To authorize the Secretary of Defense to establish 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 commissaries.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill encourages and authorizes a Defense Department pilot program that would provide junior enlisted service members monthly commissary food coupons at selected installations.
Who Benefits and How
Junior enlisted service members living in unaccompanied housing could gain easier access to affordable food, and commissaries at pilot sites could see more use.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Defense officials would need to run a pilot at selected installations, administer the coupon benefit, and report on whether the program reduced food insecurity and shifted dining and commissary usage.
Key Provisions
- Expresses congressional concern about food access for junior enlisted personnel and families.
- Authorizes a pilot at two installations to provide monthly commissary food coupons.
- Requires a report to congressional defense committees after the pilot ends.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
This bill encourages and authorizes a Defense Department pilot program that would provide junior enlisted service members monthly commissary food coupons at selected installations.
Key Policy Areas
Defense, Food Policy
Primary Purpose
This bill encourages and authorizes a Defense Department pilot program that would provide junior enlisted service members monthly commissary food coupons at selected installations.
Policy Domains
Main Provisions
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Junior enlisted service members who could receive food coupons for commissary purchases
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Department of Defense officials administering and evaluating the commissary coupon pilot program
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Panetta introduced the following bill; which was referred to …
Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Junior enlisted service members who could receive commissary-only food coupons
Department of Defense officials running and evaluating the pilot program
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology