February 16, 2024
Do students have enough time to eat lunch in Colorado public schools? Representative Jenny Willford (D-Adams County) recently introduced a new bill during the 2024 state legislative session that considers this important question, along with time to play.
January 24, 2024
Congress passed a bill last Thursday to avoid a government shutdown, but their new continuing resolution does not provide full funding for WIC, federally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children.
Find out what’s at stake for Colorado families and communities — and how you can take action to protect WIC in the federal budget.
January 9, 2024
The health and well-being of approximately 25,000 Colorado families are in jeopardy if Congress does not sufficiently fund the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which supports young children and pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum adults.
Right now, the U.S. Senate and House appropriations bills do not fully fund the national program, meaning there could be a $1 billion shortfall in 2024. The current continuing resolution that provides funding for WIC is scheduled to expire on Friday, Jan. 19.
December 14, 2023
The Blueprint is getting ready for the 2024 state legislative session – and we’re teaming up with Nourish Colorado to ensure students have enough time to eat during the school day. Representative Jenny Willford (D-Adams County) plans to introduce a bill in early January to create a task force focused on looking at best practices for time to eat in school settings.
December 14, 2023
The SNAP Advocacy for the Houseless project team of Workgroup 4: SNAP & WIC Enrollment is leading efforts to advocate for the implementation of a restaurant meals program in Colorado, which would allow certain participants of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to use benefits to purchase prepared meals at participating restaurants and better access nutritionally balanced meals. This includes those who may struggle to buy and prepare meals in their homes like older adults, those experiencing homelessness, individuals with disabilities, and military veterans. The program also would support restaurant owners and operators by increasing revenue, in addition to growing the state’s workforce, which in turn benefits local economies and communities.
November 29, 2023
The Blueprint’s State Policy Committee recently voted to endorse the Healthy Drinks in Kid’s Meal strategy, expressing support for the recommendation to ensure the automatic beverage that comes with a kids’ meal is a healthy one. The Healthy Beverage Partnership is a collaborative effort of local public health agencies and community partners to reduce the prevalence of chronic diseases and address health inequities by supporting municipal-level sugary drink reduction policies across Colorado.
November 21, 2023
Colorado children, especially those in rural communities, will have more access to adequate, nutritious foods next summer, thanks to the actions of state lawmakers and advocates during the special legislative session.
After advancing from both the Senate and House of Representatives, Senate Bill 23B-002 will be signed into law by Governor Polis sometime next week. The legislation supports Colorado in implementing a new federally funded program for school-age children and their families to purchase needed groceries during the summer months.
November 14, 2023
With Gov. Jared Polis’ call for a special legislative session from November 17 – 19, state lawmakers will tackle another urgent issue besides property taxes – ensuring Colorado children, especially those in rural communities, can access adequate, nourishing foods during summer break in 2024.
Learn more about the Summer EBT Nutrition bill and how you can take action.
October 5, 2023
The Blueprint and partners are advocating for more time to eat in Colorado schools – and seek advocacy support from other network partners! They’ll soon submit a letter to Colorado’s State Board of Education requesting that lunch periods be included in instructional time since research shows the positive impacts on student learning, development, and overall well-being.
October 4, 2023
While Congress avoided a government shutdown for at least 45 days, the full federal budget for 2024 remains up for debate and includes annual funding for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Last week, U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen led Colorado’s Democratic delegation in urging Congressional leadership to fully fund WIC.
