Time to use your VOICE. It Matters. 

This rule proposes to codify several provisions of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 affecting the integrity of the Child Nutrition Programs, including the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the Special Milk Program for Children, the School Breakfast Program, the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and State Administrative Expense Funds. The Department is proposing to establish criteria for assessments against State agencies and program operators who jeopardize the integrity of any Child Nutrition Program; establish procedures for termination and disqualification of entities in the SFSP; modify State agency site review requirements in the CACFP; establish State liability for reimbursements incurred as a result of a State's failure to conduct timely hearings in the CACFP; establish criteria for increased State audit funding for CACFP; establish procedures to prohibit the participation of entities or individuals terminated from any of the Child Nutrition Programs; establish serious deficiency and termination procedures for unaffiliated sponsored centers in the CACFP; eliminate cost-reimbursement food service management company contracts in the NSLP; and establish procurement training requirements for State agency and school food authority staff in the NSLP. In addition, this rulemaking would make several operational changes to improve oversight of an institution's financial management and would also include several technical corrections to the regulations. The proposed rule is intended to improve the integrity of all Child Nutrition Programs.

There are two ways to submit comments:

1. Preferred method: Federal - Rulemaking Portal @ https://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FNS-2016-0040Docket - FNS-2016-0040 

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          Submit: https://www.regulations.gov/#!submitComment;D=FNS-2016-0040-0001

Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
​     2. Mail: Comments should be addressed to Andrea Farmer, Chief, School Meal Programs Branch, Policy and                  Program Development Division, Child Nutrition Programs, Food and Nutrition Service, Department of Agriculture,      3101 Park Center Drive, Alexandria, Virginia 22302–1594.   


The following comment letter was drafted by a team led by the Geri Henchy, Food and Research Action Center

 What is the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act? The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act authorizes all of the federal school meal and child nutrition programs, which provide funding to ensure that low-income children have access to healthy and nutritious foods. The child nutrition programs touch millions of children each day, and improve educational achievement, economic security, nutrition and health.
Child Nutrition Progams Included:

• National School Lunch Program 
• School Breakfast Program
• Child and Adult Care Food Program
• Summer Food Service Program 
• Afterschool Snack and Meal Program
• Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) 
• WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program
• Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program 
• Special Milk Program

Who is responsible in Congress for the Child Nutrition Reauthorization?
In the House of Representatives, the House Education and the Workforce's Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education has jurisdiction over the child nutrition programs. In the Senate, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry's Subcommittee on Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Food and Agricultural Research has jurisdiction over the programs.

Who benefits from Child Nutrition Reauthorization?
In 2014, 1.9 Billion meals were served in CACFP homes, centers and after school programs. Everyone.

What happened in the last Child Nutrition Reauthorization?
in December 2, 2010, the legislation expanded the availability of nutritious meals and snacks to more children in school, in outside school hours programs, and in child care. It also contained a number of provisions to improve the nutritional quality of meals served in schools and preschool settings and to simplify the application process for children and their parents. Read Full Primer   FRAC’s Legislative Action Center

In 2015
Congress was suppose to pass a law to reauthorize the Child Nutrition Act. The CACFP Community took action to obtain a strong Child Nutrition Bill for all. That did not happen, although 2 bills are introduced in the Ag Committee

S.1883: Ask Your Senators to Co-Sponsor the Access to Healthy Food for Young Children Act
H.R. 3886: Ask Your US Representative to Co-Sponsor the Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act
​S.1883: Ask Your Senators to Co-Sponsor the Access to Healthy Food for Young Children Act
H.R. 3886: Ask Your US Representative to Co-Sponsor the Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act

In 2016,
The Child Nutrition Reauthorization Bill is no longer a strong Child Nutrition Bill. The “Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016” (H.R. 5003) was passed in the House May 18, 2016. Some say, Child Nutrition rolls back if this bill goes through as it stands.

National CACFP Forum Summary of CACFP Provisions
• No provision for an additional meal or snack from children in care for long hours. This bill fails to meet the nutritional needs for children in care for long hours. The House bill does not reflect the provision included in the Senate bill that allows child care centers and homes the option of serving an additional snack to children in care for long hours. There was one last try to get the additional snack in the bill. Representative Bonamichi (R-NY) introduced an amendment to include the additional snack in the bill but the committee voted it down.

Concerning CACFP provisions included in the H.R. 5003 bill:
• Unnecessary and duplicative annual budget reporting requirements are created for sponsors.
• A problematic new requirement is created for all CACFP programs, whereby any “findings,” or errors they have been cited for, would be turned over to Health and Human Services (HHS). This could have a chilling effect on CACFP participation because it forces State CACFP agencies – and, in some cases, sponsoring organizations of afterschool programs and family child care homes – to report all findings, regardless of magnitude, to other agencies in the state.
• Directs USDA to work with HHS to improve the health and safety oversight and monitoring for the CACFP including by issuing guidance to States to reduce duplicative monitoring and oversight practices among CACFP and child care programs.
• Eliminates CACFP start-up and expansion funds, which support the development of quality child care with good nutrition through CACFP in rural and low-income areas.
• Provides a weak year-round streamlining option that some states could choose to offer allowing summer food programs to receive CACFP rates and depending on the state plan some administrative streamlining. ​

Taken from Pew Charitable Trust Fact Sheet, May 2, 2016

Overview: The federal Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) provides funding for meals and snacks in a variety of child care, after-school, and adult day care institutions that contribute to the health and wellness of young children, older adults, and chronically impaired disabled people.  More than 3 million children are served each day through this program.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released a final rule that includes several updates to the program that are intended to better meet children’s nutritional needs without increasing costs.
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As part of an ongoing health impact assessment, the Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project conducted a systematic literature review to assess the potential impact of the USDA’s proposed changes to the CACFP meal and snack nutrition standards for young children, which the agency first outlined in early 2015.1 The researchers examined peer-reviewed and gray literature on the nutritional quality of foods served in CACFP, consumption rates, health disparities among participating children, nutrition-related health outcomes, and policy interventions that states and child care providers have implemented to improve consumption of healthy foods. Overall, the literature indicates that the updates to the CACFP nutrition standards present opportunities for positive health effects on the children the program serves. Read the rest of this article

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Don't give up now. It seems like we have making quilts, making comments and sending letters for a very long time. Well, we have. So, tell me aren't we glad that the Food Research Action Committee is paying attention in Washington DC everyday all year long.

Support FRAC and the National CACFP Forum the way they support you. Everyday.

From the desk of FRAC: 
Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR)Take ActionWhat’s the latest CNR action to take? Find out here.Read and share FRAC’s 2016 Child Nutrition Reauthorization Priorities.Check out FRAC’s Advocacy Tools pagefor resources on how to advocate and promote the child nutrition programs, including FRAC’s 101 on planning a site visit.Although the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 expired on September 30, 2015- the child nutrition programs continue to operate. The reauthorization of the programs is not required for them to continue, but it is an important opportunity for Congress to expand access to and improve the programs.
Currently on the Hill…
The House Education and Workforce Committee released its reauthorization bill in April 2016, titled the “Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016” (H.R. 5003) – see FRAC’s statement opposing the bill and FRAC’s complete analysis of the bill.
The Senate Agriculture Committee released its reauthorization bill in January 2016, titled “The Improving Child Nutrition Integrity and Access Act of 2016” (pdf). Read FRAC’s statement andanalysis of the bill. View the recorded webcast of the mark up of their bill here.
Advocacy is still needed to ensure a strong final child nutrition bill- that protects and strengthens the programs- as the Senate moves forward with their bill and the House considers which provisions their bill may include.
For more details, visit the CNR on Capitol Hill page.
About Child Nutrition Reauthorization:
The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act authorizes all of the federal child nutrition programs, including the School Breakfast, National School Lunch, Child and Adult Care Food, Summer Food Service, and the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Programs and WIC. These programs provide funding to ensure that low-income children have access to healthy and nutritious foods where they live, play, and learn. Congress reviews these programs through the reauthorization process.
The child nutrition programs touch the lives of millions of low-income children each day, and reauthorization provides an opportunity to improve and strengthen these programs. Research demonstrates the ability of the child nutrition programs to improve educational achievement, economic security, nutrition and health.

​http://frac.org/leg-act-center/cnr-priorities/