1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to human services; establishing the Healthy Eating, Here at Home 
1.3 	program; appropriating money;proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
1.4 	Statutes, chapter 256E.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. [256E.345] HEALTHY EATING, HERE AT HOME PROGRAM.
1.7 		Subdivision 1.Establishment. The Healthy Eating, Here at Home program is 
1.8 	established to provide incentives for low-income Minnesotans to use Supplemental 
1.9 	Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for healthy purchases at Minnesota-based 
1.10 	farmers' markets.
1.11 		Subd. 2.Definitions. (a) The definitions in this subdivision apply to this section.
1.12 	(b) "Healthy Eating, Here at Home program" means a program administered by the 
1.13 	commissioner of human services to provide incentives for low-income Minnesotans to use 
1.14 	SNAP benefits for healthy purchases at Minnesota-based farmers' markets.
1.15 	(c) "Healthy purchases" means fruit, vegetables, or meat available for purchase at a 
1.16 	Minnesota-based farmers' market.
1.17 	(d) "Minnesota-based farmers' market" means a physical market located within the 
1.18 	borders of the state of Minnesota.
1.19 	(e) "Voucher" means a physical or electronic credit.
1.20 	(f) "Eligible household" means an individual or family that is determined to be 
1.21 	eligible for SNAP.
1.22 		Subd. 3.Grants. The commissioner shall allocate grant funds to nonprofit 
1.23 	organizations that work with Minnesota-based farmers' markets to provide vouchers to 
1.24 	SNAP participants who use electronic benefits transfer (EBT) cards for healthy purchases. 
2.1 	The commissioner must award grants based on a plan for voucher distribution submitted 
2.2 	to the commissioner by a nonprofit organization that must equitably distribute funds to 
2.3 	achieve geographic balance. The plan must document the organization's capacity to manage 
2.4 	programming and outreach and must document specific efforts by the organization to 
2.5 	reach eligible households comprised of seniors and eligible households in rural Minnesota.
2.6 		Subd. 4.Household eligibility; participation. To be eligible for a Healthy Eating, 
2.7 	Here at Home voucher, an eligible household must meet the federal SNAP eligibility 
2.8 	requirements.
2.9 		Subd. 5.Permissible uses; information provided. An eligible household may use 
2.10 	a voucher toward healthy purchases at Minnesota-based farmers' markets. Every eligible 
2.11 	household that receives a voucher must be informed of the allowable uses of the voucher.
2.12 		Subd. 6.Program reporting. The nonprofit organizations that receive grant funds 
2.13 	must report annually to the commissioner with information regarding the operation of the 
2.14 	program, including the number of vouchers issued and the number of people served. To 
2.15 	the extent practicable, the nonprofit organizations must report on detailed usage of the 
2.16 	vouchers and must evaluate program effectiveness.

2.17 	Sec. 2. APPROPRIATION.
 2.18 	$500,000 in fiscal year 2015 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
2.19 	commissioner of human services for the Healthy Eating, Here at Home program under 
2.20 	section 1.