An important update. Gottheimer Fights to Make Sure No Child in Jersey Goes Hungry Pushing for School Meals for All Children As children start the new school year, Gottheimer calls to extend critical school meals program that expired. Quote: Congressman Gottheimer at Bergenfield High School, calling to extend the Keep Kids Fed Act: “I’m here today to make sure that no child in New Jersey ever has to sit in a classroom, hungry, focused on how they might get their next meal, not on the textbook in front of them. It’s critical that we reinstate key parts of the Keeping Kids Fed Act that provided universal breakfast and lunch to millions of children in qualifying schools,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5). “We cannot continue to play these ridiculous and complicated games with the health and futures of our children. We’re wasting time and money trying to figure out which school district qualifies, and which students are eligible — all while knowing that there are children who need to be fed that aren’t being fed. These kids are suffering because of endless red tape.” Click Play — Video: (News12) Gottheimer Pushes for School Meals To ensure that no student goes through their school day without the meals they need to succeed, Congressman Gottheimer recently called on House and Senate leadership to extend a critical, federally-provided school breakfast and lunch program for all students — responsible for more than 200 million meals a year in New Jersey alone. Under the current red-tape-laced bureaucratic system, there are many kids on the cusp of the federal threshold who would still go hungry in school. In fact, if a school district has fewer than five percent of students below the federal threshold, they are not even required to participate in school provided lunch programs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress gave the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) authority to grant waivers to provide school breakfast and lunch for all nationwide. Additionally, Congress extended school meals for all in the Keep Kids Fed Act through Summer 2022. Now, with the expiration of the Keep Kids Fed Act as the 2022-2023 school year begins, millions of children have now lost access to school provided meals. Nationwide, the extension of this critical program would help feed an estimated 10 million students in need and help schools save up to $100,000 a year by removing the administrative costs of analyzing and processing these calculations. With these bipartisan actions, we can ensure that no student goes through their school day without the meals they need to succeed. Read more here. In The News NJSpotlight News: Gottheimer calls on Congress to extend school lunch program NJ101.5: A New Push To Feed Kids In NJ Schools WRNJ: Gottheimer calls for extension of school breakfast, lunch for all students   Stay in Touch As always, if you are experiencing an issue with a federal agency, Congressman Gottheimer's Constituent Service team is here to listen and help with VA benefits, Social Security, Medicare, and much more. Call at 201-389-1100 or email [email protected]. You can also follow Congressman Gottheimer's Twitter here, Facebook here, and Instagram here. ### Contact Me Rep. Gottheimer | 203 Cannon HOB, Washington, DC 20515 Unsubscribe [email protected] Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice Sent by [email protected]