Bill Text: NY S00829 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Clarifies the provisions relating to the establishment and priorities of the New York state council on hunger and food policy.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2023-01-23 - SUBSTITUTED BY A615 [S00829 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S00829-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 829 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 6, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to the establishment and priorities of the New York state council on hunger and food policy The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivisions 6-a and 52 of section 16 of the agriculture 2 and markets law, subdivision 6-a as added and subdivision 52 as amended 3 by a chapter of the laws of 2022 amending the agriculture and markets 4 law and the economic development law relating to procurement of locally 5 grown farm and food products and codifying the New York state council on 6 food policy, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 549-B and A. 7 3954-B, are amended to read as follows: 8 6-a. Establish [a] the New York state council on hunger and food poli- 9 cy. The purpose of the council shall be to [develop] advise the state 10 on the development of comprehensive, coordinated state food policies 11 with the goal of: ensuring that all citizens of the state are able to 12 eat a healthy diet and avoid food insecurity while consuming New York 13 grown and produced foods as much as possible. The council shall work to: 14 support and facilitate the growth of a New York-based local farm and 15 food product economy that revitalizes rural, suburban and urban communi- 16 ties, creates jobs, and supports economic growth through promoting and 17 developing local farm and food businesses and their products and helps 18 to make them more available to New York residents; and promote healthy 19 eating through a plentiful, accessible, affordable, safe and nutritious 20 food supply with access to fresh and minimally processed foods including 21 a readily available supply of such food during emergencies. 22 (a) The [responsibilities] priorities of the council shall include, 23 but are not limited to, developing and recommending policies and plans 24 to [achieve the following]: 25 (i) [a food policy for the state which recognizes that it is in the26best interests of the state to] ensure the availability of and expand EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03940-01-3S. 829 2 1 access to an adequate supply of affordable, fresh and nutritious food to 2 its residents; 3 (ii) [state policies to] expand agricultural production and process- 4 ing, including locally-grown and organically-grown food; 5 (iii) [a strategic plan for implementation of the state food policy,6including benchmarks and criteria for measuring progress in achieving7state food policy objectives;8(iv) offer comments on state regulations, legislation and budget9proposals in the area of food policy, to ensure a coordinated and10comprehensive inter-agency approach to food policy issues;11(v) assist state agencies, state-owned facilities, and other entities12with the purchase of local farm or food products and with tracking and13reporting of such purchases in order to meet the goals established in14this section;15(vi)] assist local farm and food businesses to succeed and grow, espe- 16 cially beginning and new owners and those historically underrepresented 17 or marginalized in agriculture or the food industry, to identify and 18 secure necessary resources and equipment to begin, maintain, and expand 19 projects and networks necessary for the development of local farm or 20 food products; 21 [(vii)] (iv) reduce barriers affecting food-insecure populations in 22 rural and urban spaces; 23 (v) facilitate the building of infrastructure, including, but not 24 limited to, aggregation, processing, storage, packaging, distribution, 25 and marketing facilities necessary to move local farm or food products 26 to local and other markets; 27 [(viii)] (vi) support and expand programs that recruit, train, and 28 provide technical assistance to New York farmers, food producers, food 29 processors and residents in order to encourage the production and proc- 30 essing of local farm or food products; 31 [(ix)] (vii) coordinate interagency [policies] programs, initiatives, 32 and procedures promoting local farm and food products in New York commu- 33 nities, by working with and involving state, federal, and local agen- 34 cies, as well as [community based] community-based organizations, educa- 35 tional institutions, and trade organizations in executing the purposes 36 of this section; 37 [(x)] (viii) eliminate statutory and legal barriers hindering the 38 development of a local farm and food economy by working with federal, 39 state, and local agencies, other agencies and applicable entities, to 40 [create] ensure consistent and compatible laws and regulations for the 41 production, processing, storage, distribution, and marketing of local 42 farm or food products; 43 [(xi)] (ix) facilitate the use of public lands for growing local farm 44 or food products by working with governmental entities at the local, 45 state, and federal levels; 46 [(xii) set annual goals for all purchases of local farm or food47products by New York residents and to monitor the development and expan-48sion of a local farm and food economy through data collection, tracking,49measurement, analysis, and reporting on progress made in an annual50report to the legislature; and51(xiii)] (x) initiate and facilitate public awareness campaigns about 52 the economic benefits of a local farm and food economy[.]; 53 (xi) improve access to nutrition assistance programs and transporta- 54 tion options, enhance infrastructure, and decrease socio-economic 55 disparities that contribute to the prevalence of food insecurity;S. 829 3 1 (xii) alleviate geographic and economic barriers to improve access to 2 healthy fresh food and reduce hunger among New Yorkers; 3 (xiii) eliminate barriers impacting a consumer's ability to purchase 4 healthy food; and 5 (xiv) encourage state agencies and community partners to share ideas 6 for reducing food-related chronic disease and promoting well-balanced 7 child nutrition. 8 (b) [(i)] The council shall consist of [thirteen voting] twenty-five 9 members designated by the commissioner as follows: [six members with10experience and expertise related to agriculture, nutrition, food insecu-11rity or food policy appointed on the recommendation of the legislative12leaders, two each by the temporary president of the senate and the13speaker of the assembly, and one each by the minority leader of the14senate, and the minority leader of the assembly; the dean of the New15York state college of agriculture and life sciences; and six members16shall be appointed by the governor.17(ii) The council shall consult on a regular basis with an advisory18board consisting of: the commissioner, the commissioner of health, the19commissioner of the office of temporary and disability assistance, the20commissioner of the office of children and family services, the commis-21sioner of education, the commissioner of the department of economic22development, the commissioner of the department of environmental conser-23vation, the director of the office for the aging, the director of the24office of general services, and eight members appointed by the gover-25nor.] (i) the commissioner, the commissioner of health, the commissioner 26 of the office of temporary and disability assistance, the commissioner 27 of education, the commissioner of the department of economic develop- 28 ment, and the director of the office for the aging; 29 (ii) eight members with experience and expertise related to agricul- 30 ture, nutrition, or food policy, of which four shall be designated on 31 the recommendation of the legislative leaders, one each by the temporary 32 president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority lead- 33 er of the senate, and the minority leader of the assembly; 34 (iii) the dean of the New York state college of agriculture and life 35 sciences; 36 (iv) one member representing farm organizations; 37 (v) one member representing school food administrators; 38 (vi) one member representing consumers; 39 (vii) two members representing an organization that provides food 40 assistance; 41 (viii) one member representing anti-hunger advocates; 42 (ix) one member who is a nutritionist; and 43 (x) three members representing the food industry, including producers, 44 distributors, processors or retailers who are residents of and work in 45 the state of New York, at least one of whom produces organic food. 46 (c) [(i) The six council members selected by the legislative leaders47shall be appointed to three-year staggered terms as determined by the48legislature. Such persons may be nominated by organizations representing49the sectors outlined in paragraph (b) of this subdivision. Vacancies50shall be filled by the legislative leaders.51(ii) The six council members selected by the governor and the dean of52the New York state college of agriculture and life sciences shall be53appointed to three-year staggered terms as determined by the governor.54(iii) The members of the advisory board shall be appointed to three-55year staggered terms as determined by the governor. Such persons shall56be nominated by organizations representing the sectors outlined in para-S. 829 4 1graph (b) of this subdivision. Vacancies shall be filled by the gover-2nor.] The commissioner shall serve as the chairperson of the council. 3 (d) [The board of directors shall elect its presiding officers from4among its members and may elect or appoint an executive committee, other5committees, and subcommittees to conduct the business of the organiza-6tion.7(e)] The council shall issue a written report on the [first] thirtieth 8 day of [December] January each year on: (i) the activities of the coun- 9 cil during the preceding year; (ii) recommended food policies and 10 actions for the state; (iii) [recommended changes to the strategic plan;11(iv)] an account of the progress made in achieving the goals of the 12 council; and [(v)] (iv) actions which are necessary to implement the 13 recommendations of the council and effectuate its purposes. 14 [(f)] (e) The state governmental agencies represented on the [board of15directors] council may re-direct existing staff, as appropriations 16 permit; assist in executing the purposes of this subdivision; and 17 provide office space, meeting space, and other research and communi- 18 cation services as appropriate. 19 [(g)] (f) No member of the council shall be disqualified from holding 20 any public office or employment, nor shall he or she forfeit any such 21 office or employment by virtue of his or her appointment hereunder. 22 Members of the council shall receive no compensation for their services 23 but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the 24 performance of their functions hereunder. [All members of the council25shall serve at the pleasure of the governor and vacancies shall be26filled in the same manner as original appointments.] 27 (g) The council shall set forth the time and place of its meetings and 28 meet as frequently as business requires, but shall meet at least twice 29 each year. 30 (h) Every agency, department, office, division or public authority of 31 the state shall cooperate with the council and furnish such information 32 and assistance as the council determines is reasonably necessary to 33 accomplish its purpose. 34 52. Develop and maintain, in cooperation with the department of 35 economic development and urban development corporation, a publicly 36 available searchable database of New York state farms and farm products. 37 The database shall include all farms located within the state and shall 38 list the products available for purchase and contact information for 39 each farm, unless a farm opts out of being included in the database by 40 notifying the department of such option. The department shall provide 41 farms with the ability to signify that they are interested in supplying 42 schools on the directory. The department shall provide easily accessi- 43 ble electronic access to the database on the department's website and 44 shall update the database at least every two years. [The department45shall seek cooperation and coordination of the directory with the New46York state council on food policy and the New York state land grant47university, where necessary information overlaps. The department may48utilize any directories that exist or are in progress.] 49 § 2. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same 50 manner as a chapter of the laws of 2022 amending the agriculture and 51 markets law and the economic development law relating to procurement of 52 locally grown farm and food products and codifying the New York state 53 council on food policy, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 54 549-B and A. 3954-B, takes effect.