Amendment #943 to H4200

Nutritional Needs of Homeless Families

Representatives Scibak of South Hadley, Ashe of Longmeadow, Fox of Boston, Gonzalez of Springfield, Gordon of Bedford, Khan of Newton, McMurtry of Dedham, O'Connell of Taunton, Provost of Somerville, Rogers of Cambridge, Sannicandro of Ashland, Schmid of Westport and Whipps Lee of Athol move to amend the bill, by inserting after Section 50 the following section:

Section 51. Chapter 23B of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding after section 30 the following section:-

Section 31. The department shall create a working group to assess the need for and methods to provide nutritious and medically safe meals to homeless families temporarily housed in hotels and motels in all counties of the Commonwealth. The working group shall be chaired by the commissioner of the department of housing and community development or a designee. Membership of said working group shall include, but not be limited to, the department of transitional assistance, the department of children and families, the department of mental health, the department of public health, the department of elementary and secondary education, representatives from all regional food banks, representatives from organizations serving homeless families, civil legal aide, Community Servings, Project Bread, Food For Free and a geographic representation of hospitals providing services to medically complex children. The working group shall submit a report of its findings to the joint committee on housing and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities no later than one year following the enactment of this section and shall report annually on progress toward providing nutritious meals to homeless families temporarily housed in hotels and motels.