skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Bill in Congress Would Address Need for Summer Meals

play audio
Play

Tuesday, June 25, 2019   

SEATTLE — While summer provides a break from school, it also can be a season of hunger for some kids. A bill in Congress could help address this issue.

Congressman Rick Larsen, D-Wash., is co-sponsoring the Summer Meals Act of 2019 to better integrate summer education and meals programs and help children in underserved areas access meal sites by addressing issues such as transportation.

According to Rep. Larsen, the bill would eliminate red tape for partnerships between public and private organizations, such as nonprofits.

"It isn't just a matter of ensuring we're helping provide the food, but we need to have partners in the communities to help make that happen as well,” Larsen said.

More than 380,000 kids in Washington state are in food-insecure homes, meaning they aren't sure where their next meal will come from. On average, families spend about $300 more each month on meals during the summer.

David Beard, policy and advocacy director for School's Out Washington, said summer can be a struggle for working families that typically rely on free and reduced-price meals during the school year.

"Many kids lose access to a square meal and sometimes multiple meals a day,” Beard said. “So summer becomes a very critical time for them to be able to have access to healthy foods as well as time to learn and continue growing over the summer."

A major resource for families is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Summer Food Service Program, which offers free meal sites for kids 18 years and younger. Last year, more than 930 meal sites across Washington served about 45,000 children per day.

Nearby Summer Food Service Program sites can be found on the USDA website.

Disclosure: School's Out Washington contributes to our fund for reporting. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021