Congressmen Castro, Taylor Introduce the Feeding Hungry Students in School Act

Statement

United States Congressmen Joaquin Castro (D-TX-20) and Van Taylor (R-TX-03) introduced legislation in the House of Representatives to help combat child hunger throughout the United States.

Similar to legislation enacted in Texas in 2017, the Feeding Hungry Students in Schools Act would allow schools to set up food pantries with the extra food they do not use for school lunch programs.
"More than 12 million children struggle with hunger in the United States. We must do better," said Congressman Van Taylor. "By giving local schools the flexibility to determine the best way to serve the unique needs of their students we can ensure more children have access to nutritious meals -- even when they are not in school."

"Low income families across our nation struggle daily to meet their basic food needs. The implications are even graver in the state of Texas -- where 1 in 4 children suffer from hunger. This reality should be unacceptable to all of us in the United States of America," said Congressman Joaquin Castro. "The Feeding Hungry Students in Schools Act of 2019 will empower communities to not only prepare our students for their future, but ensure that they are adequately taken care of. This legislation would finally move us in the right direction to address food insecurity in this country so that all of America's children--regardless of economic background--have an infrastructure of opportunity to achieve their fullest potential and success."

The Feeding Hungry Students in Schools Act would address food insecurity for students by allowing schools to receive, store, and distribute food donations from charitable organizations on campus. By amending the Richard B. Russel National School Lunch Act, schools will now be able to set up food pantries on their premises.

Background
During the 85th Texas Legislative Session, then-State Senator Van Taylor voted in support of similar legislation, SB 725, which passed the Texas State Legislature and was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 9, 2017.

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