Hunger in Texas
Texas leads the nation in hunger, ranked second for all hunger and FIRST in terms of childhood hunger. This means that 1 in 4 Texas children go to bed hungry each night. Dallas County has over 65% of all of its public school students qualifying for the National School Lunch Program, and over 84% of all the students in the Dallas Independent School District qualify. This means that over 300,000 children in Dallas County will benefit from the passage of this Act and the programs it supports, such as the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs, Womens, Infant and Children (WIC), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
This Act also represents an opportunity to enact legislation which demonstrates broad bipartisan support and a strong community backing from anti-hunger advocates, public health organizations, faith based organizations, as well as many members of the food and beverage industry. This Act is not just about hunger and nutrition but health and wellness. Our children deserve to live long, healthy lives.