- egress, st Session House Document No. 94-273

VETO OF THE NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH ACT AND

CHILD NUTRITION ACT OF 1966 AMENDMENTS

OF 1975

MESSAGE

FROM

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

VETOING

H.R. 4222

AN ACT TO AMEND THE NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH ACT

AND THE CHILD NUTRITION ACT OF 1966 IN ORDER TO EXTEND AND REVISE THE SPECIAL FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM

FOR CHILDREN AND THE SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM,

AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES RELATED TO STRENGTHENING

THE SCHOOL LUNCH AND CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAMS

OCTOBER 3, 1975.-3essage and accompanying act ordered to be printed

as a House Document

57-011 0

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 1975
To the House of Representatives:

I am returning without my signature H.R. 4222, the National

School Lunch and Child Nutrition Act Amendments of 1975. If this bill provided food for children truly in need, as I proposed in March, I would give it my wholehearted support and approve it

immediately. Children of families living in poverty who need help in raising their level of nutrition should receive that help. It was with this in mind that I recommended early this year a reform of the Federal Government's existing child feeding programs. My proposal would have provided assistance by the Federal Govern- ment for all infants and children from families below the poverty level. It would have halted the steady expansion of Federal child

nutrition subsidies to increasing numbers of non-needy children. By so doing, it would have concentrated more funds on feeding needy children, yet saved the taxpayers of this Nation almost $4 billion over the next five years. I recommended one block grant be made to States to provide them

with greater flexibility to tailor food and nutrition programs to their own conditions and pivferences. At the same time, States would have

been relieved of much administrative and costly red tape. Such an approach would eliminate the wastefulness of present overlapping

programs which often subsidize the same meal.

I recognize that H.R. 4222 would enlarge our present efforts to feed the needy children I am concerned about. But it would go far

beyond that and greatly expand Federal subsidies to children from

families which do not need Federal subsidies.

By extending aid to families not in need, this bill, would add $1.2

billion to my budget proposals for the current fiscal year. I cannot accept such fiscal irresponsibility when we face the real danger that

the budget deficit could reach $70 billion instead of the already high limit of $60 billion I set earlier this year. As Congress keeps adding to the deficit, Congress adds to inflationary pressures which could

push us back into recession.

We should not expand subsidies to families with incomes above the

poverty level. I believe the way to help most American families is to take actions to hold down inflation and reduce their tax burdens.

The consolidated food and nutrition program I proposed in March

for needy children would have greatly improved our existing programs. The program sent to me by the Congress with disproportionate subsidies for the non-needy is worse than the programs we now have.

"I propose to the Congress two choices: (1) Extend our present programs at this time, or (2) reconsider and act favorably on my proposal

for needy children.

Either course would be in the best interests of needy children, the

Nation's economic health and the taxpaying public.

GEmALD R. FoRD. THE WHITE HOUSE, October 3, 1975.

H.D. 273