Rep. Robert Aderholt (AL-04) has taken the lead on trying to roll back costly school lunch regulations that have been a priority for the Obama Administration, especially First Lady Michelle Obama. Today, Mrs. Obama is pushing back in what the AP described as “an unusual move for the first lady, who has largely stayed away from policy fights since she lobbied for congressional passage of a child nutrition law in 2010.”
The Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, which Rep. Aderholt chairs, last week passed a bill allowing schools to apply for a waiver if they are experiencing financial difficulty meeting the nutrition standards created by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.
The bill was part of Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign, which has the stated goal of reducing childhood obesity. It gave the USDA the authority to set nutritional standards for all foods sold in schools, including vending machines, “a la carte” lunch lines, and school stores. The USDA has since then set limits on the amount of fat, calories, sugar and sodium in school foods. The Act also increased the number of children eligible for free and reduced-price lunch.
But while the Obama Administration has described the program as a positive step toward reducing childhood hunger and obesity, many conservatives see it as another onerous government regulation that is difficult and expensive to implement across the nation.
Advocates for stricter school nutrition laws have lashed out at Republicans’ recent efforts to weaken the standards, accusing them of “taking a step backward and allowing schools to serve more unhealthy food to children.”
Today, White House chef Sam Kass called Aderholt’s bill “a real assault” on one of the Administration’s priority initiatives, and partnered with the first lady to organize an event at the White House to “highlight the success of the health guidelines.”
“She wants to have a conversation about what is really happening out in the country,” Kass told the AP. “These standards are working.”
But according to Aderholt, “what’s happening out in the country” is exactly what led him to write the bill to push for the temporary waivers until Congress considers renewing the school foods law in 2015.
“I have been in the school lunchroom, I have sat down with the individuals responsible for preparing student meals, and I have sat down with the students about this,” he explained. “As well-intended as the people in Washington believe themselves to be, the reality is that from a practical standpoint these regulations are just plain not working out in some individual school districts.”
Aderholt believes he is siding with schools whose budgets have been stretched to the breaking point by onerous government regulations, and he doesn’t plan to back down.
“I am standing with our nation’s schools to provide them the flexibility they are requesting from Congress,” he said. “The language in this bill simply provides those schools that are having difficulty complying with the regulations the ability to obtain a temporary, one year waiver.”
Follow Cliff on Twitter @Cliff_Sims
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.