Title: Food for Thought Act of 2019
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Food for Thought Act of 2019
This bill directs the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to implement a pilot program to award grants to community colleges so they may provide free meals, including snacks, to eligible students.
The FNS must provide grants to community colleges that reflect varying (1) student body size; (2) full-time student enrollment; (3) geographic location, including urban, rural, or suburban campuses; (4) minority serving institutions; and (5) residential character, including race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
The FNS may give priority to community colleges (1) with prepared food infrastructure, or those that can identify outside sources of support to help develop such infrastructure; (2) that serve more than 300 students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants; or (3) that are located within proximity of a school in a high poverty area that receives special assistance payments under the National School Lunch Program or the School Breakfast Program.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4065 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4065

To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish 
a pilot program for serving meals in community colleges, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 25, 2019

  Mr. Schiff (for himself, Ms. Judy Chu of California, Ms. Sewell of 
Alabama, Ms. Pressley, Ms. Norton, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Carson of Indiana, 
   Mr. Cox of California, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Payne, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. 
   Cardenas, Ms. Sanchez, Ms. Porter, and Mrs. Torres of California) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish 
a pilot program for serving meals in community colleges, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Food for Thought Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. SCHOOL LUNCH IN COMMUNITY COLLEGE PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 
U.S.C. 1769) is amended by inserting before subsection (b) the 
following:
    ``(a) School Lunch in Community College Pilot Program.--
            ``(1) Authorization of program.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary, acting through 
                the Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, 
                shall carry out a program to make grants to community 
                colleges to provide free meals, including snacks, to 
                eligible students, as determined by the Secretary.
                    ``(B) Award requirements.--In awarding grants under 
                this subsection, the Secretary shall make grants to 
                community colleges that reflect varying student body 
                size, full-time student enrollment, geographic 
                location, including urban, rural, or suburban campuses, 
                minority serving institutions, residential character, 
                including race and ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
                    ``(C) Maximum amount.--A grant under this 
                subsection may not be in an amount greater than 
                $200,000.
                    ``(D) Priority.--In awarding grants under this 
                subsection, the Secretary may give priority to 
                community colleges--
                            ``(i) with prepared food infrastructure or 
                        can identify an outside source of support to 
                        develop such infrastructure;
                            ``(ii) that serve more than 300 students 
                        who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants; or
                            ``(iii) that are located within proximity 
                        of a school that elects to receive special 
                        assistance payments under section 11(a)(1)(F) 
                        of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 
                        Act (42 U.S.C. 1759a(a)(1)(F)).
            ``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        this subsection, a community college shall submit an 
        application to the Secretary, at such time, in such manner, and 
        containing such information as the Secretary may require, 
        including the number of students such community college will 
        serve under the grant.
            ``(3) Use of funds.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A community college that 
                receives a grant under this subsection shall use the 
                grant to--
                            ``(i) provide free meals, including snacks, 
                        to eligible students;
                            ``(ii) conduct outreach to students to 
                        encourage participation in the free meal 
                        program;
                            ``(iii) prepare meals;
                            ``(iv) purchase meals from vendors; and
                            ``(v) provide information to students 
                        regarding eligibility for assistance under 
                        Federal food assistance programs.
                    ``(B) Limitation on purchase of equipment.--A 
                community college that receives a grant under this 
                subsection may use not more than 20 percent of such 
                grant to purchase equipment to carry out the activities 
                described in clauses (i) through (iv) of subparagraph 
                (A).
            ``(4) Requirements.--Meals served by a community college 
        pursuant to a grant under this subsection shall meet the 
        requirements developed under the dietary guidelines required 
        under paragraph (5)(C).
            ``(5) Report.--Each community college that receives a grant 
        under this section shall, not later than 18 months after 
        receiving such a grant, submit a report to the Secretary of 
        Education that includes--
                    ``(A) the prevalence of food insecurity with 
                respect to students enrolled in such community college; 
                and
                    ``(B) an evaluation of the use of grant finds by 
                such community college in addressing such food 
                insecurity.
            ``(6) Department activities.--
                    ``(A) Consultation.--In carrying out the grant 
                program under this subsection, the Secretary shall 
                consult with community colleges, State educational 
                agencies, and State boards of higher education.
                    ``(B) Technical assistance.--Not later than 120 
                days after the date of the enactment of this 
                subsection, the Secretary, acting through the 
                Administrator of the Food and Nutrition Service, shall 
                provide technical assistance to community colleges to--
                            ``(i) as applicable, develop prepared meal 
                        infrastructure;
                            ``(ii) carry out the activities described 
                        in paragraph (3), including training the 
                        employees of the community college to carry out 
                        such activities; and
                            ``(iii) develop outreach to students with 
                        respect to such activities.
                    ``(C) Dietary guidelines.--Not later than 120 days 
                after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the 
                Secretary shall develop nutritional requirements for 
                meals served pursuant to a grant under this subsection 
                that are consistent with the goals of 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).
                    ``(D) Study.--Not later than 2 years after the date 
                of the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 
                shall submit to Congress a report that includes--
                            ``(i) an evaluation of the pilot program 
                        under this subsection; and
                            ``(ii) recommendations with respect to 
                        expanding the pilot program under this 
                        subsection.
            ``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $6,000,000 for 
        fiscal year 2020 and each of the succeeding 3 fiscal years.
            ``(8) Community college defined.--In this subsection, the 
        term `community college' means a public institution of higher 
        education as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education 
        Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)) that--
                    ``(A) does not provide an educational program for 
                which the institution awards a bachelor's degree (or an 
                equivalent degree); and
                    ``(B) predominately awards associate's degrees.''.
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