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URGENT: Tell Congress to Extend Critical Meal Flexibilities for Kids

Over the past two years, schools and local organizations have continued to make sure kids get the healthy food and nutrition they need despite challenges caused by the pandemic.

But their ability to continue doing so is on the line if Congress doesn’t take action on critical child nutrition waivers TODAY.

To make sure kids continue to get the food they need, Congress must authorize USDA to grant nationwide nutrition waivers as needed through the 2022-2023 school year. Contact Congress TODAY and urge them to do this quickly.

Personalizing your letter below will go further. To make your message more effective, please share why it's important to you to feed kids and families in need.

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Kids need child nutrition waivers through the 2022-23 school year

Dear [Decision Maker],

Schools and children across our state could soon face a new crisis if urgent action is not taken by Congress today to provide USDA child nutrition waiver authority in the Omnibus.

Across the country, millions of kids have continued to get healthy food and the nutrition they need during the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to essential nationwide child nutrition waivers. These waivers have allowed schools and community organizations to adapt the way they serve meals to children, allowing them to be flexible and responsive in the aftermath of the pandemic.

But these waivers will expire on June 30 unless you take action and, through the Omnibus, authorize USDA to grant nationwide nutrition waivers as needed through the 2022-2023 school year.

This is so important. Right now, schools and community organizations are working to establish sites to serve summer meals, create budgets, place food orders, coordinate and train their staff, and alert families in need about how and where to find meal programs. At the same time, challenges like new COVID variants, ongoing economic aftershocks, and global supply chain issues have forced schools and local organizations to adapt their programs at a moment's notice.

Allowing the USDA's waiver authority to expire along with the current waivers on June 30 will make it much harder for schools to respond to new challenges in real time. The USDA must continue to have the ability to grant waivers to help schools budget and plan more effectively as they transition back to more normal operations.

These waivers are essential. For example:

*They give schools more flexibility on when they can serve meals, which is important to ensure less frequent contact and exposure for kids and families during times of social distancing;
*They help schools cut through red tape and streamline the serving process, alleviating administrative burdens at a time when many school programs are understaffed;
*When needed, waivers allow for families and children to pick up meals to take home through a grab-and-go model or allow for meals to be dropped off at a child's home;
*And they allow schools more flexibility over challenges caused by supply chain issues.

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Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State ZIP]
[Your Email]