Children's Nutrition Assistance Act of 1992
Public Law 102-512 · S. 2875 · 102nd Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by George H. W. Bush (R) on Oct 24, 1992 · Agriculture and Food
Sponsor: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Cosponsors: None
Passage votes
- HouseUnanimous consent
- SenateVoice vote
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Children's Nutrition Assistance Act of 1992 - Title I: Homeless Children's Assistance - Homeless Children's Assistance Act of 1992 - Amends the National School Lunch Act to provide that each private nonprofit organization shall operate not more than five food service sites under a certain demonstration program. (Public organizations are thus not limited in the number of sites they may operate.)
Amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to modify the guidelines for the Secretary of Health and Human Services to follow in allocating returned funds to the States. (Allows the Secretary to estimate anticipated returns of unused State administrative expense funds and allocate an equivalent amount to homeless programs in advance of need.)
Title II: WIC Infant Formula Procurement - WIC Infant Formula Procurement Act of 1992 - Amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to set forth guidelines under which the Secretary of Agriculture (the Secretary) shall offer to solicit bids on behalf of State agencies regarding cost-containment contracts to be entered into by infant formula manufacturers and those State agencies. Directs the Secretary to make the offer to agencies once every 12 months. Prescribes guidelines for the solicitation and selection process.
Prescribes guidelines to reduce the costs of any supplemental foods.
Establishes a civil penalty for companies that engage in price-fixing or related anticompetitive practices. Authorizes the Secretary to disqualify such companies from participating in the WIC Program for two years.
Requires each State agency to advise the Secretary which procedures it will use to reduce the purchase of low-iron infant formula for infants for whom such formula has not been prescribed by an appropriate health professional.
Directs the Secretary to allocate amounts to each State agency for nutrition services and administration on the basis of a prescribed formula which may provide funds to help defray reasonable anticipated expenses associated with innovations in cost-containment or associated with procedures that tend to enhance competition.
Sets a deadline by which the Secretary must report to certain congressional committees on: (1) State agencies that request the Secretary to conduct bid solicitations for infant formula under the Act; and (2) cost reductions achieved by the solicitations.
Sets a termination date for the authorities provided by this Act.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee · Senate · discharged from, referred toSubcommittee: Research, Nutrition, and General Legislation Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 13 actions.
- Oct 24, 1992Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 102-512.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Oct 15, 1992PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- Oct 6, 1992FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On passage Passed without objection.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Kildee asked unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table and consider.
- FloorFloor · Considered by unanimous consent.
- Oct 5, 1992FloorFloor · Passed Senate with an amendment and an amendment to the Title by Voice Vote.
- FloorFloor · Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Discharged from Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee
- Jul 31, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Research, Nutrition, and General Legislation Subcommittee of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee
- Jun 19, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee
- Jun 18, 1992IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.