Dear Chairman DiPalma and members of the Senate Finance Committee,
Thank you for supporting $5M in the state Green Bond for agricultural land preservation!
We would like to reshare our other budget and finance-related priorities with you, as the legislature reaches the end of this year’s session. Each of these priority items, if implemented, will help create a more just and resilient food system in Rhode Island.
- Restore Local Agriculture and Seafood Act Grant Program funding to $700K
- Reduce tax burdens for small and urban farmers by passing SB2335
- Incentivize surplus food donation, which increases food security while reducing greenhouse gas production, by passing SB2757
- Boost food waste composting, which would lengthen the lifespan of the central landfill while reducing greenhouse gas production, by passing SB2753
- Support Healthy School Meals for All (SB2320), which is supported by a large majority of Rhode Islanders (a survey from the URI Harrington School showed that 68% of Rhode Islanders support free school lunches for all RI K-12 students)
- Allow RIDEM to keep its the fees it charges in a restricted-use account in order to bring sustainability to critical farm and food security programs. such as the amazing USDA Local Food Procurement Agreement program which ends in December 2024
Thank you for all of your hard work this session. If there is anything we can do to support the passage of these additional priorities in the coming days, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Take care,
Nessa