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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2021 - 2022
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | March 30, 2022 05:01 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Michele Brooks |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Allowing Whole Milk in Schools |
| The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 put restrictive regulations on the consumption of whole milk in schools. In the first two years this legislation was enacted, 1.2 million fewer students drank milk with their lunch, yet still had access to sugary drinks that offer no nutritional value. This not only has terrible health and nutrition impacts on children, but major economic impacts, especially in Pennsylvania. According to a Senate Majority Policy Committee public hearing in June of 2021, farming in Pennsylvania is the #1 industry, and Pennsylvania has the 2nd most dairy farms in the nation, coming only behind Wisconsin. We are #7 in milk production nationwide, and the industry supports 52,000 jobs in the Commonwealth, and contributes $14.7 billion to Pennsylvania’s economy. According to testimony offered by Jayne Sebright of the Center for Dairy Excellence, milk is the best food source for calcium, potassium and vitamin D, which many are most lacking in their diets. And, according to testimony by the PA Milk Marketing Board, whole milk only contains no more than 3.5% fat, and one-third of milk’s fatty acids are Omega-3, which have been linked to many health benefits, including improved heart and brain health, and a lower risk of cancer. This fat is necessary in the daily diet and energy to support cell growth. Other health benefits of milk include improved bone health, lower blood pressure, and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes. This legislation will mirror HB 2397. As Representatives Lawrence and Owlett stated in their cosponsorship memo: “Milk that is produced, processed, and sold completely within the Commonwealth is a matter of intrastate, not interstate, commerce. Schools within Pennsylvania, using Pennsylvania funds, should not be denied the ability to purchase a Pennsylvania agricultural product to serve to Pennsylvania school children. The Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution states ‘The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.’ Purely intrastate production and consumption of food is a state matter, not a federal matter. Pennsylvania milk purchased with Pennsylvania tax dollars and consumed in Pennsylvania schools is a purely intrastate issue. The Commerce Clause does not apply, provided that the milk in question has not crossed state lines. This legislation will ensure Pennsylvania students, at Pennsylvania schools, have the option to consume Pennsylvania whole and two percent reduced fat milk paid for with Pennsylvania tax dollars.” I hope you will join me in cosponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as SB1181