Title: Community Meals Fund
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Community Meals Fund
This bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture to award grants to community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups to partner with small and mid-sized restaurants or food contractors to expand meal access and food security to meet the needs of children, families, and vulnerable populations during a pandemic such as COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019).
Grants awarded may not exceed $500,000.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6384 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6384

  To provide community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups 
with funding to partner with small and mid-sized restaurants to expand 
  meal access and delivery for low-income and vulnerable populations 
             during a pandemic or public health emergency.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 24, 2020

Ms. Velazquez introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                        Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger groups 
with funding to partner with small and mid-sized restaurants to expand 
  meal access and delivery for low-income and vulnerable populations 
             during a pandemic or public health emergency.

    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 ``Community Meals Fund''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

            (1) Vulnerable population.--The term ``vulnerable 
        population'' means any person who is a member of the target 
        population, is a low income individual, or receives a means-
        tested benefit as defined under this Act.
            (2) Grab-and-go meal.--The term ``grab-and-go meals'' 
        refers to pre-packaged, ready to eat food that has been 
        prepared and cooked no greater than 8 hours prior to being 
        sealed or enclosed in a container.
            (3) Target population.--The term ``target population'' 
        includes an individual who (or family that)--
                    (A) earns an income below 200 percent of the 
                Federal poverty line;
                    (B) suffers from food insecurity;
                    (C) is homeless;
                    (D) receives (or recently received) assistance 
                under a State program funded under part A of title IV 
                of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. et seq.), 
                relating to temporary assistance to needy families; or
                    (E) is eligible for benefits under any nutrition 
                assistance or anti-poverty program.
            (4) Community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger 
        group.--The term ``community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-
        hunger group'' means an anti-hunger organization, food bank, 
        food pantry, soup kitchen, food rescue group, or community food 
        security organization that is described in section 501(c)(3) of 
        the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under 
        section 501(a) of such Code.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture.
            (6) Low-income individual.--The term ``low-income 
        individual'' means, with respect to any calendar year, any 
        individual who lives in a household that has a gross income 
        that does not exceed 300 percent of the poverty line, as 
        defined in section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)).
            (7) Homeless.--The term ``homeless'' has the meaning given 
        such term in subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Act 
        and the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) definition in 
        section 103 of subtitle I of the McKinney-Vento Act.
            (8) Crisis housing.--The term ``crisis housing'' means a 
        supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designated to 
        provide temporary living arrangements (including hotels and 
        motels paid for by Federal, State, or local government programs 
        for low-income individuals or by charitable organizations, 
        congregate shelters, and transitional housing).
            (9) Means-tested benefit.--The term ``means-tested 
        benefit'' means a mandatory spending program of the Federal 
        Government for which, as determined by the Secretary, 
        eligibility for the program's benefits, or the amount of such 
        benefits, is determined on the basis of income or resources of 
        the individual or family seeking the benefit.
            (10) Dependent.--The term ``dependent'' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 
        1986, except that the term also includes an individual who is 
        not a citizen or national of the United States if such 
        individual would otherwise be considered a dependent pursuant 
        to such section if such individual were a citizen or national 
        of the United States.
            (11) Disaster declaration.--The term ``disaster 
        declaration'' means the instance a Governor requests a major 
        disaster declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
        Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.).
            (12) Temporary community need.--The term ``temporary 
        community need'' means prepared meals during the time period 
        under which a disaster declaration is provided. Such community 
        need shall terminate 30 days after the termination of such 
        declaration.
            (13) Pandemic.--The term ``pandemic'' means a communicable 
        disease for which the Federal Government has issued a travel 
        alert or travel warning.

SEC. 3. COMMUNITY MEALS FUND.

    (a) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant to address 
temporary community needs under this section, a community-based 
nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group shall submit to the Secretary 
an application that contains a description of how the applicant 
proposes to use the grant funds to implement the components of the 
temporary grant program listed in subsection (b). The application shall 
be submitted in such form, at such time, and containing such other 
information as the Secretary may require.
    (b) Community Meals Grant Program Components.--An application for a 
grant under this section shall contain an assurance that the applicant 
will expand the capacity of community-based nonprofit feeding and anti-
hunger groups and schools to meet the needs of children, families, and 
vulnerable populations in a pandemic by--
            (1) contracting with small and mid-sized business 
        restaurants or small and mid-sized food contractors that are 
        small business concerns as defined in section 3 of the Small 
        Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632) for--
                    (A) preparing, cooking, and storing grab-and-go 
                meals;
                    (B) serving meals to vulnerable populations or make 
                them available for pick up, or distributed in high 
                poverty areas designated by State and local agencies;
                    (C) bolstering food security for children, 
                dependents, families, and the elderly in rural and hard 
                to reach communities;
                    (D) bolstering food security for dependents, target 
                populations, and families in crisis housing; and
                    (E) improving the nutrition of vulnerable 
                populations.
    (c) Criteria.--In evaluating an application of a community-based 
nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group to receive a grant, the 
Secretary shall consider criteria as the Secretary determines 
appropriate.
    (d) Grant Administration.--
            (1) Amount.--A grant awarded under this section may not 
        exceed $500,000.
            (2) Renewals.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary may renew a grant 
                awarded under this section with respect to an eligible 
                entity if the entity--
                            (i) submits to the Secretary an application 
                        for renewal at such time, in such manner, and 
                        containing such information as the Secretary 
                        may require; and
                            (ii) demonstrates in such application 
                        that--
                                    (I) grant, contract, or cooperative 
                                agreement funds made available to the 
                                entity were used in a manner required 
                                under the most recently approved 
                                application of the entity under this 
                                section; and
                                    (II) the entity has made progress 
                                in achieving the objectives of the 
                                initial application approved for the 
                                entity under this section.
                    (B) Duration.--A grant shall be eligible for 
                renewal so long as a disaster declaration is active on 
                the date of the renewal application.
    (e) Supplement, Not Supplant, Requirement.--A grant, contract, or 
cooperative agreement made under this Act shall be expended to 
supplement, and not supplant, the expenditures of the eligible entity 
involved and the value of in-kind contributions.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out this section $20,000,000 during the 1-year period beginning on May 
1, 2020.
    (b) Availability.--Funds authorized to be appropriated under 
subsection (a) shall remain available until expended.

SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit a community-based 
nonprofit feeding and anti-hunger group from receiving a grant under 
this Act for any vulnerable population otherwise served by such group 
with other Federal funds.

SEC. 6. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

    (a) Grantee Report to Congress.--Not later than 90 days after the 
end of the fiscal year for which a grantee receives a grant under this 
Act, such grantee shall submit to the Secretary a report that contains 
an evaluation of the results of the activities, including financial 
expenditures, made during such fiscal year to carry out the program for 
which such grant is received.
    (b) Annual Reports to Congress.--Not later than January 1 following 
the end of fiscal year for which funds are appropriated to carry out 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report describing 
the progress of the programs carried out with grants made for such 
fiscal year.
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