HP1066, LD 1548, item 2, Document Text

Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting clause and before the summary and inserting the following:

‘Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §12004-I, sub-§6-I is enacted to read:

6-I.

Economic Development

Food Security Council

Expenses Only

7 MRSA §220

Sec. 2. 7 MRSA §220 is enacted to read:

§ 220. Let's Grow Maine Program

1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.

A. "Committee" means the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over agriculture matters.

B. "Council" means the Food Security Council set out in subsection 3.

C. "Fund" means the Food and Farm Fund established in subsection 5.

D. "Program" means the Let's Grow Maine Program established in subsection 2.

2. Program established; purpose. The Let's Grow Maine Program is established to procure fruits and vegetables from farm businesses in the State for distribution to schools and low-income families with children, through a public and private partnership, in order to provide hunger relief. The primary function of the program is the purchase of fruits and vegetables grown in the State at a volume that meets the emergency food assistance needs in the State, subject to the need to develop effective storage and delivery capacity for this food.

3. Food Security Council. The Food Security Council, established in Title 5, section 12004-I, subsection 6-I, is an advisory council that is responsible for determining regional emergency food assistance needs and developing a comprehensive strategy to focus allocation of resources under the program. The council is composed of the following members:

A. Nine voting members representing each of the 9 public health districts described in Title 22, section 411, appointed by the Governor; and

B. Four nonvoting members, as follows:

(1) The director of the State's emergency food assistance program, or the commissioner's designee;

(2) A representative of the Department of Health and Human Services, Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention appointed by the Commissioner of Health and Human Services; and

(3) Two private sector professionals with expertise in the State's emergency food network, one appointed by the President of the Senate and one appointed by the Speaker of the House, each appointed to a 2-year term.

4. Legislative oversight. The committee has legislative oversight of the council. The council shall submit recommendations to the department no later than February 1st of each year. If the council does not submit recommendations to the department, the committee shall develop and report the committee's own recommendations to the department by April 1st of each year. The department shall submit a report annually, by January 15th, to the committee, providing an update on the status of the program and expenditures from the fund.

5. Food and Farm Fund. The Food and Farm Fund is established as a special fund in the State Treasury. The department shall administer the fund exclusively for the purpose of administering the program established by this section, including the costs of fund administration. All money in the fund must be deposited, administered and disbursed in the same manner and under the same conditions and requirements as are provided by law for other special funds. Any unencumbered balance in the fund remaining at the end of any fiscal year does not lapse but must be carried forward for continued use in the program.

Funds may be used for the purchase of fruits and vegetables, cold storage, storage infrastructure, transportation or other purposes as recommended by the council and determined by the department that will help to establish a more efficient and effective supply chain of emergency food assistance resources. Funds may also be used for culinary and nutrition education and home delivery of resources for homebound individuals.

Beginning July 1, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services shall transfer $10,000,000 annually from federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant funds to the fund to be used for the purposes of this section.

The department may accept and deposit in the fund additional funding from any source, public or private.

6. Administration. The department shall administer the program. In administering the program, the department shall consider the recommendations submitted by the council or the committee pursuant to subsection 4 but is not bound to take any action in response to these recommendations. The department shall administer the program through the use of private sector partners selected by issuing and broadly publicizing competitive requests for proposals. Requests for proposals may be used for, but are not limited to, purchase of physical assets for storage, infrastructure and transportation, programmatic recommendations and contracts with farmers in the State to grow certain volumes of produce.’

SUMMARY

This amendment changes administration of the proposed Let's Grow Maine Program from the Finance Authority of Maine to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, deletes provisions increasing taxes on certain tobacco products and provides funding for the program from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant funds.

HP1066 LD 1548	Session - 128th Maine Legislature C "A", Filing Number H-492, Sponsored by		LR 810 Item 2
	Bill Tracking, Additional Documents	Chamber Status

Bill Tracking		Chamber Status
Amendments	Testimony, Public Hearings & Work Sessions		Committee Information for this Bill
Other Documents			Title & Section

Search Bill Text		Search Bill Status
Bill Directory	Current Committees		Legislative Information
Download MS-Word, Printed PDF		Maine Legislature

Office of Legislative Information 100 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333		voice: (207) 287-1692 fax: (207) 287-1580 tty: (207) 287-6826
Word Viewer for Windows		Disclaimer