Kinsey Fresh Food Financing Initiative bill passes House
Rep. Morgan B. Cephas June 21, 2023 | 3:57 PM
HARRISBURG, June 21 – Today, legislation (H.B. 580) introduced by state Reps. Stephen Kinsey, Danilo Burgos and Morgan Cephas, all D-Phila., passed the Pennsylvania House and will now head to the Senate for future consideration.
This legislation would re-establish the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative, a program that operated from 2004 to 2010 and provided grants and low-interest loans for the construction, rehabilitation or expansion of grocery stores, farmers markets and other healthy food retail establishments in low- to moderate-income areas in need and other underserved communities.
“Today, we in the Pennsylvania House affirmed our commitment to ensuring all communities in our state have access to healthy, nutritious and fresh food,” Kinsey said. “I’m glad to see us one step closer to bringing back the Fresh Food Financing Initiative- now, I urge my Senate colleagues to get this bill to the governor’s desk so it can be signed into law, and we can bring back this necessary initiative.”
“I am proud to see that our efforts have paid off,” Burgos said. “We are now a step closer to providing more fresh food purchasing options to residents in underserved areas. Fresh food cannot be accepted as a privilege of a few. We are moving legislation forward for the benefit of all Pennsylvanians.”
“We are determined to make the commonwealth a more equitable state, and the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative program would certainly make fresh produce accessible for hundreds of low-income and rural neighborhoods,” Cephas said. “We are glad to say that this legislation would not only make it easier for families to put fruits and vegetables on their tables but would also boost local agricultural products throughout Pennsylvania.”