by Dan Rossmiller | Jun 30, 2022 | Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog, National Issue
On June 25, President Biden signed the bipartisan Keep Kids Fed Act into law, thereby extending several pandemic-era school nutrition waivers. Those waivers, first issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as the pandemic disrupted school operations in 2020, had been set to expire on June 30.
Those 2020 waivers provided school food programs with more flexible nutrition requirements that helped them combat supply shortages, offer options such as “grab-and-go” meals, and provided school meal programs with higher than normal reimbursement rates for meals. The waivers also allowed school food authorities to provide free school meals to all students regardless of family income for the first time in U.S. history. (more…)
by Dan Rossmiller | Jun 27, 2022 | Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog, National Issue
The new bipartisan school and gun safety law signed by President Biden on Saturday (see previous post) also includes a host of programs providing additional federal resources for schools, children and families. These programs are summarized below.
The new law builds on a couple of school security measures that were adopted in the wake of the 2018 Parkland, Florida school shooting, including:
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by Chris Kulow | Jun 27, 2022 | Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog, National Issue
From ABC News: “President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law the gun safety package passed by Congress this week.
“The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act broke a nearly 30-year stalemate on Capitol Hill, becoming the first major piece of federal gun reform to clear both chambers since the Brady bill.
“A bipartisan group of senators began crafting the legislation in the aftermath of a tragic mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 young children and two teachers dead. (more…)
by Dan Rossmiller | Jun 24, 2022 | Federal Budget, Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog
A bipartisan effort is underway in Congress to extend school meal waivers that were enacted in response to the pandemic. Without Congressional action, those waivers are set to expire on June 30, 2022.
The existing waivers, which allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to waive various requirements that govern how schools can serve meals and who can get them, also increased the reimbursement rates for school food programs. (more…)
by Dan Rossmiller | Jun 22, 2022 | Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog, National Issue
A bipartisan package of measures aimed at improving school safety (see previous post) has cleared its first hurdle toward passage in the U.S. Senate. The 64-to-34 vote came just hours after Republicans and Democrats released the text of the legislation. Proponents hope to pass the bill through the U.S. Senate by Saturday.
The 80-page bill, called the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, would provide millions of dollars for expanding mental health resources in communities and schools in addition to funds devoted to boosting school safety.
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by Dan Rossmiller | Jun 13, 2022 | Federal Issue, Legislative Update Blog
A bipartisan group of 20 U.S. senators led by Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) announced yesterday (6/12) they have reached agreement on what they called “a commonsense proposal” to curb gun violence and increase school safety.
The nine-point proposal would invest billions of federal dollars in enhanced children and family mental health services, fund school-based mental health services, and fund new safety measures at schools. The bipartisan plan would also spend federal resources to encorage states to pass and implement so-called “red flag” laws that aim to keep guns out of the hands of people deemed dangerous to the community, strengthen criminal background check requirements for gun buyers younger than 21, and strengthen penalties for illegal “straw purchases” by convicted criminals. (more…)
