[House Hearing, 117 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
EXAMINING THE POLICIES AND PRIORITIES
OF THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE'S
FOOD AND NUTRITION SERVICE
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON
CIVIL RIGHTS AND
HUMAN SERVICES
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
HEARING HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, MAY 12, 2021
__________
Serial No. 117-13
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Education and Labor
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available via: edlabor.house.gov or www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
44-533 PDF WASHINGTON : 2022
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR
ROBERT C. ``BOBBY'' SCOTT, Virginia, Chairman
RAUL M. GRIJALVA, Arizona VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina,
JOE COURTNEY, Connecticut Ranking Member
GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO SABLAN, JOE WILSON, South Carolina
Northern Mariana Islands GLENN THOMPSON, Pennsylvania
FREDERICA S. WILSON, Florida TIM WALBERG, Michigan
SUZANNE BONAMICI, Oregon GLENN GROTHMAN, Wisconsin
MARK TAKANO, California ELISE M. STEFANIK, New York
ALMA S. ADAMS, North Carolina RICK W. ALLEN, Georgia
MARK De SAULNIER, California JIM BANKS, Indiana
DONALD NORCROSS, New Jersey JAMES COMER, Kentucky
PRAMILA JAYAPAL, Washington RUSS FULCHER, Idaho
JOSEPH D. MORELLE, New York FRED KELLER, Pennsylvania
SUSAN WILD, Pennsylvania GREGORY F. MURPHY, North Carolina
LUCY Mc BATH, Georgia MARIANNETTE MILLER-MEEKS, Iowa
JAHANA HAYES, Connecticut BURGESS OWENS, Utah
ANDY LEVIN, Michigan BOB GOOD, Virginia
ILHAN OMAR, Minnesota LISA C. Mc CLAIN, Michigan
HALEY M. STEVENS, Michigan DIANA HARSHBARGER, Tennessee
TERESA LEGER FERNANDEZ, New Mexico MARY E. MILLER, Illinois
MONDAIRE JONES, New York VICTORIA SPARTZ, Indiana
KATHY E. MANNING, North Carolina SCOTT FITZGERALD, Wisconsin
FRANK J. MRVAN, Indiana MADISON CAWTHORN, North Carolina
JAMAAL BOWMAN, New York, Vice-Chair MICHELLE STEEL, California
MARK POCAN, Wisconsin JULIA LETLOW, Louisiana
JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas Vacancy
MIKIE SHERRILL, New Jersey
JOHN A. YARMUTH, Kentucky
ADRIANO ESPAILLAT, New York
KWEISI MFUME, Maryland
Veronique Pluviose, Staff Director
Cyrus Artz, Minority Staff Director
------
SUBCOMMITTEE ON CIVIL RIGHTS AND HUMAN SERVICES
SUZANNE BONAMICI, Oregon, Chairwoman
ALMA S. ADAMS, North Carolina RUSS FULCHER, Idaho, Ranking
JAHANA HAYES, Connecticut Member
TERESA LEGER FERNANDEZ, New Mexico GLENN THOMPSON, Pennsylvania
FRANK J. MRVAN, Indiana LISA C. Mc CLAIN, Michigan
JAMAAL BOWMAN, New York VICTORIA SPARTZ, Indiana
KWEISI MFUME, Maryland SCOTT FITZGERALD, Wisconsin
ROBERT C. ``BOBBY'' SCOTT, Virginia VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina (ex
(ex officio) officio)
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Hearing held on May 12, 2021..................................... 1
Statement of Members:
Bonamici, Hon. Suzanne, Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Civil
Rights
and Human Services......................................... 1
Prepared statement of.................................... 4
Fulcher, Hon. Russ, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Civil
Rights
and Human Services......................................... 6
Prepared statement of.................................... 7
Statement of Witness:
Dean, Hon. Stacy, Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition,
and
Consumer Services, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Washington, DC............................................. 9
Prepared statement of.................................... 11
Additional Submissions:
Ranking Member Fulcher:
Report: ``Reimagining school meals for a post-pandemic
era.'' AEI............................................. 36
Foxx, Hon. Virginia, a Representative in Congress from the
State of North Carolina:
Prepared statement from the Infant Nutrition Council of
America................................................ 39
Leger Fernandez, Hon. Teresa, a Representative in Congress
from the State of New Mexico:
``Preventing Lunch Shaming: Communication Strategies,''
USDA Fact Sheet........................................ 41
``Unpaid Meal Charges,'' USDA Fact Sheet................. 42
Questions submitted for the record by:
Chairwoman Bonamici...................................... 44
Ranking Member Foxx...................................... 44
Thompson, Hon. Glenn, a Representative in Congress from
the State of Pennsylvania.............................. 45
Responses to questions submitted for the record by:
Deputy Under Secretary Dean.............................. 47
EXAMINING THE POLICIES AND
PRIORITIES OF THE U.S. DEPARTMENT
OF AGRICULTURE'S FOOD AND
NUTRITION SERVICE
----------
Wednesday, May 12, 2021
House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Human Services,
Committee on Education and Labor,
Washington, DC.
The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 12:04 p.m.,
via Zoom, Hon. Suzanne Bonamici (Chairwoman of the
Subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Representatives Bonamaci, Adams, Hayes, Leger
Fernandez, Mrvan, Bowman, Scott, Fulcher, Spartz, Fitzgerald,
and Foxx.
Staff present: Ilana Brunner, General Counsel; Christian
Haines, General Counsel; Alison Hard, Professional Staff;
Sheila Havenner, Director of Information Technology; Eli
Hovland, Policy Associate; Carrie Hughes, Director of Health
and Human Services; Ariel Jona, Policy Associate; Max Moore,
Staff Assistant; Mariah Mowbray, Clerk/Special Assistant to the
Staff Director; Kayla Pennebecker, Staff Assistant; Veronique
Pluviose, Staff Director; Banyon Vassar, Deputy Director of
Information Technology; Cyrus Artz, Minority Staff Director;
Courtney Butcher, Minority Director of Member Services and
Coalitions; Amy Raaf Jones, Minority Director of Education and
Human Resources Policy; Hannah Matesic, Minority Director of
Operations; Chance Russell, Minority Professional Staff Member;
and Mandy Schaumburg, Minority Chief Counsel and Deputy
Director of Education Policy.
Chairwoman Bonamici. The Subcommittee on Civil Rights and
Human Services will come to order.
Welcome, everyone. I note that a quorum is present. The
Subcommittee is meeting today to hear testimony on examining
the policies and priorities of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service.
This is an entirely remote hearing. All microphones will be
kept muted as a general rule to avoid unnecessary background
noise. Members and witnesses will be responsible for unmuting
themselves when they are recognized to speak or when they wish
to seek recognition.
I also ask that members please identify themselves before
they speak. Members should keep their cameras on while in the
proceedings. Members shall be considered present in the
proceeding when they are visible on camera. And they shall be
considered not present when they are not visible on camera. The
only exception to this is if they are experiencing technical
difficulty and inform Committee staff of such difficulties.
If any Member experiences technical difficulties during the
hearing, you should stay connected on the platform, make sure
you are muted, and use your phone to immediately call the
Committee's IT director, whose number was provided in advance.
Should the Chair experience technical difficulty or need to
step away to vote on the floor, Mrs. Hayes, or another majority
Member, is hereby authorized to assume the gavel in the Chair's
absence.
This is an entirely remote hearing and as such the
Committee's hearing room is officially closed. Members who
choose to sit with their individual devices in the hearing room
must wear headphones to avoid feedback echoes and distortion
resulting from more than one person on the software platform
sitting in the same room.
Members are also expected to adhere to social distancing
and safe health guidelines, including the use of masks, hand
sanitizer, and wiping down their areas both before and after
they are present in the hearing room.
To ensure that the Committee's five-minute rule is adhered
to, staff will be keeping track of the time using the
Committee's field timer which appears in its own thumbnail
picture and will be named 001_timer. There will be no one-
minute warning. The field timer will show a blinking light.
When time is up, members and witnesses are asked to wrap up
promptly when their time has expired.
Although a roll call is not necessary to establish a quorum
in an official proceeding conducted remotely or with
participation, the Committee has made it a practice that
whenever there is an official proceeding for remote
participation for the Clerk to call the roll to help make clear
who is present at the proceeding. Members should say their name
before announcing they are present. This helps the Clerk and
also helps those watching the platform on the live-stream who
may experience a few seconds delay.
So at this time, I ask the Clerk to call the roll.
The Clerk. Mrs. Bonamici?
Chairwoman Bonamici. Chair Bonamici is present.
The Clerk. Ms. Adams?
Ms. Adams. Adams is present.
The Clerk. Mrs. Hayes?
Mrs. Hayes. Present.
The Clerk. Ms. Leger Fernandez?
Ms. Leger Fernandez. Leger Fernandez is present.
The Clerk. Mr. Mrvan?
Mr. Mrvan. Frank Mrvan is present.
The Clerk. Mr. Bowman?
[No response]
The Clerk. Mr. Mfume?
[No response]
The Clerk. Mr. Scott?
Mr. Scott. Present.
The Clerk. Ranking Member Fulcher?
Mr. Fulcher. Fulcher is present.
The Clerk. Mr. Thompson?
[No response]
The Clerk. Mrs. McClain?
[No response]
The Clerk. Mrs. Spartz?
[No response]
The Clerk. Mr. Fitzgerald?
Mr. Fitzgerald. Here.
The Clerk. Mrs. Foxx?
Ms. Foxx. Here.
The Clerk. Chair Bonamici, that concludes roll call.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you.
Pursuant to Committee Rule 8(c) we are going to do opening
statements, which are limited to the Chair and Ranking Member.
This allows us to hear from our witness sooner and provides all
members with adequate time to ask questions.
I recognize myself now for the purpose of making an opening
statement. I want to start by thanking the Committee and
personnel staff for their work on this Subcommittee hearing. We
are holding this hearing today to learn about and discuss the
Biden administration's priorities for Federal child nutrition
programs and the steps we should take to prevent children and
families from going hungry during the pandemic and beyond. I
want to thank Deputy Under Secretary Dean for being with us
today.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented number of
children across the country to go hungry. Widespread school
closures, combined with the economic crisis created a nightmare
scenario in which hunger among children and families surged to
unprecedented levels.
Even before the pandemic, too many children did not have
access to healthy food. In 2018, nearly one in every seven
households with children struggled to put enough food on the
table. Unfortunately just weeks into the pandemic, more than
one in every three households with children, and nearly half of
all mothers with young children struggled with food insecurity.
By mid-July, as many as 17 million children were not
getting enough to eat because their families could not afford
it. I will say that again, less than a year ago, nearly 17
million children were not getting enough to eat. This crisis
has been far worse for the families, many of them families of
color who were already food insecure when the pandemic started.
During the early stages of the pandemic, both Black and Latinx
families experienced food insecurity at twice the rate of White
families. These numbers should alarm all of us. Children who go
hungry are far more vulnerable to chronic health challenges and
without access to healthy food children struggle to build the
foundation they need to learn, grow, and lead a fulfilling
life.
Last year, Congress acted swiftly to expand access to
nutrition assistance as schools across the country closed. One
of the first relief packages, the Families First Coronavirus
Response Act gave the USDA critical flexibility to allow
schools and community partners to deliver meals to families and
offer free meals to all children through the Summer Food
Service Program.
Families First also included bipartisan legislation I led
to eliminate other barriers to providing nutrition assistance.
The bill also created the pandemic EBT program or P-EBT so low-
income families who could not physically get to school meal
sites could still receive funding to help feed their children.
I have visited with the dedicated staff at Aloha-Huber Park
Elementary School and Hayhurst elementary school in Northwest
Oregon. I spoke with the administrators. I spoke with the staff
and the families about how these programs helped meet the needs
of students and families. These investments have made a
significant difference for families in Oregon and across the
country.
Research indicates that P-EBT has lifted as many as 3.9
million children out of hunger. And recent reporting indicates
that the share of Americans struggling with hunger is now at
its lowest level since the pandemic started. Despite our
progress, we know that too many children are still going to bed
hungry. But the clear lesson from our successful efforts to
bolster nutrition assistance programs is that when we provide
people in need with relief, they use those resources to feed
their families.
Fortunately, the American Jobs Plan includes important
investments in school kitchens and the American Families Plan
would invest $33 billion in our Federal child nutrition
programs. We should swiftly advance these bills.
The American Families Plan also makes permanent and
nationwide the summer EBT program, which already provides the
assistance to families during the summer months. This program
will help feed children across the country at a time when they
are not getting healthy school meals.
The package also expands the popular Community Eligibility
Provision or CEP. This expansion would feed roughly 9.3 million
more children by making them eligible for preschool meals.
Moving forward, the Committee must also update the
underlying laws that authorize our Federal child nutrition
programs. They have been expired since 2015. The last child
nutrition reauthorization, which Congress passed in 2010, with
bipartisan support, dramatically expanded access to child
nutrition programs. We should work together again to renew
these critical laws. This hearing is an opportunity to examine
these steps with Deputy Under Secretary Dean and to consider
the future of child nutrition as we recover from the pandemic.
How will our five or 10-year outlook change if we confront the
child hunger crisis now?
I look forward to discussing these issues and the work we
have ahead to make sure that all children in this country can
access the healthy foods they need to thrive.
Thank you again to Deputy Under Secretary Dean for being
with us today.
And I now want to turn to Ranking Member Fulcher to make an
opening statement.
[The prepared statement of Chairwoman Bonamici follows:]
Statement of Hon. Suzanne Bonamici, Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Civil
Rights and Human Services
We are holding this hearing, today, to learn about and discuss the
Biden administration's priorities for Federal child nutrition programs
and the steps we should take to prevent children and families from
going hungry during this pandemic and beyond. I want to thank Deputy
Under Secretary Dean for being with us today.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented number of
children across the country to go hungry. Widespread school closures
combined with the economic crisis created a nightmare scenario in which
hunger among children and families surged to unprecedented levels.
Even before the pandemic, too many children did not have access to
healthy food. In 2018, nearly 1 in every 7 households with children
struggled to put enough food on the table.
Unfortunately, just weeks into the pandemic, more than 1 in every 3
households with children and nearly half of all mothers with young
children struggled with food insecurity.
By mid-July, as many as 17 million children were not getting enough
to eat because their families could not afford it. I will say that
again: less than a year ago, nearly 17 million children were not
getting enough to eat.
This crisis has been far worse for the families--many of them
families of color--who were already food insecure when the pandemic
started. During the early stages of the pandemic, both Black and Latinx
families experienced food insecurity at twice the rate of White
families.
These numbers should alarm all of us. Children who go hungry are
far more vulnerable to chronic health challenges. And, without access
to healthy food, children struggle to build the foundation they need to
learn, grow, and lead a fulfilling life.
Last year, Congress acted swiftly to expand access to nutrition
assistance as schools across the country closed.
One of the first relief packages--the Families First Coronavirus
Response Act--gave the USDA critical flexibility to allow schools and
community partners to deliver meals to families and offer free meals to
all children through the Summer Food Service Program.
Families First also included bipartisan legislation I led to
eliminate other barriers to providing nutrition assistance.
The bill also created the Pandemic EBT program, or P-EBT, so that
low-income families, who could not physically get to school meal sites,
could still receive funding to help feed their children.
I have visited with the dedicated staff at Aloha-Huber Park
Elementary School and Hayhurst Elementary School in northwest Oregon. I
spoke with the administrators. I spoke with the staff and the families
about how these program help meet the needs of students and families.
These investments have made a significant difference for families
in Oregon and across the country. Research indicates that P-EBT has
lifted as many as 3.9 million children out of hunger. And recent
reporting indicates that the share of Americans struggling with hunger
is now at its lowest level since the pandemic started.
Despite our progress, we know too many children are still going to
bed hungry. But the clear lesson from our successful efforts to bolster
nutrition assistance programs is that, when we provide people in need
with relief, they use those resources to feed their families.
Fortunately, the American Jobs Plan includes important investments
in school kitchens and the American Families Plan would invest $43
billion in our Federal child nutrition programs.
We should swiftly advance these bills.
The American Families Plan also makes permanent and nationwide the
Summer EBT program, which already provides food assistance to some
families during the summer months. This program will feed children
across the country at a time when they are not getting healthy school
meals.
The package also expands the popular Community Eligibility
Provision, or CEP. This expansion would feed roughly 9.3 million more
children by making them eligible for free school meals.
Moving forward, the Committee must also update the underlying laws
that authorize our Federal child nutrition programs. They have been
expired since 2015. The last child nutrition reauthorization, which
Congress passed in 2010 with bipartisan support, dramatically expanded
access to child nutrition programs. We should work together again to
renew these critical laws.
This hearing is an opportunity to examine these steps with Deputy
Under Secretary Dean and consider the future of child nutrition as we
recover from the pandemic. How will our 5 or 10-year outlook change if
we confront the child hunger crisis now?
I look forward to discussing these questions and the work we have
ahead to make sure that all children in this country can access the
healthy food they need to thrive.
______
Mr. Fulcher. Thank you, Madam Chair.
School meal program is one of the most important programs
this Committee oversees. If students are hungry, they don't
learn. If they don't learn, they don't succeed in school. This
impacts their prospects for a successful careers as adults. As
I dig into this issue and hear more from my constituents on
these programs, the best thing we can do is ensure this program
works up and down the pipeline for those it is intended to
serve.
When I say up and down the pipeline, I mean from production
to consumption. Our Nation's parents, farmers, ranchers, food
producers, school districts, and school nutrition experts all
play a critical role in the success of these programs. It is
our job as elected officials to make sure the program aligns
with what parents approve of and what farmers can produce to
ensure we are able to by healthy, safe, and tasty food for
students, and maintain requirements that are easily implemented
in real school settings. If the standards are unattainable or
overly complicated, the program will fail.
Nutrition officials from school districts around my State
tell me one of the challenges they face while striving to put
together nutritional, enjoyable choices for students is
following the unclear, complicated Federal rules. To that
point, let me quickly discuss the sodium targets in the current
regulations. I will chalk this up as a noble goal that doesn't
fairly account for the reality on the ground. Under target two
of the sodium requirements, grades K through 5 can have no more
than 935 milligrams of sodium for lunch.
If target three is enacted, sodium would be reduced to 640
milligrams. The American Heart Association released a sample
menu of what further reducing the sodium might look like. Not
surprising, the meals become far less appealing. To meet its
target three sodium requirements, schools must eliminate the
cheese from a cheeseburger, nix the pickles, and trade the
potatoes for carrots. Does a plain hamburger patty with no
condiments, no bun, and a side of carrots sound enticing to any
of us, much less a school age child? Hardly.
Pushing for standards that don't meet the reality on the
ground will accomplish nothing because kids simply won't eat
the food. While schools have done an unbelievable job of
working to implement the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act Standards
since they went into effect, serving more fruits, vegetables,
whole grains and less fat, calories, and sodium than ever
before, the final sodium targets are unworkable given the other
requirements they must meet when serving meals. One cannot cram
idealism into lunch programs and pretend the problem is solved.
The so-called American Families Plan includes a vague
program proposal that gives $1 billion to groups that push
unworkable school meal standards. Before we create a new
expensive program that could so confuse and burden schools, we
should assess our existing programs, look at how they can be
adopted to meet their intended goals.
One issue that deserves a closer look is nutrition
education. How can we support local schools as they work with
families to promote better nutrition? For example, how can we
utilize programs like Team Nutrition, farm to school, and
others to spark student interest to help them take what they
learned about food production, food business, and food
preparation and share it at home? What kind of partnerships
with grocers, farmers, and others can we look at to close the
circle to help support healthy eating at home? These are
questions we should consider as we thoughtfully reauthorize
this program.
As we look toward reauthorization, Congress must understand
what the school meal program will look like in the coming
school years with the changes that come from the new COVID and
health related issues such as a meal service or food
preparation.
I am glad to see the Secretary provided some certainty for
schools in the upcoming school and school year as they reopen
to determine how to serve meals to students. However, if we
limit our reauthorization efforts to the status quo, we hinder
the ability of schools to provide healthy, tasty meals to
students.
There are many more programs I could touch on today, but
this is just the beginning of the reauthorization process. And
I appreciate Deputy Under Secretary for joining. I would be
remiss if I did not mention it is unfortunate that this is not
a full Committee hearing, as I think a reauthorization such as
this deserves the full Committee's attention. Nonetheless, I
look forward to hearing your testimony.
Madam Chair, I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Fulcher follows:]
Statement of Hon. Russ Fulcher, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Civil
Rights and Human Services
The school meal program is one of the most important programs this
Committee ov ersees. If students are hungry, they don't learn. If they
don't learn they don't succeed in school. This impacts their prospects
for a successful career as adults. As I dig into this issue and hear
more from my constituents on these programs, the best thing we can do
is ensure this program works up and down the pipeline for those it's
intended to serve.
When I say up and down the pipeline, I mean from production to
consumption. Our nation's parents, farmers, ranchers, food producers,
school districts, and school nutrition experts all play a critical role
in the success of these programs. It is our job as elected officials to
make sure the program aligns with what parents approve of and what
farmers can produce, to ensure we are able to buy healthy, safe, and
tasty food for students, and maintain requirements that are easily
implemented in real school settings. If the standards are unattainable
or overly complicated the program will fail. Nutrition officials from
school districts around my State tell me one of the challenges they
face while striving to put together nutritional and enjoyable choices
for students is following the unclear, complicated Federal rules.
To that point, let me quickly discuss the sodium targets in the
current regulations. I'll chalk this up to a noble goal that doesn't
thoroughly account for the reality on the ground. Under Target Two of
the sodium requirements, grades K-5 can have no more than 935 mg of
sodium per lunch. If Target Three is enacted, sodium would be reduced
to 640 mg. The American Heart Association released a sample menu of
what further reducing the sodium might look like. Not surprising, the
meals become far less appealing. To meet Target Three sodium
requirements, schools must eliminate the cheese from a cheeseburger,
nix the pickles, and trade the potatoes for carrots. Does a plain
hamburger patty with no condiments, no bun, and a side of carrots sound
enticing to any of us, much less a school-age child? Hardly.
Pushing for standards that don't meet the reality on the ground
will accomplish nothing because kids simply won't eat the food. While
schools have done an unbelievable job of working to implement the
Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act standards since they went into effect--
serving more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and less fat,
calories, and sodium than ever before--the final sodium targets are
unworkable given the other requirements they must meet when serving
meals. One cannot cram idealism into the lunch programs and pretend the
problem is solved.
The so-called `American Families Plan' includes a vague program
proposal that gives $1 billion to groups that push unworkable school
meal standards. Before we create a new, expensive program that could
sow confusion that burdens schools, we should assess our existing
programs and look at how they can be adapted to meet their intended
goals.
One issue that deserves a closer look is nutrition education. How
can we support local schools as they work with families to promote
better nutrition? For example, how can we utilize programs like Team
Nutrition, Farm to School, and others to spark student interest to help
them take what they learn about food production, food business, and
food preparation and share it at home? What kind of partnerships with
grocers, farmers, and others can we look at to close the circle to help
support healthy eating at home? These are the questions we should
consider as we thoughtfully reauthorize this program.
As we look toward reauthorization, Congress must understand what
the school meal program will look like in the coming school years with
the changes that come from new COVID and health-related issues, such as
meal service or food preparation. I am glad to see the Secretary
provided some certainty for schools in the upcoming summer and school
year as they reopen and determine how to serve meals to students.
However, if we limit our reauthorization efforts to the status quo, we
hinder the ability of schools to provide healthy, tasty meals to
students.
There are many more programs I could touch on today, but this is
just the beginning of the reauthorization process and I appreciate the
Deputy Under Secretary for joining us. I would be remiss if I did not
mention it is unfortunate that this is not a full committee hearing as
I think a reauthorization such as this deserves the full committee's
attention. Nonetheless, I look forward to hearing her testimony.
______
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you, Ranking Member Fulcher.
Without objection, all other Member who wish to insert
written statements into the record may do so by submitting them
to the Committee Clerk electronically in Microsoft Word format
by 5 p.m. on May 26, 2021.
I will now introduce the witness. Stacy Dean was appointed
by President Biden to serve as the deputy undersecretary for
USDA's Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services where she will
work to advance the President's agenda on increasing nutrition
assistance for struggling families and individuals as well as
tackling systemic racism and barriers for opportunity that have
denied so many the chance to get ahead.
Prior to joining President Biden's team at USDA, Dean
served as the vice president for food assistance policy at the
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, CBPP. She directed
CBPP's food assistance team which published frequent reports on
how Federal nutrition programs affect families and communities
and developed policies to improve them. We appreciate the
witness for participating today and look forward to your
testimony.
Let me remind you that we have read your written statement
and it will appear in full in the hearing record. Pursuant to
Committee Rule 8(b) and Committee practice you are asked to
limit your oral presentation to a five-minute summary of your
written statement.
Before you begin your testimony, please remember to unmute
your microphone. During your testimony, staff will be keeping
track of time and a light will blink when time is up. Please be
attentive to the time. And wrap up when your time is over and
remute your microphone.
And as I explained before the hearing began, I am going to
be a little lenient with Deputy Under Secretary Dean in terms
of timing as she is the only witness today. But I will be
pretty strict about the five minutes just so that we can get
through everybody's questions.
If you experience any technical difficulties during your
testimony or later in the hearing, you should stay connected on
the platform. Make sure you are muted and use your phone to
call the Committee's IT department at the number provided in
advance.
We will let the witness make the presentation before we
move to Member questions. When answering a question, please
remember to unmute your microphone. And the witness is aware of
her responsibility to provide accurate information to the
Subcommittee. And therefore, we will proceed with her
testimony.
And I now recognize Deputy Under Secretary Dean.
STATEMENT OF HON. STACY DEAN, DEPUTY UNDER
SECRETARY FOR FOOD, NUTRITION, AND CONSUMER
SERVICES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,
WASHINGTON, DC
Ms. Dean. Thank you, Madam Chair, Mr. Ranking Member, and
Subcommittee members. I am Stacy Dean, USDA's deputy
undersecretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services. And
I really appreciate the opportunity to speak with you about
USDA's child nutrition and WIC programs today.
I also want to begin by acknowledging what a harrowing year
it has been for families with children. At the peak last
December, nearly one in seven households and more than one in
six households with children reported not having enough to eat.
Fortunately, the collective efforts of Congress and the
administration, including the American Rescue Plan, have
delivered help which has brought meaningful reductions in
reported food insecurity.
But even the latest reports show that about one in nine
households with children reported food hardship. With rates
more than twice as high among Black and Hispanic households as
compared to White households. It is imperative that we work
together to continue to reduce food hardship and improve
nutrition security. And in that vein, I would like to share a
few of our key priorities.
First, we are proposing to make nationwide summer EBT
permanent. Too many children face the summer hunger gap, but we
know how to solve this problem. The results from our summer EBT
pilot study shows that providing low-income families with
resources to purchase nutritious food during the summer
improves children's food insecurity and diet quality.
I applaud your foresight for extending P-EBT into the
summer during the months of the pandemic. For the first time,
children eligible for free and reduced priced meals nationwide
will receive EBT cards in the summer to help address the summer
hunger problems.
But summer hunger problem won't disappear when the pandemic
ends. That is why the family plan invests over $25 billion in a
permanent nationwide summer EBT, providing $75 per low-income
child per month for food. This is an evidence-based approach
that would bring forward and cement this effective anti-hunger
policy.
Second, we are proposing to expand the reach of the school
meal environment in high need schools. The community
eligibility provision allows high poverty schools to offer all
meals at no charge to their students. This increases student
participation in the program and allows schools to focus on
serving healthy nutritious meals instead of paperwork.
The successful option was before the pandemic in over
30,000 schools with nearly 15 million children. The families
plan would allow more high poverty schools into the option,
this would focus on elementary schools. It would also expand
direct enrollment into school meals for children already
participating in Medicaid and SSI, easing paperwork for parents
that have already taken pains to prove their children's income
eligibility.
Together, this $17 billion investment would enable an
additional 20,000 schools in high poverty areas that serve more
than 9 million children to begin providing all meals free of
charge.
Third, we will continue to improve nutrition security
through the child nutrition and WIC programs. Today, one in
five American children are obese, increasing their risk of
adult obesity and nutrition related health conditions, as well
as potential financial burdens on our healthcare system.
Evidence shows that strong nutrition standards make an
important difference. WIC research shows not only a powerful
impact on first outcomes, but also that the updated food
package standards helped to improve weight status in young
children.
Now some controversy around the implementation of some
school meal standards has somewhat explored the huge strides in
making meals healthier over the past decade. A USDA study found
that under the new standards school meals include more
vegetables, whole grains, and dairy, and less refined grains
and empty calories than before. With improvements experienced
across racial and socioeconomic groups, which is great news for
our children's health.
School meals are the healthiest eating environment in the
country and that is the success we should go on. We will
continue these gains by setting and maintaining strong
evidence-based standards, but we will pair them with realistic
and achievable timelines for reaching them, and with the
support schools need to serve nutritious meals that kids enjoy.
The families plan also includes $1 billion to help schools
expand healthy offerings beyond their required standards and to
test and evaluate strategies for encouraging healthy
lifestyles. This would support local innovation to enhance
school food environments.
Fourth, we will increase access to WIC with the goal of
improving maternal and child health across racial and ethnic
lines. The share of eligible families receiving WIC student
benefits has declined to only about 50 percent. We will invest
the $390 million Congress provided through the rescue plan in
robust outreach to reach more eligible, as well as grants to
support efforts to improve WIC service through equity and
reduce health disparities.
And last, let me flag that we are very aware that the
Committee will be working on the President's proposal for
historic investments in childcare for working families. We hope
to work with you on how these proposals can leverage our highly
successful Child and Adult Care Food Program to reach new
childcare providers.
This nutrition program supports high quality care by
providing nutritious meals to our youngest children. So of
course the list I have just provided doesn't cover all of the
advancements that we hope to make and that I expect you will be
considering. So I look forward it our conversation today and
our ongoing work together.
Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Dean follows:]
Prepared Statement of Stacy Dean
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you for your testimony. And now
under Committee Rule 9(a), we will question the witness under
the five-minute rule.
I will be recognizing Subcommittee members in seniority
order. Again to ensure the five-minute rule is adhered to,
staff will keep track of the time, and the timer will shine a
light when the time has expired. Please be attentive to the
time. Wrap up when your time is over and remute your
microphone.
As Chair, I recognize myself for five minutes. And Under
Secretary Dean, I have three questions, so I am going to State
them all now and then give you time to respond.
First under the Trump administration Oregon was removed
from the summer EBT demonstration program. I am grateful that
the Biden administration has proposed making summer EBT
nationwide and permanent. What will this policy mean to
families who will now be able to rely on help with groceries
during the summer?
The second question is in the American Rescue Plan
President Biden laid out key investments in childcare. Our
Committee recently heard testimony from Mr. Rasheed Malik, an
early childhood policy expert who emphasized the importance of
the Child and Adult Care Food Program. So what improvements
could Congress make to CACFP to better support the childcare
infrastructure? Do you agree with Mr. Malik and with me that
CACFP should provide reimbursement for a third meal to children
in full daycare?
And then finally, the WIC Farmers' Market Nutrition Program
provides a great opportunity to connect pregnant women and
young children to healthy local produce. And it also supports
our farmers. What flexibilities did the families first to
coronavirus act provide to WIC FMNP? And how can the program
operate most effectively moving forward?
And I am going to give you the rest of the time to respond.
Ms. Dean. Well, thank you for that. All right. That is a
list all right. So let's begin with summer EBT. You asked me
what the impact of the national program having would be and I
would say first, to respond to your example about Oregon,
States will no longer have to apply to be part of a demo that
is very limited and typically sub-State. This will be a
nationwide policy that will apply to what in 2019 would have
been 29 million children.
Which means every State and every family can count on these
benefits. And I think that is the most critical aspect. It is
also evidence based. We know this worked to reduce child food
insecurity by a third and we have more recent evidence from the
Brookings Institution that also shows that these benefits make
a core difference. So I think I will just stop there because I
think that is incredibly powerful in terms of what we will be
able to do with respect to summer hunger.
On your CACFP question, I am so excited about the
President's proposed investment in childcare, and particularly
excited about the role CACFP can play. As you know, CACFP is an
entitlement program so it will be allowed to flex as childcare
grows and we see more providers in the system. We know CACFP
can connect with them. But and I think your bill is a perfect
demonstration of this there is a lot we can do to simplify the
program and make it more appealing to providers.
So you have ideas around extending connecting--the
enrollment of the--sorry, the providers that are in reducing
paperwork. We think those are all terrific changes. And we want
to make sure that we are reaching out to all new providers to
connect them.
I think your point about adding a third meal is going to be
very important for the Committee to consider, because one of
the reasons we want to see these investments in childcare is so
that parents have a safe secure place for their kids where they
know their kids are well taken care of as they consider job
opportunities. And we don't want a parent to have to forego a
job where they might need an extra hour or two on the job if
they are worried that their kids won't have supper. So I think
it is a terrific proposal. And I hope the Committee will
support it.
All right. Let me keep going. WIC farmers markets, it is a
wonderful program. And we did need flexibilities in the past
year and appreciated the ability to offer those. An example of
one was when we had new farmers markets wanting to come on
board that they were able to do for example remote training, so
that things didn't have to be in person. And I think that is
just a key takeaway from this past year.
And in fact, we see here in this Committee hearing there is
a lot of work we can do and a lot of providers that we can
reach now with using alternatives to exclusively in person. And
I think that is the key learning we want to bring forward. And
with the WIC 390 fund that we are calling per the investments
on the rescue plan, making sure that we are bringing along with
farmers market as an expanded resource to our WIC participants
will be a key part of what we are doing.
So I hope that got to your questions.
Chairwoman Bonamici. You did answer all of my questions
with a couple of seconds to spare. Thank you very much.
It is my understanding that the Ranking Member of the full
Committee, Dr. Foxx, will be next for five minutes.
Ranking Member Foxx, I recognize you for five minutes for
your questions.
Ms. Foxx. Thank you, Madam Chairman.
Ms. Dean, thank you for coming today. The last 15 months
have demonstrated the power of communities stepping up to help
their neighbors and friends. And the Trump administration
implemented the waiver authority granted to it to help ensure
all students continue to have access to food.
We also know that there are some changes that will continue
after all students are back in school. And we want the students
to be back in school, obviously. Can you briefly tell us about
some of the changes that will continue in the school meal
program focusing on service and preparations?
Ms. Dean. Thank you, Congresswoman Foxx for that question.
You point out one the core flexibilities that the Secretary
wanted to be sure that schools had is that while we absolutely
want all students back, and as a parent I can underscore that,
we aren't completely certain of what the public health
requirements will be for congregate feeding.
So will students be able to be in the cafeteria together or
spacing apart or might they need to be served lunch in the
classroom? So one of the core flexibilities that we are
offering is the ability to serve meals in a non-congregate
environment.
We want schools to be able to pivot and flex for
circumstances as they unfold and as they may be specific to
their communities.
So I hope that answers your question.
Ms. Foxx. So I am imagining, I have been in schools lots of
times where the students have picked up their lunches and taken
them back into the classroom. So I am assuming that is one of
the flexibilities that they might have.
Ms. Dean. Absolutely.
Ms. Foxx. OK. OK. So given some of these changes, I agree
with my colleague, Mr. Fulcher, who said reauthorizing to the
old way of doing things is not responsible legislating. We need
to understand how these changes are working, what challenges
schools are facing, how students are adapting to them.
I hope the USDA will keep an open mind and listen to what
is working and what is not before cementing any requirements in
the law and regulations. Ms. Dean, will you commit to ensuring
USDA will work with us to include changes for the future and
not just focus on old positions and understanding of how the
program works in the schools.
Ms. Dean. You absolutely have my commitment that we want to
work with this Committee on child nutrition policy.
Ms. Foxx. Great. I am in the classrooms and cafeterias when
I am in schools, and I am in schools a good bit. And I talk to
the people working in the cafeteria. They are just among the
most dedicated people in the world.
So are you making a commitment to have this program work in
the future with the professionals on the ground? And those
almost all women who work in those cafeterias and food service
really want to do good for the students.
So will you commit to collaborating, consulting, and
working with the doers in this program, those people serving
the food, preparing the food to help ensure it works for
students, schools, and program partners.
Ms. Dean. Yes, absolutely. And that is not just for with
respect to the standards that we will be updating and setting,
but also
[inaudible] implementation. This enterprise has a lot of
different players. First and foremost are those incredible as
you say women on the ground that are preparing, serving meals
every day.
Ms. Foxx. Right. You mentioned earlier evidence based. That
is a nice code word we hear a lot. But I am very interested in
accountability. I asked the hardworking taxpayers to give up
their money to bureaucrats in the Federal Government. And what
they want is to know their money is being spent well.
So what accountability measures are you putting in place to
show that the summer programs particularly are having the
desired effect of ensuring that students are getting meals that
they need?
Ms. Dean. Well, that is a terrific question. I think just
first let me say the evidence is based off a very robust
research evaluation that was done several years ago. But as we
move forward, for establishing this program through the
American Families Plan, they have the opportunity to work
together to ensure the appropriate accountability.
So I look forward to working with your office on that as
the Committee develops the final details of the summer EBT
program.
Ms. Foxx. Well, we will be back in touch with you with some
suggestions on how we think the accountability should be
developed. Thank you very much.
And I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. And thank you Dr. Foxx.
I next recognize Dr. Adams for five minutes for your
questions.
Ms. Adams. Thank you, Chair Bonamici, and Ranking Member
Fulcher for hosting the hearing today. And thank you to our
witness, Under Secretary Dean for your testimony.
This is an incredibly important topic. Hunger in our
country has increased substantially during the COVID-19
pandemic. And thanks to the work of our Committee on pandemic
relief over the past year and President Biden and Under
Secretary Dean's work implementing the important anti-hunger
policies, the number of Americans struggling with hunger is now
at its lowest level since the pandemic began. However, we have
a lot of work to do.
Ms. Dean, we know that healthy school meals are critical to
children's health and academic achievement, but we also know
that school nutrition staff need support to create meals that
are healthy and enjoyable for children and to help children
develop healthy habits. And the American Families Plan the
Biden administration proposed a billion dollars to provide
additional support and incentives for schools to create a
healthy school nutrition environment.
My question to you is why is this additional funding
important? And what are some examples of ways that schools
could use the proposed funding?
Ms. Dean. Well, thanks for asking me that. I think we are
looking to spark that local innovation that several of you have
already spoken about. Let's say for example and let me be
clear, we do want to work with the Committee on establishing
what the standards would be for qualifying for these additional
funds.
So it might be exceeding the standards, say with respect to
one of the limits. It might be more physical activity. It might
be thinking about an innovative way to integrate nutrition
education, as the Ranking Member mentioned, into the core
curriculum.
We have several ideas, but I think we want to hear from our
school group leaders about what they think would spark the most
innovation and of course from you all about the areas where we
can drive change with some financial incentives.
Ms. Adams. Right. Thank you. We know that WIC is critical
to improving maternal and infant health outcomes. And I
appreciate the fact that the Biden administration has made WIC
a key piece of its agenda to prevent maternal mortality,
particularly for Black, indigenous, and other women of color.
So can you speak to some of the specific projects that your
agency is working on to improve access to WIC and to help it
play a bigger role in preventing maternal mortality?
Ms. Dean. Yes. Thank you for that question. So our
fundamental goal is to connect more eligible families to WIC
because it has proven benefits with respect to birth outcomes
and basic child development, basic health, and development for
young kids.
So we need to connect more eligibles. We want to improve
the participants experience, potentially using a technology as
a means to streamline and make it easier to enroll, as well as
to use benefits. And also see ways that we can streamline
benefit delivery and service.
So for example, more effectively connecting WIC to
participants' healthcare providers so that records could be
exchanged, and we could reduce the cost and time for
participants in the WIC clinic. All of this is oriented around
being a part of the administration's broader goals to address
maternal mortality and core racial disparities there. So we
welcome your ideas on that front.
Ms. Adams. One of the issues we heard about from healthcare
providers who see WIC patients is that the data is not always
shared in an efficient manner between WIC and medical
providers. So, you know, what can we do to facilitate this
exchange of information.
Ms. Dean. Well, that is core to our goals is to make sure
that to the extent participants want that data that they give
their permission that we can make sure that we are sharing back
and forth. And we often hear that families show up at WIC
clinics more frequently sometimes than well baby visits and
this is a key way to get information back to the doctors as
well.
So that is top of mind for us. And we are meeting with HHS,
as well as State health leads so that we can sort out what
barriers stand in our way.
Ms. Adams. Right.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you, Dr. Adams.
Next, I recognize the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee,
Mr. Fulcher, for five minutes for your questions.
Mr. Fulcher. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Ms. Dean, thank you for joining us here today. There is a
lot of stuff that you covered and a lot that we need to cover.
But before I get to questions, I want to just highlight one
issue that I hope is behind us and will remain behind us, and
it is critical a child nutrition programs meet their intended
purpose in that is putting together those rules the agency not
hurt any State industries in those efforts.
A few years ago, you may recall there was an attack on a
white potato. And being from Idaho you might imagine there was
a few people who lost their sense of humor over that. So I hope
that you will maintain the white potato as an allowable under
the school meal and WIC programs.
And moving on to other issues, I think the cost in this
program is also important to discuss. And I will go on record
and say that the reauthorization process I believe should be
budget neutral and focus on targeting benefits to those in
need.
However, I also think it is critical that these programs
not include any unfunded mandates or hidden compliance costs to
the school.
So Ms. Dean, do you recall what the proposed cost of the
meal standards rule was back in 2011.
Ms. Dean. I do not.
Mr. Fulcher. It was over $6 billion. And the final cost
estimate of that wound up being about $3.2 billion. And I will
just add, do you know why it was less than what the proposal
was?
Ms. Dean. No. I welcome you.
Mr. Fulcher. It was because the implementation for the
breakfast requirements was delayed. And so that was supposedly
an attempt to get things healthier, the sodium and fat levels
had been adjusted, but those rules got delayed.
In fact the rule, the actual rule was stated as follows in
the executive summary, most notably this final rule provides an
additional time for implementation of breakfast requirements
and modifies those requirements in a manner that reduces the
estimated cost of breakfast changes as compared to the proposed
rule.
And so as a result, the fine rule estimated at $3.2 billion
over the course of 5 years. And so that was considerably less.
So that just states the true impact of what was going on at
that time.
So just moving on, while the USDA noted other changes to
help offset the cost of these regulations, the school groups
have been very clear. These regulations to added significant
unreimbursed cost do not include the additional cost born by
schools such as labor and compliance costs.
So another question, Ms. Dean, I don't believe it is
acceptable for the Federal Government to put requirements on
schools that add additional compliance costs. And I hope this
time around Secretary Vilsack will commit to limiting the
negative impact on regulations. Will you make that commitment
in terms of those costs on the schools?
Ms. Dean. Well, Mr. Ranking Member, I think the goal of the
standards is to increase the health and quality of food the
kids are eating, and we know that does . We also know that the
vast majority of schools were able to meet the standards. And
so I think with respect to your question we want to consider
costs absolutely, the meal reimbursement.
The meals have to be able to--sorry, meet the cost within
the reimbursement rate. But I am not sure. So I feel like all
of those pieces will come into play as we move forward with
setting the new standards and working on reasonable, feasible
implementation.
Mr. Fulcher. Can I just point out that there truly is a
cost to this, and that cost does not necessarily bear
improvement. And so, that is the point of going down that line
of questioning.
So in your testimony, you highlighted the President's
billion-dollar proposal to create an incentive fund for healthy
foods. Can you just give us a little more detail on how this
proposed program interacts with the current requirements and to
meet the current standards and the regulations? And how can you
ensure this will be voluntary and not overly burdensome?
Ms. Dean. Well, we do intend for it to be voluntary, to put
out an incentive fund for districts. And just let me make sure
I underscore this for you because I am not sure you understood
that it is for districts to give them increased financial
reimbursement if they for example wanted to meet a higher
target with respect to healthy meals, perhaps do something with
respect to increased physical activity, change the way food is
displayed in the lunch line, to put healthier food first.
I think the idea is we want to work with the Committee to
come up with what those innovative practices would be that we
would help incent schools to adopt. And the whole idea here is
to support local innovation and different local approaches with
respect to healthy standards.
Mr. Fulcher. OK. And so, the point I am trying to make is
that please be careful of the burdensome bureaucracy that some
of this can create because we have to put this implementation
on the ground.
And with that, my time is running out. Madam Chair, I yield
back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you so much.
I now recognize Representative Hayes for five minutes for
your questions.
Ms. Hayes. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you Deputy
Under Secretary Dean for being with us today.
This hearing could not come at a more important time. Over
the past year the State of Connecticut and our Nation have
faced a fierce battle with child food insecurity. While the
COVID-19 pandemic put the gaps in our safety nets for parents
and children on full display, it did not create them.
As an educator, I can tell you that 2020 was not the first
time children have gone hungry. Long before the onset of this
pandemic, children in my classroom would put their heads on
their desks because they hadn't had a meal for the day. Mothers
utilizing WIC ran out of benefits mid-month and had to figure
out how to scrape by.
And millions of families who live paycheck to paycheck
lined up weekly at food banks to make sure they had basic
staples in their kitchen. So thank you, Under Secretary Dean
for being here today to discuss this crucial work at USDA to
alleviate food insecurity and for the administration's
prioritization of child nutrition in the American Families
Plan.
First, I would like to focus on the WIC participation. We
know that the WIC program is highly effective at improving
birth outcomes. Yet, we also know that many eligible women,
infant, and children are not participating in this program.
Ms. Dean, what ideas do you have about how to make it
easier for families to participate in WIC? And what supports do
you think that Congress needs to put in place to address this
issue? Also, how can different programs share information to
streamline the process for participation.
Ms. Dean. Well, I will give you two specific examples just
building off of what you just said. So first off, pregnant,
postpartum women, infants, and children who are participating
in Medicaid or SNAP are income eligible for WIC.
So I think it is critical that we not just make it so that
if a participant shows up at a WIC clinic and shows their SNAP
information that they can qualify that we want to actually be
getting aggressive in what we call in reach to household on
SNAP and WIC who qualify for WIC but who are not participating.
That is a group of folks who have self-identified as being at
nutrition risk and in need of help with respect to health
security.
We want to work to connect them over. And I think setting
some cross enrollment standards the way you have done from SNAP
to school meals could really help galvanize attention and focus
on this issue on a State and local level.
And another quick example would be we have very high
participation amongst infants, but we see WIC participation
trail off as the children get older.
So we actually often need to be focusing on retention, not
just outreach to newly eligible. So those are two examples of
things that we would love to work with you on. And we will be
using funds you gave us to spearhead efforts as well.
Mrs. Hayes. Thank you. I am currently working on
legislation to make it easier for families to participate in
WIC and I look forward to working with this administration to
make that a priority.
Summer nutrition programs faces similar participation
problem. In fact, the most recent data available from the USDA,
only one in seven children who are eligible for free meals
through the Summer Food Participation Program actually receive
those meals in the summer. The American Families Plan proposes
making the successful summer EBT pilot program a program in
which families who are eligible for these meal benefits
permanent. Ms. Dean, what impact do you anticipate the
expansion will have on child hunger?
Ms. Dean. Well, the evidence would suggest that it could
reduce child food insecurity by 30 percent to a third. So quite
significant. And that is really the core motivation for doing
this. It is an effective demonstrated approach that we know
will--sorry, we are very confident will reduce child hunger.
Mrs. Hayes. Thank you. I think we hear a lot from people
here about practitioners on the ground. I am an educator by
profession and for 15 years I was in the classroom. I always
had a summer program. We always had summer meals in the
community.
And I can tell you with fidelity the impact that that has
when parents and children were lined up around the corner
before we even opened in the morning because for many of them,
that was the only meal they would get. And at lunchtime those
same families would come back and receive lunch.
So this work is critical. It is important. It is necessary
in our communities. And it is something that I look forward to
partnering with the administration to make sure that our
children are not hungry because it is not their fault, many of
the situations that they are in.
So with that, Madam Chair, I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you so much for your questions.
Next, I recognize Representative Fitzgerald for five
minutes for your questions.
Mr. Fitzgerald. Thank you, Madam Chair. Ms. Dean, thanks
for being here today.
As a Member of Congress from Wisconsin, you can probably
understand my concerns about WIC and it is relationship to
dairy, both milk that is part of the program, as well as
cheese. And the sodium question continues to kind of pop up and
the relationship to a total diet that most kids would be given
on a daily basis.
It can lead some students I think there is kind of a
question as to are the sodium limits too low and how are those
going to be gauged moving forward? That would be my first
question.
Ms. Dean. So thank you for the question. It gives me an
opportunity to make sure everyone knows that we will be
updating the nutrition standards in the school meals program as
well as WIC to reflect the new dietary guidelines. That is a
process we need to undertake.
It is also an important opportunity for us to rethink not
just what the standards are but the implementation timelines to
get there. What the nutritionists at FNS tell me, this amazing
group of people, as well as school food leaders school leaders-
we need good high-quality standards that are pushing all of us
to advance, but we also need time to get there. And that is how
we will be approaching this.
But we need input from industry, from social leaders, from
dieticians, from the heart association, from across the board
so that we pull together the right standards with practical and
feasible implementation guidelines.
Mr. Fitzgerald. Just to put on your way radar screen, I am
sure you are aware of it, but there seems to be questions about
the level of the whole grain requirement as well. Yes, that
seems to be a concern.
The other thing would be when you are looking at kind of
school lunches and the variety. And I know that Congressman
Fulcher brought this up earlier, just the desire of some
elementary students to want to have that school lunch every day
and whether or not its desirable. I think it kind of goes back
to whether or not those sodium and the variety that is offered
in specifically milk products.
I remember when I was a kid, you would have two cartons of
milk. One would be chocolate and one would be regular white
milk. Whole milk by the way, we didn't have 1 percent back
then. But moving forward, I think there is kind of a desire
again to make school lunches something that kids really look
forward to and they want to consume. And I would hope that that
would be integrated into any of the decisions made with kind of
the levels of consideration for all of these items so.
Ms. Dean. Right. Tastiness has got to be a critical part of
this, but also is a knowing that we have got to push our kids
to eat well. And the first time your child rejects a green bean
or Brussels sprout you don't give up.
So I think that is part of the balance here. It is taste
and appeal, as well as continuing to offer healthy nutritious
food, which will not just affect their health today but their
lifetime.
Mr. Fitzgerald. In the last minute that I have, could you
just talk a little bit about farm to school, that program, and
how it is viewed? And kind of what the status is of it? And how
do you see it moving forward? Because it has been a great
success, I think.
Ms. Dean. Oh, that is wonderful to hear. Farm to school I
think is one of our most successful and cherished programs from
all corners of the country. They did wonderful job connecting
local producers to schools, teaching kids about where their
food comes from, helping schools meet their Buy America
requirements, and of course fulfill the nutrition standards
with healthy, delicious food.
So we would love to do more with that program and would be
happy to work with the Committee on addressing minor barriers
that can prevent some schools from coming in. But it is
wonderful success. We want to continue to grow it.
Mr. Fitzgerald. Thank you, Madam Chair. I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you.
And next I recognize Representative Mrvan for five minutes
for your questions.
Mr. Mrvan. Good afternoon. I thank you very much for your
testimony, for your engagement.
Very quickly, my wife is a dietician. I am excited that we
are talking about sodium intake and salt. But most importantly
realizing that the goal is to remove obstacles for children to
make sure that they are in an environment to learn and that
they are properly fed and have nutrition. That being said, I
also was a township trustee that provided poor relief to over
180,000 individuals. And we worked very closely during the
pandemic with the school systems to make sure that those most
vulnerable populations were able to receive meals and even
beyond and what a difference that that made.
So I want to among those thousands of families, I want to
thank you for that initiative in going forward and have
participated making sure families were aware of the summer
programs. That being said, I am grateful that we now have an
administration that is committed to ending the COVID-19
pandemic. But I do worry about the economic impacts of COVID-19
will be ongoing for many families.
Ms. Dean, what are some of the ongoing challenges you think
families will face when it comes to feeding their children over
the next few years? And what can Congress do to ease that
transition as children go back to school and certain emergency
relief programs, including the pandemic EBT and when it starts
to expire?
Ms. Dean. Thank you very much for that question and for
your leadership on these issues for some time. You know, as the
economy begins to recover, which will be wonderful news, it is
important to remember that low-income households typically
don't experience economic improvement as quickly as the rest of
the country.
We may continue to see elevated unemployment and high rates
of poverty. And so that often for example in my world shows up
as continued elevated enrollment in SNAP. And that is just
because economic recovery is not always equally felt.
This president is focused on making sure that this recovery
is truly progressive and brings along the whole country. And
some of the things that he believes will help achieve that are
in the families plan and the jobs plan.
So making a strong childcare so that all parents know that
their kids are healthy and safe, they are out looking for work,
a stronger unemployment insurance program, continued support
through SNAP.
These are the kinds of wraparound--as well as paid leave,
these are the kinds of wraparounds that will help bring strong
economic recovery for everyone. And I appreciate your focus on
the fact that not everyone will experience the economy snapping
back quite as quickly and we need to be mindful of that.
Mr. Mrvan. I thank you very much for your testimony and
your commitment to school children.
And with that, I yield back, Chairwoman.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you very much. Next, I recognize
Representative Spartz for five minutes for your questions.
Mrs. Spartz. Thank you, Madam Chair.
And I have a question for Ms. Dean related, as a former
auditor, to some fraud and audits.
So as I look up in 2019, Government Accountability Office
cited USDA for not assessing fraud risk comprehensively and in
compliance with the Fraud Risk Framework. They also noted the
high estimated improper payment error rates and vulnerability
to fraud. So this is a problem with high risk of fraud.
And my question is for you, now you are asking, you know,
for $45 billion more for expenditure in this program. So I
would like to know what processes you are implementing to make
sure you are in compliance with the Fraud Risk Framework, and
you have proper control to address the risk of fraud.
Ms. Dean. Thank you very much for that question,
Congresswoman. You raised a critical point. The public's trust
in us is critical to me and knowing that taxpayer dollars are
going for their intended purpose is critical. It is the core
component of what we need to do and how we want to design these
programs.
So one of the things that is wonderful about the summer EBT
program is because it will pivot off of enrollment in other
programs, for example, SNAP, that does an incredibly robust and
rigorous assessment of eligibility. We have a high degree of
confidence about eligibility for those benefits and, of course,
we know that families are using those benefits for food. So I
think we feel very good about that, but we would be happy to
work with the Committee.
And let me also say one other thing. Our budget isn't out
yet. That will be forthcoming, of course, in a couple of weeks.
But one of the things that I want to do at FNS is we absolutely
need to increase our staff, our extraordinary group of people
here.
Federal spending on the Nutrition Programs has grown
significantly while our staff has shrunk, and that compromises
our ability to oversee these programs. And I want to lean in
and acknowledge that and ask for the resources we need to
steward these programs to the high degree that the public and
you expect.
Mrs. Spartz. So generally, if you say you are planning to
implement, I want to confirm, because the Government
Accountability Office said that they recommend for Food and
Nutrition Services to establish a process--who administer
them--to plan and conduct regular progress assessments for the
School Meals Program that align with leading practices in the
Fraud Risk Framework.
So are you planning to perform these regular assessments of
fraud risk and internal procedures to make sure that you are
complying with that Framework?
Ms. Dean. So we have fairly regular assessments on program
integrity. But since I am not tracking to the specific issue
that you are raising; can I followup with you on that to make
sure--
Mrs. Spartz. I just wanted to make sure because I wanted to
see. They haven't released the recent--what is happening in
2020. That was a review of 2019. But since we are looking to
expand even further some of these programs, we need to make
sure that we have proper procedures and controls in place, and
you are complying with Fraud Risk Assessment Framework that the
Government Accountability Office requires all other agencies
to.
So I would be happy to followup with you and make sure that
you have these processes and have it on your radar too.
Ms. Dean. Thank you. I appreciate that. I will followup.
Mrs. Spartz. Thank you. I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you. I now recognize
Representative Bowman for five minutes for your questions.
Mr. Bowman. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Ms. Dean, thank you so much for appearing before us today.
I represent the 16th District of New York, which includes parts
of the Bronx and parts of Westchester. I am hearing directly
from my constituents who qualify for SNAP that they are
experiencing problems with applying for and receiving benefits.
One recurring piece of feedback I get is that the once-a-
month distribution of benefits creates problems at the end of
the month when they have already expended the majority or all
of their benefits.
In addition to increasing the SNAP benefit, what kind of
administrative costs would be associated with distributing
benefits on a biweekly basis so that the pacing reflects a more
realistic pattern for getting food throughout the month.
Ms. Dean. Thank you. Interesting question. So I think the
statute, the SNAP statute actually prohibits splitting issuance
into two, wanting to give the control to households on how they
manage and budget their funds.
But I think--so I think the core issue is making sure that
households have a benefit that is sufficient. And so you are
giving me the opportunity to just remind folks that the
Secretary, at Congress' direction, has asked us to reevaluate
SNAP's Thrifty Food Program, the basis for the basic benefit,
to ensure that it is an adequate level to purchase a healthy
diet with respect to the dietary guidelines and also sort of
consistent with current prices and consumer spending patterns.
So we hope to wrap that process up this summer. And it is
my hope that when households have a realistic benefit that will
allow them to access nutritious food, that we will take away
some of this core stress and this end-of-month crisis.
Mr. Bowman. Thank you.
Ms. Dean. Thank you.
Mr. Bowman. Also, the enacted COVID relief packages to date
have been responsive to the dramatic increase in food
insecurity experienced by children and families this past year.
But that combined investment has not been sufficient to end
food insecurity overall. Tens of millions of families are
struggling today to feed themselves. As a former educator and
principal myself, I know that if a child is hungry, they can't
focus on learning in the classroom.
What level of investment would be necessary, is necessary
to permanently end domestic food insecurity?
Ms. Dean. That is a good question. You know, I don't know
the answer to that, but I do think that a big part of it is not
just with respect to food assistance. I mean, you, as an
educator, probably could tell me more about what families need.
They need good-paying jobs. They need access to health coverage
so that they are not choosing between paying medical bills and
feeding their kids, and they need affordable, safe places to
live.
So I think that is a big part of why the Families Plan, the
Jobs Plan, and the Rescue Plan together are trying to deal with
the conditions that cause people to be hungry. And I think that
is the better way. That, along with a strong economy and good-
paying jobs, is the right pathway forward to addressing hunger.
Mr. Bowman. Thank you, Madam Chair. And I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you very much.
Now we are going to hear from the Chairman of the full
Committee, Congressman Scott. I recognize you for five minutes.
Mr. Scott. Thank you, Madam Chair.
And thank you, Ms. Dean, for being with us today. We heard
about that code word ``evidence-based.'' I was just wondering
if we can count on you to make your decisions based on evidence
rather than slogans and sound bites?
Ms. Dean. Always. I am an analyst at heart. Absolutely.
Mr. Scott. Thank you. The Community Eligibility Program,
you mentioned that decreases paperwork and administrative
costs, helps families who fall just outside the eligibility
limits, removes the stigma. Some children have to go through
paperwork, others don't.
You mentioned that about nine million additional children
will be covered by Community Eligibility. How close are we
getting to universal coverage for school meals? We have had
proposals from members of the Committee to just serve
everybody. Are we getting close?
Ms. Dean. Thanks for asking. I think with the American
Families Plan proposal, we believe we would reach about half of
our Nation's schools. Unfortunately, half of our Nation's
schools are high-poverty schools, where they are serving a
significant share of low-income children. And I think we would
hit about 45 percent of the kids. So--
Mr. Scott. With Community Eligibility. And then the rest
have to go through paperwork to get qualified. So that we would
only be adding on--we are getting close to where we can add,
and it would be affordable just to do everybody. So just keep
that in mind.
On the automatic eligibility, can you talk about how
valuable that is. If you have Medicaid or if you have got SSI,
you are automatically qualified. You don't have to do all the
paperwork. You don't have to go find records and everything.
How helpful is that?
Ms. Dean. I would love to talk about that. So the way it
works right now is mostly through SNAP. And imagine a mom who
goes and applies for SNAP, which is a very rigorous process. It
can take hours. They have to turn in paperwork. There is an
interview. She has self-identified as food insecure and in need
of help.
And so the way the law works now is, in applying for SNAP,
if she has school-age children, they are automatically picked
up and enrolled into free school meals. And I think that is the
right values, and that is government helping someone in need.
What the American Families Plan would do is propose to
extend that to Medicaid and SSI, where, again, parents are
going through an incredibly rigorous process. And it seems to
me government is at its best when it is offering them that
additional help, passporting those kids over to free school
meals. It also increases program integrity. So it is a
wonderful way to connect folks to the Meals Program.
Mr. Scott. OK. Thank you.
The Pandemic EBT was extended through the end of the public
health emergency. We are aware that 40 States have already
gotten qualified for K through 12. Twenty-two States have done
children under six. What is the agency doing to make sure all
of the States get qualified as soon as possible?
Ms. Dean. I have an update on that. We are actually up to
43 States with school plans and 24 on childcare.
My team has to report into me basically every 2 days on
where we are at. And with every State where we haven't got--
where it is submitted but not approved or it hasn't yet been
submitted, I am aware of exactly where it is, because we intend
to get to all States.
Mr. Scott. Good. You said the majority of the school
districts comply with the school nutrition standards. What does
majority mean?
Ms. Dean. You know, I would need to get back to you with
the exact number but we have--
Mr. Scott. It is virtually all of them, isn't it?
Ms. Dean. Thank you. Yes, thank you. It is virtually all.
Mr. Scott. OK. And in plate waste, where students are not
eating the food, have you found that to be no worse with good
nutrition than with bad nutrition?
Ms. Dean. It is actually less bad with good nutrition. We
see increased intake of vegetables and dairy and good healthy
food and less plate waste overall, relative to the food that
kids bring from home.
Mr. Scott. So that the districts aren't having problems
complying and the children are getting better nutrition would
suggest that we don't need to dilute the nutrition standards,
it seems to me.
Ms. Dean. It would absolutely suggest that.
Mr. Scott. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you, Chairman Scott.
Now I recognize Representative Leger Fernandez for five
minutes for your questions.
Ms. Leger Fernandez. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
And congratulations, Ms. Dean, on your appointment. I look
forward to working with you. As I noted, I am from New Mexico
and have many Tribes in my district, so I want to touch on
those issues a little bit later.
But I really am grateful for the decision to expand until
2022 and the idea of enrolling more schools and perhaps
expanding the Community Program so that we avoid that
paperwork. I hear about that often. You know, my State has a
majority of Title I schools.
But I want to talk a little bit about lunch shaming, you
know, which will happen if we don't get to more universal
provision of school lunches. And, as you know and as the
Committee knows, that is a practice of embarrassing or singling
out children who can't afford the school lunch that day.
And, you know, in 2010, Congress did address the USDA and
asked them to provide a response. There were several fact
sheets that the USDA has issued, one of which was entitled
``Meal Charges Fact Sheet,'' which I am going to quote, says:
``USDA requires school food authorities to develop and
communicate a policy for handling unpaid meal charges, but
allows local officials to define how that policy works.'' In
another fact sheet, the Preventing Lunch Shaming: Communication
Strategies, it simply says that USDA discourages the use of
hand stamps, stickers, et cetera.
I ask unanimous consent to put these documents into the
record, Madam Chair.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Without objection.
Ms. Leger Fernandez. So I wanted to ask you whether USDA
currently has a policy that explicitly prohibits lunch shaming,
or is it merely guidance to discourage the practice?
Ms. Dean. We require the locals to have a policy. So, as I
think you actually accurately described our policy. And, you
know, I would really like to work with the Committee so that we
can do better. Children should not be put in the middle of this
problem. And that is just unacceptable, and we need to see if
there is a way that we can develop a framework so that
districts just don't do that.
Ms. Dean. I really appreciate hearing that. You know, I had
the example of the little Alabama child who was stamped with
``I need money for my lunch,'' and I take it you would agree
that that is unacceptable.
Ms. Dean. Yes. In my position and as a parent, yes, I feel
that way very strongly. So it is tricky, and we need to sort
out how to do it, but we look forward to working with you on
that.
Ms. Leger Fernandez. I look forward to working with you as
well. I will be reintroducing the Anti-Lunch Shaming Act to
prohibit, not simply discourage but actually prohibit schools
from publicly stigmatizing a child who can't afford their
lunch. And, you know, as you pointed out, school hunger is an
issue, and it is not the child's fault, and we need to take
care to not put that blame on the child.
I wanted to move a bit to the issue of Tribal Nutrition
Programs. As you are aware, that there are some limitations on
the ability of Tribes to administer the Food Assistance
Programs. I am going to be looking at introducing the Tribal
Nutrition Improvement Act to make sure that Tribes can
administer the Food Assistance Programs directly. In my
experience--I have worked with Tribes for 30 years--self-
determination we have found out works really well.
But can you describe what actions the Department of
Agriculture is taking to ensure Tribes that have been really
hit hard by the pandemic, what actions is USDA taking right now
to assist with these Nutrition Programs and allowing the Tribes
to have the control they need?
Ms. Dean. Well, thank you for the question. And I know that
my staff and your staff have been talking about that bill. So I
look forward to the next steps on that.
First off, USDA has held I believe two formal consultations
across the agency to hear from Tribes, just to begin to renew
our relationship and to do it in a way that respects Tribal
sovereignty. We have held Tribal consultation with respect to
the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, which is
a Tribal alternative to SNAP, and I have also done specialized
stakeholder listening.
So one, it just begins with hearing what the issues are and
where and how our programs are being responsive. There has been
a significant amount of targeted assistance provided to Tribes,
which I can followup with you on. But clearly, there is more we
can do, particularly with respect to the way the relationship
works.
Ms. Leger Fernandez. I look forward to that ongoing
communication and thank you for listening to the Tribes.
My time is up. I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you.
I see no other members for questions, so I want to now
remind my colleagues that--was there another Member present?
Mr. Fulcher. Madam Chair, this is Congressman Fulcher. I
just wanted to--if there was an opportunity for a closing
statement, I would like to make that when the time is right.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Yes, we will get to that. I just want
to make sure we got all the members for questions.
Mr. Fulcher. Great. Thank you.
Chairwoman Bonamici. You are welcome.
I do want to remind my colleagues that, pursuant to
Committee practice, materials for submission to the hearing
record must be submitted to the Committee Clerk within 14 days
following the last day of the hearing, so by the close of
business on May 26, 2021, preferably in Microsoft Word format.
The materials submitted must address the subject matter of the
hearing. Only a Member of the Subcommittee or an invited
witness may submit materials for inclusion into the hearing
record. Documents are limited to 50 pages each. Documents
longer than 50 pages will be incorporated into the record via
an internet link that you must provide to the Committee Clerk
within the required timeframe. So please recognize that in the
future that link may no longer work.
Pursuant to House rules and regulations, items for the
record should be submitted to the Clerk electronically by
emailing submissions to [email protected].
Again, I want to thank the witness for your participation
today. Members of the Subcommittee may have some additional
questions for you. We ask you to please respond to those
questions in writing. The hearing record will be held open for
14 days to receive those responses.
I remind my colleagues that, pursuant to Committee
practice, the questions for the hearing record must be
submitted to the Majority Committee Staff or Committee Clerk
within 7 days. The questions submitted must address the subject
matter of the hearing.
And I now recognize the distinguished Ranking Member for a
closing statement. You are muted, Mr. Fulcher.
Mr. Fulcher. OK. I have a touchy mute button, and so I
apologize about that. But thank you for recognizing me.
Madam Chair, I have a report in front of me from the
American Enterprise Institute, Reimagining School Meals for a
Post-Pandemic Era. I would just like to enter that into the
record if I may, please.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Without objection.
Mr. Fulcher. Thank you, Madam Chair.
And Deputy Under Secretary Dean, thank you for joining us
today. I just wanted to recap a couple of the points that were
made today or that were brought up. First of all, just how
important it is, whatever we have, that it is able to work
actually on the ground and it works for our hardworking school
officials, just because if it is not easy to implement, it is
not going to be successful anyway.
We talked about strong accountability for these programs
and the support for better nutrition education. That is just
good for everyone.
There was a hesitation on a commitment to limiting the cost
that schools will face. That is a supersensitive button,
especially in my State and a lot of the Western States.
And just to underscore why, we struggle with our school
funding probably more than most States do, simply because most
of our land mass is federally owned. We don't have a broad-
based property tax, which is a tool to often fund those
mechanisms. There are other things that have been put in place,
but nevertheless, it is just not the same as having a broad-
based property tax. So the cost is very, very sensitive. So our
schools face enough challenges without adding to cost and
unfunded mandates on that front.
So we did hear some positive news about just the commitment
to work with us on these proposals so that it doesn't get too
layered and too complex. So thank you for that.
And just last, Madam Chair and Mrs. Dean, Congressman
Fitzgerald from Wisconsin made I think some really good points.
And in my State of Idaho, yes, we are known for potatoes, but
we have got a strong dairy presence as well.
And recently, Secretary Vilsack said in Ag Subcommittee
that the kids are not drinking the no-fat milk, but they are
drinking the low-fat milk. And so I just want to point that
out. It is important to have something that will actually be
consumed and enjoyed.
Schools in my district have expressed concern also about
the USDA guidelines being not particularly clear or flexible.
And so any help that you can help us with on that would be
much, much appreciated. And the need to continue to serve low-
fat flavored milk is just very, very important.
With that, Madam Chair and Mrs. Dean, I thank you for the
time for this hearing. I yield back.
Chairwoman Bonamici. Thank you very much.
And I now recognize myself for the purpose of making a
closing statement.
Deputy Under Secretary Dean, thank you again for being with
us and for discussing the work that you and the Biden
administration have done and will continue to do to expand
access to the Child Nutrition Programs. We look forward to
working with you.
Our discussion today was a stark reminder of the scale and
severity of the child hunger crisis. And even as we recover
from the pandemic, parents and families still face steep
challenges putting food on the table. And without nutritious
food, too many children are losing the critical foundation they
need to succeed in school, lead a healthy life, and thrive.
But today, we also confirmed that the early relief we
secured for school nutrition, the Childhood Nutrition Program
took significant steps in the right direction. These
investments helped put healthy food into the hands and the
bellies of millions of children.
As we learned last week, hunger is now at its lowest since
the pandemic began. We cannot abandon this meaningful progress.
As elected leaders, we have the opportunity and truly the moral
obligation to make sure that our Nation's children do not go
hungry. But we cannot fulfill that responsibility unless we
come together to support the vital Nutrition Programs that are
now sustaining millions of children.
I am very encouraged by the Ranking Member's recognition of
the importance of these Nutrition Programs. I do recall in
prior hearings over the years learning from those experts on
the ground, in the schools who are successfully implementing
programs, for example, under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act
standards. I look forward to the conversations about these,
about the Farm to School Program, and all of the other issues
that we discussed today.
So, Deputy Under Secretary Dean, we do look forward to
working with you to make sure that the American Families Plan
builds on our progress to expand nutrition assistance while
also supporting our local farmers. And I look forward to
working with all my colleagues to provide our children with
nutritious food that will fuel their health and development.
If there is no further business, without objection, I yield
back, and the Subcommittee stands adjourned. Thank you,
everyone.
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[Whereupon, at 1:24 p.m. the Subcommittee was adjourned.]
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