BILL NUMBER: ACR 154CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 173 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 ADOPTED IN SENATE AUGUST 25, 2016 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 31, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 31, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Gipson (Coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bloom, Bonilla, Brough, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau, Chvez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Hadley, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, and Wood) MARCH 14, 2016 Relative to National Nutrition Month. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST ACR 154, Gipson. National Nutrition Month. This measure would recognize the month of March 2016 as National Nutrition Month. WHEREAS, CalFresh is a federally mandated, state-supervised, and county-operated government program designed to eliminate hunger in the United States that serves over four million Californians living in poverty, providing them an important lifeline by giving them access to food to feed themselves and their families; and WHEREAS, It is important to California's economy to fully use every possible source of funding for its safety net programs; and WHEREAS, Federal benefit dollars such as those brought in by CalFresh not only provide critical nutrition assistance to our state' s neediest residents, but they directly benefit local economies and jobs; and WHEREAS, According to the United States Department of Agriculture, every $1 of additional federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits results in $1.79 of new local economic activity; and WHEREAS, All potentially eligible families in California need to be aware and use nutrition programs to help stay healthy and stretch food dollars during these difficult economic times; and WHEREAS, CalFresh benefits help families stretch their food dollars to buy more healthy foods for the whole family; and WHEREAS, California grocers are on the front-lines of providing healthy foods to these communities on a daily basis; and WHEREAS, California grocers have remained committed to the effort of CalFresh along with raising the awareness of the program within the communities they serve; and WHEREAS, It is important for grocery stores to promote wellness by providing consumers with fresh quality products every day because they understand that communities who eat healthy are less likely to have to go to the doctor due to preventable conditions; and WHEREAS, The partnership between Calfresh and California grocers remains as strong as ever, particularly in these times of need; and WHEREAS, The month of March is National Nutrition Month, and should serve as an opportunity to recognize that no one diet is right for everyone, but it is important to maintain wholesome food choices as part of a healthy lifestyle; now, therefore be it Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature recognizes the importance and value of the CalFresh program in conjunction with California grocers in feeding families and promoting healthy eating; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature recognizes the month of March 2016 as National Nutrition Month, and encourages all Californians to join the campaign and become concerned about their nutrition and the nutrition of others in the hope of achieving optimum health for both today and tomorrow; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of the resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.