Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB164 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R659 DDT-D
2	2	By: Lucio III H.B. No. 164
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the establishment of a grocery access investment fund
8	8	program.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Title 2, Agriculture Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Chapter 26 to read as follows:
12	12	CHAPTER 26. TEXAS GROCERY ACCESS INVESTMENT FUND
13	13	Sec. 26.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
14	14	(1) "Community development financial institution" has
15	15	the meaning assigned by 12 U.S.C. Section 4702.
16	16	(2) "Financing" means a loan, grant, or forgivable
17	17	loan.
18	18	(3) "Fund" means the Texas grocery access investment
19	19	fund established by this chapter.
20	20	(4) "Grocery store" means a self-service retail store
21	21	that primarily sells meat, seafood, fruits, vegetables, dairy
22	22	products, dry groceries, household products, and sundries.
23	23	(5) "Low-income area" means a census tract, based on
24	24	the most recent information published by the United States Bureau
25	25	of the Census, in which the poverty rate is 20 percent or higher or
26	26	the median family income is at or below 81 percent of the median
27	27	family income for the state or the metropolitan statistical area.
28	28	(6) "Moderate-income area" means a census tract, based
29	29	on the most recent information published by the United States
30	30	Bureau of the Census, in which the median family income is above 81
31	31	percent and at or below 95 percent of the median family income for
32	32	the state or the metropolitan statistical area.
33	33	(7) "Program" means the Texas grocery access
34	34	investment fund program authorized by this chapter.
35	35	(8) "Supplemental nutrition assistance program" means
36	36	the nutritional assistance program formerly referred to as the food
37	37	stamp program.
38	38	(9) "Underserved area" means a census tract, based on
39	39	the most recent information published by the United States Bureau
40	40	of the Census, that has been determined to be an area with low
41	41	supermarket access by:
42	42	(A) the United States Department of Agriculture,
43	43	as identified in the Food Access Research Atlas published by that
44	44	department; or
45	45	(B) another governmental or philanthropic
46	46	healthy food initiative.
47	47	(10) "WIC program" means the federal special
48	48	supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children
49	49	authorized by 42 U.S.C. Section 1786.
50	50	Sec. 26.002. TEXAS GROCERY ACCESS INVESTMENT FUND PROGRAM.
51	51	(a) The department, in cooperation with public and private sector
52	52	partners, shall establish the Texas grocery access investment fund
53	53	program to provide financing to construct, rehabilitate, or expand
54	54	grocery stores in underserved low-income and moderate-income areas
55	55	in this state.
56	56	(b) The fund is a trust fund outside the treasury with the
57	57	comptroller and administered by the department.
58	58	(c) The fund is composed of:
59	59	(1) money appropriated to the fund by the legislature;
60	60	(2) federal, state, or private grants or loans;
61	61	(3) money received as a result of federal tax credits;
62	62	and
63	63	(4) any other type of financial assistance.
64	64	(d) Money in the fund may be appropriated only to the
65	65	department for the purposes of establishing the program authorized
66	66	by this chapter. Not less than 25 percent of the money in the fund
67	67	shall be used to provide grants or forgivable loans distributed
68	68	under the program. Not more than 10 percent of the money in the fund
69	69	may be reserved for administrative or operational costs of
70	70	operating the program, unless the costs are covered by another
71	71	budget or in-kind contributions.
72	72	Sec. 26.003. ADMINISTRATION OF TEXAS GROCERY ACCESS
73	73	INVESTMENT FUND PROGRAM. (a) The department shall contract with
74	74	one or more qualified nonprofit organizations or community
75	75	development financial institutions to administer the program
76	76	through a public-private partnership.
77	77	(b) A nonprofit organization or community development
78	78	financial institution contracted under Subsection (a) shall
79	79	establish program guidelines, raise matching funds, promote the
80	80	program statewide, evaluate applicants, underwrite and disburse
81	81	grants and loans, and monitor compliance with and the impact of the
82	82	program.
83	83	(c) The department shall establish rules or other
84	84	procedures as necessary to administer this chapter.
85	85	(d) The department shall establish monitoring and
86	86	accountability mechanisms for projects receiving financing under
87	87	the program and shall report annually to the legislature. The
88	88	report must include information regarding the projects that are
89	89	funded, the geographic distribution of the projects, the costs of
90	90	start-up and administration of the program, and the outcomes of the
91	91	projects, including the number and types of jobs created as a result
92	92	of the program and the health impact of the program.
93	93	(e) The department shall create project eligibility
94	94	guidelines and provide financing through an application process.
95	95	Projects must be located in an underserved area and primarily serve
96	96	low-income or moderate-income areas. Projects eligible for
97	97	financing include:
98	98	(1) constructing a new grocery store; and
99	99	(2) improving an existing grocery store, including
100	100	upgrading the store's infrastructure, renovating the store, or
101	101	expanding the store to improve the availability and quality of
102	102	fresh produce and other healthy food.
103	103	(f) An applicant for financing may be a for-profit or
104	104	nonprofit entity, including a sole proprietorship, partnership,
105	105	limited liability company, corporation, cooperative, nonprofit
106	106	organization, nonprofit community development entity, university,
107	107	or government entity. An applicant for financing must:
108	108	(1) demonstrate the capacity to successfully
109	109	implement the project and the likelihood that the project will be
110	110	economically self-sustaining;
111	111	(2) demonstrate the ability to repay any loan required
112	112	to be repaid; and
113	113	(3) agree, for a period of five years, to:
114	114	(A) accept benefits under the WIC program and the
115	115	supplemental nutrition assistance program;
116	116	(B) allocate 30 percent of the retail space for
117	117	the sale of perishable foods, which may include whole grains, fresh
118	118	produce, meat, poultry, seafood, and fresh or frozen dairy
119	119	products;
120	120	(C) comply with all data collection and reporting
121	121	requirements established by the department;
122	122	(D) promote the sale of fresh produce, including
123	123	Texas-grown fruits and vegetables, and fresh Texas-raised meat,
124	124	poultry, and seafood products; and
125	125	(E) promote the hiring of local residents.
126	126	(g) In determining which qualified projects to finance, the
127	127	department shall consider:
128	128	(1) the level of need in the area to be served;
129	129	(2) the amount of public funding required to make the
130	130	project move forward, create impact, or be competitive;
131	131	(3) the degree to which the project will have a
132	132	positive economic impact on the underserved area, including by
133	133	creating or retaining jobs for local residents;
134	134	(4) the degree to which the project will participate
135	135	in state and local health initiatives to educate consumers on
136	136	nutrition and promote healthy eating, including Texas A&M AgriLife
137	137	Extension Service initiatives; and
138	138	(5) any other criteria the department considers
139	139	necessary or appropriate.
140	140	(h) A recipient of financing may use funds received for the
141	141	following purposes:
142	142	(1) site acquisition and preparation;
143	143	(2) construction and build-out costs;
144	144	(3) equipment and furnishings;
145	145	(4) employee training and security;
146	146	(5) predevelopment costs, including market studies
147	147	and appraisals;
148	148	(6) energy efficiency measures; and
149	149	(7) working capital for initial inventory and start-up
150	150	costs.
151	151	SECTION 2. Not later than December 1, 2017, the Department
152	152	of Agriculture shall adopt rules to administer Chapter 26,
153	153	Agriculture Code, as added by this Act.
154	154	SECTION 3. Not later than December 15, 2017, the Department
155	155	of Agriculture shall contract with one or more nonprofit
156	156	organizations or community development financial institutions as
157	157	provided by Section 26.003, Agriculture Code, as added by this Act.
158	158	SECTION 4. Not later than January 15, 2018, the Department
159	159	of Agriculture shall transfer money to the Texas grocery access
160	160	investment fund.
161	161	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.