S. 3484: Menu Education and Labeling Act

109th Congress · introduced 2006-06-08 · Agriculture and Food · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2006-06-08 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Harkin, Tom [D-IA] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Menu Education and Labeling Act

Plain summary

Menu Education and Labeling Act or the MEAL Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to require restaurants that are a part of a chain with 20 or more locations doing business under the same trade name to disclose: (1) in a statement adjacent to each menu item, the number of calories, grams of saturated fat plus trans fat, and milligrams of sodium in a standard food serving; (2) other information designed to enable the public to understand the significance of the nutrition information provided in the context of a total daily diet; (3) that such information shall be provided in writing upon request; and (4) in a statement adjacent to the name of the food on a menu board, the number of calories in a serving of the food. Exempts condiments, items placed on a table or counter for general use, daily specials, temporary menu items, and irregular menu items from these requirements. Requires restaurants that sell self-serve food, such as through salad bars or buffet lines, to place a sign that lists the number of calories per standard serving adjacent to each food offered. Permits retail food establishments to voluntarily provide, and states to require, additional nutritional information. Requires vending machine operators to provide a conspicuous sign disclosing the number of calories in each item of food offered.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Menu Education and Labeling Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Harkin, Tom [D-IA] · 1 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Maria Cantwell (D-WA)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-109s3484.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/109/s>

Record fed-us-cong109-s3484 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong109 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong109