S5184Referred to Committee

FORK Act of 2026

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Introduced
In Committee
3
Passed One Chamber
4
Passed Both
5
Signed into Law
119th
Congress
2026-07-30
Introduced
2
Cosponsors
S
ⓘ
Type

Sponsor

Jeff Merkley
Jeff Merkley
Democrat · OR · Senator
Votes with party: 85.6% (874 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/M001176

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (2)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

2026-07-30

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

Currently in

Plain-English Summary

The proposal would create a test program allowing schools to use mobile vehicles to deliver free meals to children during summer months when school is not in session, helping ensure low-income students have access to nutrition when they're not eating at school cafeterias. The pilot program would test different approaches to reaching kids in their communities during the summer break. This affects school districts, students from low-income families, and nutrition programs that currently serve meals primarily during the school year.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

Full Bill Text

Verbatim text published on Congress.gov via GovInfo. Use Cmd+F / Ctrl+F to search within this excerpt.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 5184 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 5184 To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish a summer meal delivery vehicle pilot program, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 30, 2026 Mr. Merkley (for himself, Mr. Welch, and Mr. Wyden) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish a summer meal delivery vehicle pilot program, 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 ``Feeding Our Rural Kids Act of 2026'' or the ``FORK Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. SUMMER MEAL DELIVERY VEHICLE PILOT PROGRAM. Section 13(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1761(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(14) Summer meal delivery vehicle pilot program.-- ``(A) Definition of eligible entity.--In this paragraph, the term `eligible entity' means a service institution. ``(B) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a pilot program (referred to in this paragraph as the `pilot program'), to be carried out beginning with the first summer following the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of this paragraph, to award grants to eligible entities to purchase, retrofit, or repair vehicles to facilitate the distribution of noncongregate meals made available pursuant to this section. ``(C) Priority.--In awarding grants under the pilot program, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities located in-- ``(i) an area in which poor economic conditions exist; ``(ii) an area outside a core-based statistical area (as defined in section 4 of the MAPS Act of 2021 (31 U.S.C. 6102 note; Public Law 117-219)); and ``(iii) an area that serves a high proportion of students from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. ``(D) Locations.--In awarding grants under the pilot program, the Secretary shall ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that eligible entities receiving grants are located in different States. ``(E) Grants.-- ``(i) Term.--The term of a grant awarded under the pilot program shall be 1 year. ``(ii) Maximum amount.--The amount of a grant awarded under the pilot program shall not exceed $100,000. ``(iii) Administrative expenses.--An eligible entity awarded a grant under the pilot program shall use not more than 10 percent of grant funds for administrative expenses. ``(iv) Report requirement.--An eligible entity awarded a grant under the pilot program shall periodically submit to the Secretary, at such intervals as determined by the Secretary, a report describing the use and impact of the grant funds, including-- ``(I) the number of sites, and type of sites, that benefitted from the grant funds; ``(II) the number of children served as a result of the grant funds; and ``(F) Technical assistance; best practices.--The Secretary shall provide technical assistance to, and share best practices with, eligible entities that receive grants under the pilot program. ``(G) Report.--Not later than 4 years after the date of establishment of the pilot program, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the administration of the pilot program, including a summary of the reports received by the Secretary under subparagraph (E)(iv). ``(H) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out the pilot program $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2029.''. <all>
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