by Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst and Engagement Specialist
State Updates
Oklahoma’s 2023 legislative session has concluded, but policymakers and advocates are already looking ahead to begin prepping for next year. The deadline to request and approve Senate interim studies has passed. The deadline to request House interim studies was 6/30/23 and the deadline for their approval is 7/28/23. The approved Senate interim studies include:
- Modifying TANF Income Disregards; Senator J.A. Dossett
. - School Lunch Program; Senator J.A. Dossett
- Afghan Placement and Assistance Program; Senator Hicks
- Identifying Barriers to Learning and the Impact on a Student’s Education; Senator Hicks
- DHS Services; Senator Jech
For a full list of approved interim studies, click here.
USDA Visit
Earlier this month, officials from USDA visited Oklahoma to meet with community leaders and anti-hunger advocates to discuss food security in Oklahoma. Among those in attendance was the Deputy Under Secretary for USDA’s Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, Stacy Dean. Deputy Under Secretary Dean visited Ellen Ochoa Elementary to learn more about how summer meal service operates in Oklahoma, attended the announcement of Cherokee Nation’s $1 million dollar grant for Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) Community Innovation and Outreach Cooperative Agreement, and participated in listening sessions hosted by Hunger Free Oklahoma with members of the Childhood Food Security Coalition and SNAP outreach partners.
Federal Updates
Farm Bill:
Senate Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) said there might be a short-term Farm Bill extension, given how many other appropriations deals the Senate and House are in the process of negotiating. The House has ambitions to get their Farm Bill out of committee by early September. The Senate will have its own timeline. Senator Stabenow was quoted in Politico saying, “If we’re not able to [pass a farm bill] by the end of September, we will have bipartisan consensus to extend the previous version…I’ve been involved in six farm bills, this is the third one I’ve led on, and none of them have ever been able to be completed by this statutory deadline.”
You can read more on the Farm Bill in Hunger Free Oklahoma’s June blog post.
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