Post by bot on May 22, 2016 16:48:55 GMT -5
Hoyer Statement on Letter Expressing Concerns with House Child Nutrition Bill
WASHINGTON, DC — House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today after joining 111 House Democrats in sending a letter to House leaders urging them to strengthen nutrition programs in the Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016. The letter, which can be found here, was led by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03); Rep. Barbara Lee, Chair of the Democratic Whip Task Force on Poverty, Income Inequality, and Opportunity (CA-13); and Tony Cárdenas (CA-29):
“I’m proud to join my colleagues in calling on House leaders to strengthen nutrition programs as they advance a child nutrition reauthorization bill. The Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016, introduced by House Republicans, makes significant changes to key provisions of the program, including the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer (Summer EBT) program, and the school meals verification process, that would make it harder for children, especially low-income children and children of color, to access school meal programs. Additionally, I am deeply concerned that the bill would roll back important nutrition standards put in place when we passed a bipartisan reauthorization in 2010.
“Thirty-one million students rely on nutrition assistance programs, and Congress has a responsibility to ensure that these children have access to nutritious, balanced meals. Unfortunately, the changes proposed in the misnamed Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016 would cause more children to go hungry. I urge House Republicans to work with Democrats to make meaningful reforms that improve access to school nutrition programs and ensure that our nation’s children can maximize their educational potential.”