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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1031 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1031

To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to provide 
 coordination and direction for commodity programs, and to ensure the 
  distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables to schools and service 
                   institutions in the United States.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 29, 2007

 Mrs. Clinton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to provide 
 coordination and direction for commodity programs, and to ensure the 
  distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables to schools and service 
                   institutions in the United States.

    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 ``School Food Fresh Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Commodity program.--The term ``commodity program'' 
        means any of--
                    (A) the commodity supplemental food program 
                established under section 5 of the Agriculture and 
                Consumer Protection Act of 1973 (7 U.S.C. 612c note; 
                Public Law 93-86);
                    (B) the food distribution program on Indian 
                reservations established under section 4(b) of the Food 
                Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2013(b));
                    (C) the emergency food assistance program 
                established under the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 
                1983 (7 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.) and section 27 of the Food 
                Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2036);
                    (D) the school lunch program established under the 
                Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 
                1751 et seq.);
                    (E) the summer food service program for children 
                established under section 13 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 
                1761);
                    (F) the child and adult care food program 
                established under section 17 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 
                1766); and
                    (G) the school breakfast program established under 
                section 4 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 1773).
            (2) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of Agriculture.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture.
            (4) Task force.--The term ``Task Force'' means the 
        multiagency task force established under section 3(a).

SEC. 3. MULTIAGENCY TASK FORCE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish, in the office of 
the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, a 
multiagency task force for the purpose of providing coordination and 
direction for commodity programs.
    (b) Composition.--The Task Force shall be composed of at least 4 
members, including--
            (1) a representative from the Food Distribution Division of 
        the Food and Nutrition Service, who shall--
                    (A) be appointed by the Under Secretary for Food, 
                Nutrition, and Consumer Services; and
                    (B) serve as Chairperson of the Task Force;
            (2) at least 1 representative from the Agricultural 
        Marketing Service, who shall be appointed by the Under 
        Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs;
            (3) at least 1 representative from the Farm Services 
        Agency, who shall be appointed by the Under Secretary for Farm 
        and Foreign Agricultural Services; and
            (4) at least 1 representative from the Food Safety and 
        Inspection Service, who shall be appointed by the Under 
        Secretary for Food Safety.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--The Task Force shall be responsible for 
        evaluation and monitoring of the commodity programs to ensure 
        that the commodity programs meet the mission of the 
        Department--
                    (A) to support the United States farm sector;
                    (B) to comply with the most recent Dietary 
                Guidelines for Americans published under section 301 of 
                the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research 
                Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5341); and
                    (C) to contribute to the health and well-being of 
                individuals in the United States through the 
                distribution of domestic agricultural products through 
                commodity programs.
            (2) Specific duties.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the 
        Task Force shall--
                    (A) review and make recommendations regarding the 
                specifications used for the procurement of food 
                commodities, taking into consideration recommendations 
                based on the results of evaluations carried out using 
                grants made available under section 4;
                    (B) review and make recommendations regarding the 
                effective distribution of food commodities;
                    (C) review and make recommendations regarding 
                efficient and effective systems to ensure the best use 
                of Federal funds to maximize the quantity and quality 
                of foods purchased for recipient agencies and the best 
                use of those purchased foods by recipient agencies; and
                    (D) on the request of the Secretary, review and 
                make recommendations regarding future updates of the 
                Dietary Guidelines for Americans published under 
                section 301 of the National Nutrition Monitoring and 
                Related Research Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5341).
    (d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to 
Congress a report that describes, for the period covered by the 
report--
            (1) the findings and recommendations of the Task Force; and
            (2) policies implemented for the betterment of commodity 
        programs.

SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR SPECIFICATION DEVELOPMENT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall provide 5 competitive grants to 
nonprofit research institutions (including research universities) 
selected by the Secretary for use in evaluating the product 
specifications of food commodity products procured through commodity 
programs to determine--
            (1) the consistency of those specifications with the 
        nutritional goals of the commodity program;
            (2) the acceptability of the products procured under the 
        specifications by recipient agencies and consumers; and
            (3) the extent to which food commodities purchased through 
        commodity programs are comparable to any commercial 
        counterparts to those commodities.
    (b) Types of Grants.--Of the 5 grants provided under subsection 
(a), a grant shall be provided for the evaluation and recommendation of 
product specifications for each of the categories of--
            (1) fruits and vegetables;
            (2) meat;
            (3) poultry;
            (4) grains, nuts, and oils; and
            (5) dairy products.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 18 months after the date on which the 
Secretary provides a grant under this section, the recipient of the 
grant shall submit to the Secretary and the Task Force a report that--
            (1) describes the results of evaluations carried out using 
        funds from the grant; and
            (2) includes recommendations based on those results.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $2,500,000.

SEC. 5. USDA SCHOOL FOOD FRESH PROGRAM.

    Section 10603 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 
(7 U.S.C. 612c-4) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 10603. PURCHASE OF SPECIALTY CROPS.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Fruits, vegetables, other specialty food crops.--The 
        terms `fruits', `vegetables', and `other specialty food crops' 
        shall have the meaning given the terms by the Secretary of 
        Agriculture.
            ``(2) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture.
            ``(3) Service institution.--The term `service institution' 
        has the meaning given the term in section 13(a) of the Richard 
        B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1761(a)).
    ``(b) Purchase Authority.--Of the funds made available under 
section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c), for fiscal 
year 2008 and each subsequent fiscal year, the Secretary shall use not 
less than $200,000,000 each fiscal year to purchase fruits, vegetables, 
and other specialty food crops.
    ``(c) USDA School Food Fresh Program.--
            ``(1) Definition of eligible product.--In this subsection, 
        the term `eligible product' means a fruit or vegetable item 
        that--
                    ``(A) is offered by a vendor approved by the 
                Secretary under paragraph (4);
                    ``(B) is fresh, dried, or frozen in a manner that 
                maximizes retention of nutrient density; and
                    ``(C) to the maximum extent practicable, reflects 
                local preferences and supports local agriculture.
            ``(2) Agreements.--The Secretary, acting through such 
        regional procurement offices of the Department of Agriculture 
        as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, shall carry out 
        a program under which the Secretary shall enter into agreements 
        with local and regional distributors to supply eligible 
        products to schools and service institutions.
            ``(3) Funds.--Eligible products supplied under an agreement 
        described in paragraph (2) shall be purchased by schools and 
        service institutions using funds that are allocated to the 
        schools or service institutions for the purpose of--
                    ``(A) purchasing fruits and vegetables; or
                    ``(B) providing nutritious meals.
            ``(4) Vendors.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A local or regional distributor 
                of eligible products that seeks to supply eligible 
                products to schools and service institutions under this 
                subsection shall apply to the Secretary for approval as 
                a participating vendor.
                    ``(B) Conditions for approval.--The Secretary shall 
                approve a vendor as eligible to supply eligible 
                products under this subsection if the vendor--
                            ``(i) demonstrates the ability to supply 
                        those eligible products;
                            ``(ii) complies with standards for food 
                        safety developed by the Secretary;
                            ``(iii) consistently provides products that 
                        meet standards of grade, size, freshness, and 
                        quality as required by the Secretary or a local 
                        procurement officer; and
                            ``(iv) demonstrates the ability to supply 
                        eligible products from local growers and 
                        processors.
                    ``(C) Monitoring.--
                            ``(i) In general.--The Secretary shall 
                        develop and implement a system for monitoring 
                        vendors approved under this paragraph.
                            ``(ii) Certification.--A monitoring system 
                        under clause (i) may include a requirement to 
                        obtain certification--
                                    ``(I) in accordance with a program 
                                designed by the Secretary; and
                                    ``(II) for which the Secretary may 
                                require compensation.
            ``(5) Funding.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the amount specified in 
                subsection (b), the Secretary shall use not less than 
                $50,000,000 each fiscal year for the purchase of 
                eligible products for distribution to schools and 
                service institutions in accordance with section 6(a) of 
                the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 
                U.S.C. 1755(a)).
                    ``(B) Additional available funds.--A school or 
                service institution that uses an agreement described in 
                paragraph (2) to purchase eligible products may 
                allocate up to 30 percent of the funds of the school or 
                service institution authorized under section 6 of the 
                Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 
                1755), and such additional funds as are necessary from 
                funds allocated to the school or service institution 
                under sections 4 and 11 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 1753, 
                1759a), for the purpose of procuring eligible products 
                through vendors approved by the Secretary under 
                paragraph (4).
                    ``(C) Authorization of appropriations for 
                administrative expenses.--There are authorized to be 
                appropriated such sums as are necessary to pay 
                administrative costs incurred in carrying out this 
                subsection.''.

SEC. 6. USE OF COMMODITY ENTITLEMENT FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 
practicable, purchase for commodity programs foods that are in the 
least-processed state.
    (b) Processing of Foods.--The Secretary, upon the approval of 
national processing agreements, shall make available to all schools and 
other recipient agencies the opportunity to divert unprocessed or 
minimally-processed commodity foods to subsequent processors for 
conversion into usable end products.
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