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[DOCID: f:s1098is.txt]






107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1098

To amend the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to improve food stamp informational 
      activities in those States with the greatest rate of hunger.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 26, 2001

  Mr. Smith of Oregon (for himself, and Mr. Bingaman) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                  Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to improve food stamp informational 
      activities in those States with the greatest rate of hunger.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``State Hunger Assistance in Response 
to Emergency Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the Secretary of Agriculture conducts an annual report 
        that measures food security and hunger by State; and
            (2) many households that are eligible to receive food 
        stamps under the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) 
        do not know that the households are eligible to receive food 
        stamps.

SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR FOOD STAMP INFORMATIONAL ACTIVITIES BY STATES WITH 
              GREATEST RATE OF HUNGER.

    Section 16 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2025) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``subsection (k)'' and 
        inserting ``subsections (k) and (l)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(l) Funding for Food Stamp Informational Activities by States 
With Greatest Rate of Hunger.--
            ``(1) Designation of states.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For each of fiscal years 2001 
                through 2005, the Secretary--
                            ``(i) shall designate the 10 States that 
                        have the greatest rate of hunger, as determined 
                        on the basis of the most recent report that 
                        measures food security and hunger by State 
                        prepared by the Secretary for which data are 
                        available; and
                            ``(ii) may designate not more than 5 
                        additional States if the Secretary determines, 
                        on the basis of a proposal submitted by a 
                        State, that the State will carry out a 
                        demonstration project to carry out food stamp 
                        informational activities under this paragraph 
                        that uses innovative approaches that have 
                        national significance.
                    ``(B) Notification of states.--As soon as 
                practicable after designation of a State under 
                subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall notify the State 
                agency of the State that the State agency is eligible 
                to receive payments for administrative costs incurred 
                in carrying out food stamp informational activities in 
                accordance with paragraph (2).
                    ``(C) Acceptance by states.--If a State agency of a 
                State notified under subparagraph (B) elects to carry 
                out food stamp informational activities in exchange for 
                payments under paragraph (2), not later than 90 days 
                after the date of notification by the Secretary, the 
                State agency shall--
                            ``(i) notify the Secretary that the State 
                        agency will carry out food stamp informational 
                        activities in exchange for the payments; and
                            ``(ii) provide to the Secretary a summary 
                        describing the manner in which--
                                    ``(I) the payments will be used;
                                    ``(II) the outcomes of the 
                                activities will be measured; and
                                    ``(III) any other eligibility 
                                criteria established by the Secretary 
                                for payments under paragraph (2) will 
                                be met.
            ``(2) Payments.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), if 
                the State agency of a State elects to carry out food 
                stamp informational activities under paragraph (1), 
                subject to subparagraphs (B) through (E), the Secretary 
                shall pay the State agency of the State 100 percent of 
                the administrative costs incurred by the State agency 
                in carrying out food stamp informational activities, 
                including activities under section 11(e)(1)(A) and 
                outreach activities.
                    ``(B) Eligibility.--A State agency shall be 
                eligible for payments under subparagraph (A) for only 1 
                period of 3 fiscal years.
                    ``(C) State administrative costs.--The amount of 
                administrative costs for which the State agency of a 
                State may receive payments for a fiscal year under 
                subparagraph (A) shall not exceed such amount as the 
                Secretary determines is reasonable, as determined on 
                the basis of--
                            ``(i) the population of the State;
                            ``(ii) the rate of hunger in the State;
                            ``(iii) the number of households that are 
                        eligible to participate in the food stamp 
                        program but are not participating in the 
                        program; and
                            ``(iv) other factors determined by the 
                        Secretary.
                    ``(D) Maximum payment.--The amount of payments made 
                to the State agency of a State for a fiscal year under 
                subparagraph (A) shall not exceed $1,000,000.
                    ``(E) Maintenance of effort.--The expenditure of 
                funds by the State agency of a State for the 
                maintenance of food stamp informational activities 
                described in subparagraph (A) shall not be diminished 
                as a result of payments made available under this 
                paragraph.
            ``(3) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the end of the 
        third fiscal year for which the State agency of a State 
        receives payments under paragraph (2), the State agency shall 
        submit to the Secretary a brief report that measures the 
        outcomes of food stamp informational activities described in 
        paragraph (2) carried out by the State agency during the 
        preceding 3 fiscal years.''.
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