 

22 nor obligated before the expiration of the 1-year pe23 riod beginning on the date the Conference adjourns 

24 shall be returned to the United States Treasury. 


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1 (3) CONFERENCE NOT CONVENED.—If the Con2 ference is not convened before December 31, 2012, 

3 a trust fund shall be established and such funds 

4 shall only be available for a future Conference on 

5 Food and Nutrition. 

Æ 


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