,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bggb ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #aa1 #bjbe ,mr4 ,warnock 7for himself and ,mr4 ,marshall7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,armed ,services ,a ,,bill ,to authorize the ,secretary of ,defense to conduct a pilot program to provide coupons to junior enlisted members to purchase food at commissaries4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,commissary ,healthy ,options and servicemember ,welfare 7,,chow7 ,act4 #b4 ,pilot program to provide coupons to junior enlisted members to purchase food at commissaries 7a7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 members of the ,armed ,forces and their families deserve access to affordable and healthy food options1 including during their duty day2 7#b7 there has been increased awareness about the challenges members and their families face in accessing affordable and healthy food options2 7#c7 those challenges have been especially acute for unaccompanied junior enlisted members who live in government-provided quarters on military installations2 and 7#d7 the ,department of ,defense should explore a variety of proposals for expanding the accessibility of healthy and affordable food options to members1 especially members who live in unaccompanied housing on military installations4 7b7 ,pilot program 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,defense may conduct a pilot program to assess the efficacy of providing junior enlisted members of the ,armed ,forces a monthly coupon for use in procuring food at commissaries4 7#b7 ,selection of installations 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary may conduct the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a7 at #b military installations4 7,b7 ,considerations ,in selecting installations for the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall consider installations with-- 7i7 large numbers of enlisted members who live in unaccompanied housing2 7ii7 the largest ratios of enlisted members to commissioned officers2 7iii7 unaccompanied housing that provides access to functioning kitchens that residents may use to prepare meals2 7iv7 commissaries that are experimenting with or expanding their selection of nutritious and minimally processed ready-made and easy-to-make food options2 7v7 low rates of attendance at dining facilities2 7vi7 low customer satisfaction ratings for dining facilities1 including installations with complaints about dining facilities submitted through the ,interactive ,customer ,evaluation system of the ,department of ,defense2 and 7vii7 commissaries located within easily accessible distances from unaccompanied housing4 7#c7 ,coupons 7,a7 ,amount ,the ,secretary may determine the amount of the coupons to be provided under the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a74 7,b7 ,use 7i7 ,in general ,a coupon provided under the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a7 may be used only to purchase food at commissaries4 7ii7 ,exclusions ,a coupon provided under the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a7 may not be used-- 7,i7 to purchase alcoholic beverages or tobacco2 or 7,,ii7 to pay any deposit fee in excess of the amount of the ,state fee reimbursement 7if any7 required to purchase any food or food product contained in a returnable bottle or can1 without regard to whether the fee is included in the shelf price posted for the food or food product4 7,c7 ,supplement to other food assistance ,a coupon provided to a member under the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a7 shall be supplement and not supplant-- 7i7 the basic allowance for subsistence under section #djb of title #cg1 ,united ,states ,code2 and 7ii7 any program to provide meals or rations in kind for which the member is eligible4 7#d7 ,duration of pilot program ,the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a7 shall terminate not later than one year after the pilot program commences4 7#e7 ,report required 7,a7 ,in general ,not later than #ij days after the termination under paragraph 7#d7 of the pilot program authorized by paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary of ,defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report detailing the results of the pilot program4 7,b7 ,elements ,the report required by subparagraph 7,a7 shall include an assessment of the following3 7i7 ,the use of coupons by members who received coupons under the pilot program4 7ii7 ,the satisfaction of and feedback from such members relating to the coupons4 7iii7 ,the impact of providing the coupons on-- 7,i7 the rates at which such members used commissaries2 and 7,,ii7 the rates at which such members used dining facilities on their installations4 7iv7 ,historical rates of use of dining facilities on installations and historical customer satisfaction metrics for such facilities1 including the number of complaints with respect to such facilities submitted through the ,interactive ,customer ,evaluation system of the ,department of ,defense4 7v7 ,the efficacy of the pilot program in-- 7,i7 reducing food insecurity rates among junior enlisted members2 7,,ii7 increasing the availability of nutritious food options for such members at commissaries2 and 7,,iii7 increasing the availability of nutritious food options for such members generally1 including such members living in unaccompanied housing4 7c7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,congressional defense committees ,the term congressional defense committees has the meaning given the term in section #aja7;a77#af7 of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code4 7#b7 ,coupon ,the term coupon means a voucher or monetary benefit for a member of the ,armed ,forces that may be used only at a commissary for the purchase of food4 7#c7 ,food ,the term food means any food or food product intended for home consumption1 including a ready-made food item4