H.R. 2473 — Healthy Food Access for All Americans Act

This section establishes a new tax credit under IRC §45BB for certified special access food providers (i.e., entities operating qualified grocery stores or renovation areas in food deserts) equal to the lesser of an allocated amount or (1) 15% of the basis of a new grocery store placed in service, or (2) 10% of renovation expenditures for a qualified renovation area. It also directs the Treasury Secretary, in coordination with the Agriculture Secretary, to provide grants to certified providers equal to the lesser of an allocated amount or (1) 15% of qualified construction expenses for a permanent food bank placed in service in a food desert, or (2) 10% of annual operational costs for temporary access merchants (e.g., mobile markets or farmers markets operating specified minimum hours weekly in food deserts); such grants are excluded from gross income. Certification by the Treasury Secretary, consulting the Agriculture Secretary and regional community development entities, requires applicants to operate in food deserts, satisfy eligibility criteria of the Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI, 7 U.S.C. §6953—which provides loans and grants to healthy food retailers and enterprises in underserved areas), and meet other standards; farmers markets are ineligible if receiving other USDA grants (except Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive grants).

This section requires the Secretary of Agriculture to update the Food Access Research Atlas not less frequently than once each year to account for food retailers placed in service during that year. (As background, the Food Access Research Atlas is a USDA online mapping tool that identifies low-income census tracts with low access to supermarkets and healthy food retailers, supporting efforts such as the Healthy Food Financing Initiative to target underserved areas.)