Capitol Insider: Latest News on Food Insecurity Policy & Advocacy (April 2023)

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, and Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst

State Policy Updates:

With May rapidly approaching, it’s crunch time for many legislators and advocates. April 27 is the deadline for the third reading of any active bills in their opposite chamber, so we anticipate another busy week at the Capitol. Here’s a status update on the remaining bills we’re tracking (including some that have already successfully reached the Governor’s desk!)

Child Nutrition

HB 1376, filed by Representative Boatman and Senator Garvin, proposes to expand access to free school meals to more low-income Oklahomans.
- Dormant pursuant to the rules.
HB 1840 by Representative Kerbs – Moves child nutrition administration to Department of Agriculture.
- Dormant pursuant to the rules.

Food Donation

HB 1542 by Representative Moore – Provides immunity from civil liability for restaurants that donate food, in good faith and without compensation, that causes damage.
- Signed by the Governor 4/19/23. Earliest effective date 11/03/2023.

Benefits Programs

HB 1931, HB 1932, SB 281, SB 694 – Modifications to increase access and/or reduce barriers to TANF.
- HB 1931 – Passed out of Senate Health & Human Services 4/06/23.
- HB 1932 – Passed out of Senate Health & Human Services 4/06/23.
- SB 281 – Passed out of House Appropriations and Budget 4/12/23.
- SB 694 – Passed out of House Rules 4/11/23.
SB 534 by Senator Rosino – Changes the maximum income to 300% of the federal poverty level for a child that is severely developmentally disabled to qualify for assistance.
- Sent to the Governor’s desk 4/20/23.

Taxation

HB 1955– Eliminates state portion of grocery sales tax.
- Dormant pursuant to the rules.

P-EBT Updates:
School Year 2022-2023 Childcare P-EBT and Summer 2023 Plans have been approved! Read more below for details about eligibility and a tentative timeline on when benefits are expected to be issued.

School Year 2022-2023 SNAP-participating Children In Childcare Plan

For families who are/were participating in SNAP and have a child/children under six enrolled in childcare there may be benefits issued beginning in May 2023 if it is determined that there was a reduction in childcare access between August 2022 and May 2023.
The state is working on determining if there was a reduction in childcare access, so we are not certain whether or not there will be benefits for families in this category.
- Note: The requirement for a reduction in childcare service is a federal requirement. This is part of the challenge of operating a program that was designed during the pandemic in response to the pandemic in a post-pandemic world.

Summer 2023 Benefits for All Eligible Children

Children will be eligible to receive 2023 Summer P-EBT benefits of $120 (per child) if they are, as of May 2023, enrolled in a school district that participates in the federal free and reduced-price meal program, AND are deemed eligible through one of the following ways:
- Applied and approved for free or reduced-price meals for the 2022-2023 school year.
- Being directly certified for free meals through participation in programs like SNAP.
- Attending a school that provides free meals to all students during the 2022-2023 school year.
At this time, we anticipate that the state will begin to issue these benefits starting in July 2023.

Federal Policy Updates:

SNAP Work Requirements Proposal

Last week, U.S. House Speaker McCarthy proposed expanding SNAP work requirements. A Kellogg School of Management study showed that proposals like this have no statistically significant impact on employment. In fact, the study notes that work requirements have damaging effects on the most vulnerable who are unable to work. Hunger Free Oklahoma opposes increasing barriers for Oklahomans trying to put food on the table beyond the regulations already in place.

2023 Farm Bill

The federal legislation known as the Farm Bill is set to be reauthorized by Congress this year. This legislation is a significant priority for food security advocates as it reauthorizes the nation’s largest anti-hunger program, SNAP. The Farm Bill brings opportunity in the form of potential modernization of SNAP and other nutrition programs, but it also brings danger in the form of potential limitations on the programs.

Congressional hearings are being held regularly to examine perspectives from across the country on which policies should be added, changed, or removed in the upcoming Farm Bill.

Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Hearings

House Committee on Agriculture Hearings

Non-congregate Guidance is Out

USDA has issued guidance for Summer 2023 Non-Congregate Meal Service. Key takeaways from this guidance are below. Please note that all summer child nutrition plans still must be approved by the Oklahoma State Department of Education and possibly the regional USDA office.

Sponsors can provide non-congregate summer meals in rural areas that do not have congregate meal service. The definition of ‘rural’ in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) has not changed. You can determine your area’s designation utilizing FNS’s Rural Designation Map.
- Some areas located in “rural pockets” within a larger area designated as urban may still be eligible for non-congregate meal service.
Existing rural sites can switch from congregate to non-congregate meal service, with the caveat that OSDE and sponsors will be directed to prioritize those rural areas that the congregate SFSP cannot reliably reach.
- Non-congregate and congregate meal service can operate on different days in the same area.
- The two types of meal service cannot occur during the same meals in the same area.
Non-congregate meal service can potentially be provided by sites that are near congregate service sites. However, state agencies must ensure that the congregate and non-congregate sites will not serve the same population of children for the same meal service on the same day.
Sites may provide a combination of non-congregate and congregate meal services in certain circumstances.
Both home delivery and meal pickup service models are allowed.
Sponsors/sites may distribute multiple days of meals at once.
Sponsors/sites offering non-congregate meals are not required to serve breakfast in the morning or allow one hour between meal services.
Meals may be distributed to parents/guardians as long as the process maintains accountability and program integrity.
There is additional guidance forthcoming for the USDA on non-congregate oversight and monitoring.

Rep. McGovern Files Legislation to Increase School Meal Reimbursement Rates

HFO recently signed on in support of Congressman McGovern’s HR 1269 which would permanently increase the reimbursement rates for school lunch and school breakfast. This increase would be meaningful for Oklahoma schools working to feed children.

End of SNAP Emergency Benefits and the Federal Public Health Emergency

As we previously shared, the end of the Federal Public Health Emergency will happen in May 2023, which means many pandemic-era programs are beginning to wind down. March is the first month where SNAP households went back to their “normal” benefit levels, as opposed to the maximum benefit based on the size of a household. This means Oklahomans participating in SNAP are seeing an average reduction of $179 less per month in SNAP benefits.

Another notable program winding down is Medicaid continuous coverage. During the pandemic, Medicaid participants were able to maintain coverage even if they would have no longer qualified. The state will start removing Medicaid participants if they are deemed ineligible this summer.

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by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, and Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst

State Policy Updates:

Federal Policy Updates:

Working together for a hunger free Oklahoma.