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Red Bank, NJ --- U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) today visited children at the Red Bank Summer Camp to tout House passage earlier this month of a Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Agriculture Appropriations bill that included a provision he championed that would expand to New Jersey a popular federal program that provides meals to low-income children during the summer.
The Simplified Summer Food Program, which is currently available in only 26 states, is a federal child nutrition program that provides up to two meals a day to children age 18 and under during the summer. New Jersey is one of the 24 states currently not participating in the program, but that would change if the House bill becomes law later this year.
In April, Pallone and U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) introduced legislation that would expand the program to all 50 states so that more low-income children could benefit from a nutritious meal during the summer when school is out. Pallone also wrote House Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee Chairman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) urging that the expansion be included in the agriculture appropriations bill for the upcoming year, which it was.
"The summer is an especially difficult time for low-income families who depend upon school meals to feed their children," Pallone said. "The Simplified Summer Food Program helps children grow and develop so they are ready for academic success when they go back to school."
During the school year, over 15 million children receive free or reduced-price school lunch, but fewer than 3 million have access to summer meals. In New Jersey, 299,806 children receive lunches during the school year, but during the summer that number drops to 72,532. Experts say this is primarily due to complex paperwork and accounting requirements for program sponsors of summer food programs.
The Simplified Summer Food Program eliminates this complicated accounting and decreases administrative costs while providing sponsors with the full federal reimbursement. On average, states that joined the Simplified Summer Food Program when it was created in 2001 have experienced a 51 percent increase in the number of children being served by summer nutrition programs. If New Jersey experienced similar increases, the state would be able to reach an additional 27,000 low-income children during the summer months, and would collect an additional $1.5 million in federal food assistance.
"We need to eliminate the administrative hurdles that make it more difficult for Red Bank and other communities to ensure children have access to the nutritious food their bodies need," Pallone said. "The legislation passed earlier this month by the House will make it easier for all children to have quality meals and activities to keep them learning and engaged throughout the summer."
The New Jersey congressman was joined at today's news conference by Red Bank Mayor Pat Menna, Adele LaTourette, Director of the Statewide Emergency Food and Anti-Hunger Network, Alexis Bylander, Training and Outreach Specialist for the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), Bob Evans, Camp Director at the Red Bank Primary School Summer Camp, and children who attend the camp. Following the news conference, Pallone joined the children while they ate their lunch.
“The Simplified Summer Food Program is proven to increase summer food participation and help sponsors reach more children in need during the summer months,” said Alexis Bylander, Training and Outreach Specialist with the Food Research and Action Center. “We hope that this is the last year that children in New Jersey go hungry during their summer vacation.”
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