SPONSOR: Collins
COMMITTEE ACTION: Voted "Do Pass with HCS" by the Standing Committee on Agriculture Policy by a vote of 15 to 0.
The following is a summary of the House Committee Substitute for HB 1919.
This bill allows a taxpayer to claim a tax credit against the taxpayer's state tax liability in an amount equal to 50% of the taxpayer s eligible expenses for establishing an urban farm or improving an urban farm in an urban area that produces agricultural products solely for distribution to the public.
The amount of the tax credit claimed shall not exceed the amount of the taxpayer's state tax liability in the tax year for which the credit is claimed, the taxpayer shall not be allowed to claim a tax credit under this section in excess of $5,000 for each urban farm. However, any tax credit that cannot be claimed in the tax year the contribution was made may be carried over to the next three succeeding tax years until the full credit is claimed.
The total amount of tax credits authorized shall not exceed $200,000. These tax credits cannot be transferred, sold, or assigned. Any taxpayer granted a tax credit who uses the farm for which the credit was issued for personal benefit must repay the tax credit. The program will sunset December 31, six years after the effective date.
This bill is similar to HB 1570 (2022).
The following is a summary of the public testimony from the committee hearing. The testimony was based on the introduced version of the bill.
PROPONENTS: Supporters say that residents in many urban communities lack access to healthy, fresh food options. This lack of access leads to undesirable health and social outcomes. This bill would provide financial incentive to those who operate a urban farm to provide produce to those areas within a food desert and would help increase food security in those communities.
Testifying for the bill were Representative Collins; Allen Perkins; Ann Mandelstamm; Steven R. Carroll; The Nature Conservancy; Rita Linhardt, Missouri Catholic Conference; Missouri Cattleman's Association; Kansas City Healthy Kids; Pam Keck, Lovethelou; Dr. Clement Akotsen-Mensah, Lincoln University; G. Fatimah Muhammad, Be Well Cafe And Farmers Market; BJC Health System; Jamel Williams, Lovethelou; Lucas Rouggly, Lovethelou; Empower Missouri; State Alliance Of YMCAs; Health Forward Foundation; and Missouri Soybean. Additional written testimony was submitted in support of the bill.
OPPONENTS: Written testimony was submitted in opposition to the bill.
OTHERS: Others testifying on the bill say food deserts and food insecurity impact many Missourians, in both urban and rural areas of the state. Increasing urban agriculture production can increase food security in the urban areas. Urban agriculture has also been linked to increased property values.
Testifying on the bill was Elena Bickell, Most Policy Initiative.
Written testimony has been submitted for this bill. The full written testimony can be found under Testimony on the bill page on the House website.
Statutes affected: