Recent Developments
Last updated: December 13, 2006
Hunger-Free Communities Act
Efforts by Bread for the World to pass the Hunger-Free Communities Act in the Senate were finally successful! The Senate passed the bill, S. 1120, on Friday, December 8.
The Hunger-Free Communities Act had reached a roadblock when Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) placed a hold on the bill. Bread members in Oklahoma called Senator Coburn to urge him to drop his hold. BFW President David Beckmann and former Congressman Tony Hall met with Senator Coburn on Wednesday, December 6, to discuss the senator's concerns about the bill. Through that successful meeting, we were able to reach an agreement with Senator Coburn about an amendment that would convince him to remove his hold and allow the bill to move forward in the Senate.
Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), the lead sponsor of the bill, and Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) were instrumental in getting the bill through the Senate after Senator Coburn dropped his hold. With just two legislative days left in the 109th Congress, Senator Durbin shepherded the bill to passage in the Senate and Senator Chambliss came on as a cosponsor.
As soon as we saw that the bill might move in the Senate, Bread staff acted quickly to work with our friends in the House of Representatives to try to pass the bill before the House adjourned. The bill passed the Senate Friday afternoon but we ran out of time and were unable to win passage in the House of Representatives before the House adjourned early Saturday morning.
Thousands of Bread members and coalition partners have worked tirelessly over the past two years to advance this important legislation. Each of those efforts combined to help us win passage in the Senate. While we are disappointed the bill did not pass in the House of Representatives before the end of the 109th Congress, we are optimistic about opportunities to address hunger and poverty in the new Congress.
Read the press release.
Background
The Hunger-Free Communities Act strengthens the efforts of local groups working to reduce hunger in their communities. In 2005, Bread for the World members built a strong cosponsor list for the Hunger-Free Communities Act: 45 cosponsors in the Senate (S. 1120) and 165 in the House (H.R. 2717). For a summary of the specific provisions of the bill, click here. 
