Serve More Kids Act

Serve More Kids Act

This bill amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to make several changes to the Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) child nutrition programs.

USDA must: (1) award equipment assistance grants to states for the school lunch and breakfast programs, (2) provide commodity assistance to states for the School Breakfast Program (SBP), and (3) establish a pilot program for providing a third daily meal under the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).

USDA may waive or modify the verification sample size requirements under the National School Lunch Program for local educational agencies that demonstrate that the requirement would increase the number of eligible children losing access to benefits or have a disproportionate and adverse impact on vulnerable populations such as migrants and homeless youth.

USDA may grant a request to allow children to consume SFSP meals off-site due to specified factors, including extreme weather, violence and other public safety concerns, or efforts to support innovative meal delivery methods to address transportation barriers and low program participation in rural areas.

The bill modifies the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to:

• specify that the food must be nutritious;
• specify certification periods for breastfeeding women, infants, and postpartum women;
• require state agencies to submit plans and distribute information related to improving access for members of the Armed Forces; and
• require USDA to provide additional annual performance bonus payments to state agencies for improving the proportion of breast-fed infants participating in the program.

The bill also reauthorizes USDA grants to states for expanding school breakfast programs.