International Food Assistance Improvement Act of 2012 - Amends the Food for Peace Act to direct the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to: (1) improve the nutritional quality of U.S. food assistance, particularly for groups such as pregnant and lactating mothers, children under the age of five, and beneficiaries under the President's Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief in Africa; and (2) work within the Food Aid Consultative Group to increase coordination and oversight of food assistance programs.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4141 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4141
To direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development to take appropriate actions to improve the
nutritional quality, quality control, and cost effectiveness of United
States food assistance, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 5, 2012
Mr. Payne (for himself, Mr. Berman, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Woolsey, Mr.
Cohen, and Ms. Bass of California) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to
the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development to take appropriate actions to improve the
nutritional quality, quality control, and cost effectiveness of United
States food assistance, and for other purposes.
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 ``International Food Assistance
Improvement Act of 2012''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) For more than 55 years the United States, backed by the
support of the American people, has been committed to providing
life-saving food assistance to developing countries and
vulnerable populations around the world.
(2) As the largest donor of international food assistance,
an essential tool in tackling malnutrition, the United States
can lead the way in improving food aid quality to better target
undernourished women and children.
(3) The United States contributes over one-half of all food
aid supplies to alleviate hunger and support development and
plays an important role in responding to emergency food aid
needs and ensuring global food security.
(4) Over the past decade, increasing food prices and
protracted humanitarian crises around the world have made
United States food assistance even more critical and relevant.
At the same time, these factors, combined with advancements in
nutrition science, as well as severe and ongoing fiscal
constraints, have led to an increased demand by policymakers
and program implementers for new specially formulated and cost-
effective products to meet the nutritional needs of the world's
most vulnerable populations.
(5) While United States food assistance is effective in
providing critical calories and nutrients to millions of people
during short-term emergencies, the long-term impacts of these
programs have also been increasingly called into question for
not meeting the nutritional needs of recipient populations.
(6) Reducing maternal and child malnutrition, especially in
the critical 1,000 days between pregnancy and age 2, is a key
priority of United States global food security and health
initiatives, including food aid.
(7) Recent reports by the Government Accountability Office
and the United States Agency for International Development
recommended over 35 changes to United States food aid products
and programs to improve the nutritional quality, quality
control, and cost effectiveness of United States food
assistance.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) even in this time of fiscal austerity, the American
people support the United States Government's historic
commitment to providing life-saving food assistance to the
world's most vulnerable populations;
(2) high food prices, coupled with growing constraints on
available resources for foreign assistance require the United
States Government to focus on creating efficiencies, improving
quality controls, and maximizing cost-effectiveness and
nutritional impact of United States food assistance programs;
(3) improving maternal and child health with supplemental
nutrition products is a central objective of international food
assistance programs; and
(4) the United States has shown considerable leadership in
meeting the nutrition needs of pregnant women and small
children through the 1,000 Days Partnership to support the
Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) movement.
SEC. 4. PROVISION OF AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES.
Section 202(h) of the Food for Peace Act (7 U.S.C. 1722(h)) is
amended by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall use funds made
available in fiscal year 2012 and subsequent fiscal years to
carry out this title to improve the nutritional quality of
United States food assistance, particularly for vulnerable
groups such as pregnant and lactating mothers, children under
the age of five, with a focus on the cost-effective 1,000 days
between pregnancy and age 2, when appropriate, and
beneficiaries under the President's Emergency Fund for AIDS
Relief in Africa (PEPFAR), including by--
``(A) adopting new specifications or improving
existing specifications for micronutrient fortified
food aid products, based on the latest developments in
food and nutrition science;
``(B) strengthening necessary systems to better
assess the types and quality of agricultural
commodities and products donated for food assistance;
``(C) adjusting products and formulations,
including potential introduction of new fortificants
and products, as necessary to cost effectively meet
nutrient needs of target populations;
``(D) testing prototypes;
``(E) developing new program guidance to facilitate
improved matching of products to purposes having
nutritional intent, including an updated commodity
reference guide and decision tools;
``(F) developing enhanced guidance, in coordination
with the Coordinator of United States Government
Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally and PEPFAR, to
support the allocation of food commodities and products
for nutrition support in HIV programming, using
standardized indicators of impact;
``(G) providing improved guidance to implementing
partners on how to address nutritional deficiencies
that emerge among recipients for whom food assistance
is the sole source of diet in emergency programs that
extend beyond one year;
``(H) considering options for using United States-
produced food fortification packages, including vitamin
and mineral mixes, to fortify local foods in recipient
countries, as appropriate; and
``(I) evaluating, in appropriate program settings
and as necessary, the performance and cost-
effectiveness of new or modified specialized food
products and program approaches designed to meet the
nutritional needs of the most vulnerable groups.''.
SEC. 5. FOOD AID CONSULTATIVE GROUP.
(a) Membership.--Section 205(b) of the Food for Peace Act (7 U.S.C.
1725(b)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (6), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and inserting
``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(8) nutrition science experts from academia and
nongovernmental organizations.''.
(b) Coordination and Oversight.--Section 205 of the Food for Peace
Act (7 U.S.C. 1725) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), and (f) as
subsections (e), (f), and (g), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
``(d) Coordination and Oversight.--
``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall work within the
Group to take the actions described in paragraph (2) to
increase coordination and oversight of food assistance programs
established and implemented under this Act, with a primary
focus on improving quality control and cost effectiveness.
``(2) Actions described.--The actions referred to in
paragraph (1) are the following:
``(A) Explore and test options for improved
packaging and storage of products to improve shelf
life, promote recommended usage by intended
beneficiaries, and oversee field-testing of products.
``(B) Work closely with the Department of
Agriculture, to undertake reforms in commodity
acquisition and supply chain management, drawing on
best commercial practices for vendor selection, quality
assurance standards, overall management of the supply
chain, and auditing of food aid commodity suppliers.
``(C) Develop mechanisms and partnerships to
facilitate more private sector development and
innovation in food aid products, packaging, and
delivery in order to improve the cost-effectiveness,
nutritional quality, and overall acceptability of the
product.
``(D) Provide guidance to implementing partners on
whether and how best to use food aid commodities, such
as new specialized food products, including guidance on
targeting strategies to ensure that the products reach
their intended recipients.
``(E) As appropriate, work to strengthen monitoring
of commodity quality by identifying and tracking key
quality indicators to determine the full extent of
quality problems, including emerging concerns.
``(F) Establish processes and system-wide protocols
for effective monitoring and evaluation of impact, to
inform improved program design and address improving
cost-effectiveness.''.
SEC. 6. STRATEGY AND REPORT.
(a) Strategy.--The Administrator shall ensure that any United
States Government strategy relating to global food security includes a
description of how food assistance programs carried out under the Food
for Peace Act will contribute to, and be integrated with, such
strategy.
(b) Report.--The Administrator shall ensure that comprehensive
information regarding budgets and expenditures, monitoring and
evaluation, policy, and coordination of food assistance programs
carried out under the Food for Peace Act is included, as appropriate,
in relevant reports submitted to Congress pursuant to the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 and Acts making appropriations for the
Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development.
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the
Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.
SEC. 8. FUNDING.
Nothing in this Act or any amendment made by this Act shall be
construed to authorize the appropriation of amounts to carry out this
Act or any amendment made by this Act.
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Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Rural Development, Research, Biotechnology, and Foreign Agriculture.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
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