New York S 4162: Relates to expanding the FreshConnect program

Bill Text

STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          4162
                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    February 3, 2025
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by Sens. BAILEY, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and
          when printed to be committed to the Committee on Agriculture
        AN ACT to incentivize the purchase of local produce in supermarkets  and
          grocery stores through the FreshConnect program
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. (a) For the purposes of this act the following terms  shall
     2  have the following meanings:
     3    (i)  "local  produce" means produce grown by a producer with the pride
     4  of New York symbol of the business claiming the local produce tax credit
     5  within the state of New York, from  seed  or  conception  through  final
     6  product.
     7    (ii)  "producer"  means  an individual, whether acting individually or
     8  through a cooperative, corporation, partnership,  business  association,
     9  or  educational institution, who is a farmer, student farmer or manufac-
    10  turer of foods or goods in  New  York  state.  It  shall  not,  however,
    11  include a wholesaler or distributor.
    12    (iii) "supermarket" or "grocery store" means a retail store at a given
    13  location  devoted  to  the  sale of foods, food stuffs and groceries for
    14  human consumption regularly and customarily sold in a bona  fide  manner
    15  for  consumption off of the premises. The following shall not be consid-
    16  ered supermarkets or grocery  stores  for  the  purposes  of  this  act:
    17  hotels,  motels, restaurants, cafeterias, bakeries, caterers, hospitals,
    18  assisted  living  facilities,  independent  living  facilities,  nursing
    19  homes,  hospices,  group  homes,  drug stores, educational institutions,
    20  food courts in shopping malls,  food  retailers  at  airports  or  other
    21  transportation  facilities,  gas stations, sports arenas, movie theaters
    22  or any other similar establishments.
    23    (b) The commissioner of  agriculture  and  markets  shall  expand  the
    24  FreshConnect  program, which improves access to local produce by provid-
    25  ing certain people with two dollar rebates to be used for  the  purchase
         EXPLANATION--Matter in  (underscored) is new; matter in bracketsitalics
                              [] is old law to be omitted. 
                                                                   LBD08421-01-5

        S. 4162                             2
     1  of  further  local  produce  for  every  two  dollars  of  local produce
     2  purchased, to include local produce sold  in  supermarkets  and  grocery
     3  stores.
     4    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
     5  it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
     6  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
     7  tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made on or
     8  before such date.