Title: No Blame, No Shame Act
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
No Blame, No Shame Act
This bill amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish requirements for the treatment of a child who is a student at a school participating in the National School Lunch Program or the School Breakfast Program and is unable to pay for a meal at the school.
The bill applies to a child who either does not have funds to pay for a meal or has outstanding credit that was extended by a school food authority.
A local educational agency may not permit:
Any communication related to outstanding credit must be directed to the child's parent or guardian.
The bill sets forth reporting and disclosure requirements regarding school meal collection policies, violations of this bill, and the amount of student meal debt.
The bill also: (1) establishes penalties for violations, and (2) prohibits the use of collection agencies to collect an outstanding debt if the agency charges the child or the child's family fees that are in addition to the debt.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6977 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6977

 To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to prohibit 
    the stigmatization of children who are unable to pay for meals.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 28, 2018

  Mr. Nolan 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 prohibit 
    the stigmatization of children who are unable to pay for meals.

    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 ``No Blame, No Shame Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) School nutrition programs help end childhood hunger and 
        provide access to healthy, nutritious meals.
            (2) Access to school meals has been shown to improve 
        educational outcomes.
            (3) A Federal, publicly funded universal school meal and 
        nutrition program will eliminate any stigma that accompanies 
        free or reduced meals and students unable to purchase meals due 
        to insufficient account funds.
            (4) A Federal, publicly funded universal school meal and 
        nutrition program would further allow schools to shift 
        resources from paperwork to providing high quality meals.
            (5) A Federal, publicly funded universal school meal and 
        nutrition program should be established.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON STIGMATIZATION OF CHILDREN WHO ARE UNABLE TO PAY 
              FOR MEALS.

    Section 9(b)(10) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(10)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(10) No physical'' and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(10) Discriminatory or stigmatizing treatment of children 
        by schools.--
                    ``(A) Discrimination based on eligibility.--No 
                physical''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Stigmatization based on lack of funds or 
                debt.--
                            ``(i) Definition of covered child.--In this 
                        subparagraph, the term `covered child' means a 
                        child who--
                                    ``(I) is a student at a school that 
                                participates in--
                                            ``(aa) the school lunch 
                                        program established under this 
                                        Act; or
                                            ``(bb) the school breakfast 
                                        program established by section 
                                        4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 
                                        1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773); and
                                    ``(II)(aa) does not have funds to 
                                pay for a lunch or breakfast at the 
                                school; or
                                    ``(bb) has outstanding credit that 
                                was extended by a school food authority 
                                for a lunch or breakfast at the school.
                            ``(ii) Requirements of local educational 
                        agencies.--
                                    ``(I) In general.--A local 
                                educational agency shall not permit--
                                            ``(aa) the public 
                                        identification of a covered 
                                        child, such as by requiring the 
                                        covered child to wear a 
                                        wristband or display a hand 
                                        stamp to identify the covered 
                                        child as a covered child;
                                            ``(bb) the stigmatization 
                                        of a covered child, such as by 
                                        preventing such student from 
                                        participating in 
                                        extracurricular activities, 
                                        school functions, or other 
                                        school events due to the status 
                                        of the child as a covered 
                                        child; or
                                            ``(cc) any requirement that 
                                        a covered child, because of the 
                                        status of the covered child as 
                                        a covered child--

                                                    ``(AA) perform 
                                                chores or any other 
                                                activity that is not 
                                                required of students 
                                                generally; or

                                                    ``(BB) dispose of a 
                                                lunch or breakfast 
                                                after it has been 
                                                served to the covered 
                                                child.

                                    ``(II) Communications.--
                                            ``(aa) In general.--Subject 
                                        to item (bb), a local 
                                        educational agency shall 
                                        require that any communication 
                                        relating to an outstanding 
                                        credit described in clause 
                                        (i)(II)(bb) of a covered child 
                                        shall be directed--

                                                    ``(AA) to a parent 
                                                or guardian of the 
                                                covered child; and

                                                    ``(BB) not to the 
                                                covered child.

                                            ``(bb) Letters.--A local 
                                        educational agency may permit a 
                                        requirement that a covered 
                                        child deliver a letter 
                                        addressed to a parent or 
                                        guardian of the covered child 
                                        that contains a communication 
                                        described in item (aa), subject 
                                        to the condition that the 
                                        letter shall not be distributed 
                                        to the covered child in a 
                                        manner that stigmatizes the 
                                        covered child.
                                            ``(cc) School meal 
                                        collection policy 
                                        distribution.--A local 
                                        educational agency shall 
                                        annually publish and make 
                                        publicly available, including 
                                        to school administrators, meal 
                                        vendors, and parents and 
                                        guardians of children served by 
                                        the local educational agency, 
                                        the policy of local educational 
                                        agency that includes--

                                                    ``(AA) the 
                                                policies, procedures, 
                                                and guidelines of the 
                                                local educational 
                                                agency with respect to 
                                                owed debts and 
                                                insufficient funds to 
                                                purchase meals; and

                                                    ``(BB) available 
                                                and relevant meals and 
                                                food programs and 
                                                resources.

                    ``(C) Report on violations.--Each State shall 
                annually submit to the Secretary a report that 
                includes--
                            ``(i) each violation of this paragraph by a 
                        school located in such State during the 
                        previous year;
                            ``(ii) each violation of this paragraph by 
                        a local educational agency located in such 
                        State during the previous year;
                            ``(iii) the amount of student meal debt 
                        accrued in each school and each local 
                        educational agency located in the State during 
                        the previous year; or
                            ``(iv) the policies with respect to school 
                        meals used by each school and local educational 
                        agency located in such State.
                    ``(D) Publication.--The Secretary shall establish 
                and update a list of the violations of this paragraph 
                on a public website of the Department.
                    ``(E) Penalty.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Notwithstanding any 
                        other provision of law and subject to clause 
                        (ii), in the case of a local educational agency 
                        or a school served by such local educational 
                        agency that is reported under subparagraph (C) 
                        as having violated this paragraph, such local 
                        educational agency shall, not later than 3 
                        years after the date on which such report was 
                        submitted--
                                    ``(I) use administrative funds 
                                reserved for school board or 
                                administrator activities to pay accrued 
                                school meal debt in the year prior to 
                                the date on which such report was 
                                submitted; and
                                    ``(II) forgive the outstanding debt 
                                of each covered child that accrued such 
                                debts.
                            ``(ii) Certain funds excluded from 
                        redistribution.--None of the funds that would 
                        otherwise be used by the local educational 
                        agency for salaries, bonuses, workforce 
                        training and development, instruction of 
                        students, student resources, day-to-day school 
                        operations, or the benefit of school employees, 
                        teachers, and school-based administrator may be 
                        used under clause (i).
                    ``(F) Prohibition.--In the case of covered child 
                with outstanding debt with respect to school meals, a 
                local educational agency may not seek collection 
                through a collection agency if such collection agency 
                charges such covered child or the family of such 
                covered child fees that are in addition to the 
                outstanding debt.''.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Agriculture 
should ensure that--
            (1)(A) to the maximum extent practicable, an application 
        for a free or reduced price lunch under the Richard B. Russell 
        National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) is 
        distributed--
                    (i) in an understandable and uniform format; and
                    (ii) by not later than July 1 each year; and
            (B) a local educational agency offers technical assistance 
        to a parent or legal guardian to complete an application 
        described in subparagraph (A);
            (2) each local educational agency coordinates with--
                    (A) the local educational agency liaison designated 
                under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento 
                Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)) 
                to ensure that homeless children and youths eligible to 
                receive free lunches and breakfasts under section 
                9(b)(12)(A)(iv) of the Richard B. Russell National 
                School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(12)(A)(iv)) receive 
                those free lunches and breakfasts; and
                    (B) the State agency responsible for administering 
                the State plans under parts B and E of title IV of the 
                Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 
                470 et seq.) to ensure that foster children eligible to 
                receive free lunches and breakfasts under section 
                9(b)(12)(A)(vii) of the Richard B. Russell National 
                School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(12)(A)(vii)) 
                receive those free lunches and breakfasts; and
            (3) a local educational agency that participates in the 
        school lunch program or the school breakfast program under the 
        Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et 
        seq.) or section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 
        U.S.C. 1773), respectively--
                    (A) shall provide to a child who requests a lunch 
                or breakfast a lunch or breakfast, regardless of 
                whether the child--
                            (i) has money to pay for the lunch or 
                        breakfast; or
                            (ii) owes money for a lunch or breakfast;
                    (B) shall not provide to a child who qualifies for 
                a free or reduced price lunch or breakfast an alternate 
                meal that is not provided to students generally; and
                    (C) should explore innovative ways to use 
                technology to improve and coordinate communications 
                with parents and guardians with respect to functions 
                such as--
                            (i) prepayment for meals;
                            (ii) checking balances for school meals;
                            (iii) adding funds to accounts for school 
                        meals;
                            (iv) addressing outstanding debt for school 
                        meals; and
                            (v) sending automatic emails when an 
                        account balance is low.
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