School Nutrition Association Legislative Action Conference

President Obama proposed an additional $1 billion for Child Nutrition Reauthorization to eliminate childhood hunger and serve our children. SNA believes every penny of this increase – and more – is needed to make additional improvements in child nutrition programs. Therefore, SNA urges Congress to increase funding for child nutrition. SNA’s priorities for Reauthorization include:

TOP PRIORITIES

·Expand the “free” meal category from 130% of poverty to 185%, consistent with the WIC income eligibility guidelines (eliminating the reduced price meal category).
·Increase the per meal reimbursement for all meals in order to keep pace with rising costs and implementation of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The current Federal reimbursement of $2.68 for a “free” school lunch is 35 cents less than the average cost of production.
·Require the Secretary to establish a consistent national application of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, for all reimbursable meals, in accordance with recommendations of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which benefited from SNA’s Recommendations for National Nutrition Standards.
·Grant the Secretary the statutory authority to regulate the sale of all foods and beverages on the school campus, consistent with the most recent edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, in accordance with SNA’s Recommendations for National Nutrition Standards and the recommendations of IOM (ending the “time and place” rule).
·Require the Secretary to determine which school expenses and indirect costs can be paid for with school food service funds.

Click here to register:
http://www.schoolnutrition.org/Level2_LAC2010.aspx?id=13204