Section 645.10  Purpose

 

The Department shall provide grants and other forms of financial assistance to eligible applicants for the purpose of expanding access to healthy foods in food deserts.  Following a Grocery Initiative Study that examines food insecurity, examines food deserts, and identifies areas at risk of becoming food deserts in Illinois, the Department shall also provide grants and other forms of financial assistance to eligible applicants for the purpose of expanding access to healthy foods in areas at risk of becoming food deserts.

 

Section 645.20  Definitions

 

The following definitions are applicable to this Part.

 

"Act" means the Grocery Initiative Act [20 ILCS 750].

 

"Agreement" means a grant agreement between an applicant and the Department pursuant to Section 645.40.

 

"Applicant" means a unit of local government, co-operative, not-for-profit corporation, or for-profit entity.

 

"Co-operative" means an organization that is organized according to the Co-operative Act [805 ILCS 310].

 

"Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

 

"Energy efficient" means reducing the amount of energy needed to achieve a given end use or uses, or reducing the amount of electricity or natural gas needed to achieve that end use or uses.

 

"Food desert" means a census tract that:

 

meets one of the following poverty standards:

 

the census tract has a poverty rate of at least 20%; or

 

the census tract is not located within a metropolitan statistical area and has a median family income that is less than or equal to 80% of the statewide median household income; or

 

the census tract is located within a metropolitan statistical area and has a median family income that is less than or equal to 80% of the greater of:

 

the statewide median household income; or

 

the metropolitan area median family income; and

 

meets one of the following population density and food accessibility standards:

 

the census tract is a rural tract, and at least 33% of the population of the tract or at least 500 residents in the tract reside more than 10 miles from the nearest grocery store; or

 

the census tract is an urban tract, and at least 33% of the population of the tract or at least 500 residents in the tract reside more than one-half mile from the nearest grocery store.

 

The Department may also designate an area that does not meet the standards set forth in this Section as a food desert if the designation is made using data such as poverty metrics and access to existing stores.

 

"Grocery store" means an existing or planned retail establishment that:

 

has or will have a primary business of selling a variety of grocery products, including fresh produce;

 

derives or will derive no more than 30% of its revenue from sales of tobacco and alcohol in any given year;

 

is or will be classified as a supermarket or other grocery retailer in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System under code 445110, a meat retailer under code 44524, a fruit and vegetable retailer under code 44523, or a fish and seafood retailer under 44525;

 

accepts or will accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children benefits; and

 

provides or will contribute to the greater availability of a substantial variety of perishable foods, including fresh or frozen dairy products, fresh produce, and fresh meats, poultry, and fish.

 

"Independently owned" means an applicant that owns no more than 4 grocery stores in the State of Illinois and has no more than 500 employees.

 

"Local ownership" means that primary ownership is located within the State of Illinois.

 

"Local governmental unit" means any county, municipality, township, special district, or unit that is designated as a unit of local government by law and exercises limited governmental powers or powers in respect to limited governmental subjects. "Local governmental unit" also includes any school district or community college district.

 

"Not-for-profit corporation" means an organization or institution that is organized and conducted on a not-for-profit basis with no personal profit inuring to anyone as a result of the operation and that is organized according to the General Not For Profit Corporation Act of 1986.

 

"Project Labor Agreement" has the same meaning as used in the Project Labor Agreements Act [30 ILCS 571].

 

"Rural tract" means a census tract that is not an urban tract.

 

"Urban tract" means a census tract having its geographic centroid in an urban area, as defined by the Bureau of the Census for the most recent year in which all relevant data to identify food deserts is available. [20 ILCS 750/5]

 

Section 645.30  Eligible Applicants and Projects

 

a)         An applicant shall own and operate a grocery store, seek to acquire a grocery store, or establish a grocery store.  Unless the applicant is a local governmental unit, the grocery store shall be independently owned and locally owned. 

 

b)         The Department may award grants or provide loans to an applicant establishing a new grocery store in a food desert for any one or more of the following:

 

1)         market and site feasibility studies, promotional materials, and marketing;

 

2)         salaries and benefits for workers;

 

3)         rent or a down payment to acquire a facility;

 

4)         purchase of ownership of a grocery store as part of establishing a new grocery store;

 

5)         capital improvements, planning, renovations, land acquisition, demolition, durable and non-durable equipment purchases; or

 

6)         other costs as determined eligible by the Department, including, but not limited to, insurance and utility cost.  Costs unrelated to the provision of food, such as acquisition of video poker machines or equipment for lottery sales, are excluded. [20 ILCS 750/15]

 

c)         In addition to the eligible uses listed in subsection (b), the Department may award a grant to an applicant that is a co-operative, non-for-profit corporation, or for-profit corporation for equipment upgrades focused on providing access to equipment that is energy efficient.  The Department shall use no more than 20% of total program funding for this purpose. [20 ILCS 750/15(b)]

 

Section 645.40 Administrative Requirements

 

Grant opportunities and awards will be administered in a manner that complies with all State requirements applicable to each funding opportunity, including, but not limited to, GATA and all applicable State laws. Applicants and grant recipients shall review all application materials and grant award documents which will include the specific applicable requirements for the grant opportunity.  The Department reserves the right to suspend or terminate a grant agreement or withhold any future year funding for non-compliance with these provisions.

 

a)         Application Process

 

1)         The Department will post one or more NOFO on the GATA Grantee Portal seeking applications contingent upon available funds. Applicants shall submit their application materials by the deadlines set forth by DCEO in the Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) which will be at least 30 days after posting the NOFO.

 

2)         Applicants are required to submit the following:

 

A)        the name of the applicant;

 

B)        whether the applicant is a unit of local government, independently owned for-profit grocery store, co-operative grocery store, or not-for-profit grocery store;

 

C)        the operating name of the grocery store;

 

D)        the location of the grocery store;

 

E)        a detailed explanation of how the grocery store proposes to use any award;

 

F)         two or more letters in support of the application from entities that represent the relevant community, with at least one such letter coming from a local elected official;

 

G)        for an applicant seeking a grant or other financial assistance for a new grocery store in a food desert, as described in Section 645.30(b), the applicant should submit a detailed financial plan that includes:

 

i)          the grocery store's projected costs, revenues, and profits;

 

ii)         the amount and sources of other investments in the planned grocery store;

 

iii)        the long-term assets, including but not limited to real property and equipment, that the grocery store has already secured or still needs; and

 

iv)        the projected number of employees of the grocery store.

 

H)        for an applicant seeking a grant or other financial assistance to establish a new store in a food desert for an independently owned for-profit grocery store, co-operative grocery store, not-for-profit grocery store or municipality-owned grocery store as described in Section 645.30(c), a detailed financial plan that includes:

 

i)          The grocery store's projected costs, revenues, and profits;

 

ii)         The amount and sources of other investments in the planned grocery store;

 

iii)        The long-term assets, including but not limited to real property and equipment, that the grocery store has already secured or still needs; and

 

iv)        The projected number of employees of the grocery store; and

 

I)        for an independently owned for-profit grocery store, co-operative grocery store, municipally owned grocery store, or not-for-profit grocery store, a detailed explanation of the ownership and operation structure, including the location of all primary owners.

 

b)         Grant Award Selection

 

1)         Grants will be awarded by DCEO to grantees following a merit review by DCEO pursuant to GATA requirements (44 Ill. Adm. Code 7000.350).  In evaluating applications, the Department will consider all requirements as set forth in this Part.

 

2)         In reviewing applications, the Department will prioritize applicants that:

 

A)        are units of local government;

 

B)        are seeking to establish, or have already established and are operating, grocery stores with local ownership;

 

C)        are seeking to establish, or have already established and are operating, grocery stores with less than $5 million in annual revenue;

 

3)         In addition, the Department may prioritize applicants by geography, where applications involving areas of higher poverty, lower income, or greater geographic distance from the nearest grocery store receive greater consideration.

 

4)         Applicants may appeal any denial pursuant to the process described in 44 Ill. Adm. Code 7000.350(g).

 

c)         Grant Disbursements

Disbursement of grant funds from the Department will be made in accordance with a schedule included in the grant agreement. The Department will disburse funds based on the outcomes outlined in the grant agreement.

 

d)         Grant Performance, Monitoring and Reporting Requirements

Grant recipient shall comply with all GATA and Department requirements for grant performance, administration, monitoring and reporting, including monitoring any subrecipients.

 

e)         Grant Extensions

Contingent upon the availability of funds and consistent with GATA as applicable, the Department may negotiate grant extensions and add funds for grant projects that were originally competitively awarded and performed successfully. 

 

f)         Records Retention

A grant recipient shall maintain, for the period of time set forth in the GATA rules (44 Ill. Adm. Code 430(a) and (b)), adequate books, all financial records and supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to the program. If any litigation, claim, or audit is started before the expiration of the retention period, the records must be retained until all litigation, claims or audit exceptions involving the records have been resolved and final action taken. Grant recipients shall be responsible for ensuring that contractors and subrecipients comply with the retention requirements.

 

g)         Project Labor Agreement

Pursuant to the Project Labor Agreements Act [30 ILCS 571] and Executive Order 02-19, the Department will evaluate each application to determine if a project labor agreement would advance the State's interests of cost, efficiency, quality, safety, timeliness, skilled labor force, labor stability, or the State's policy to advance minority-owned and women-owned businesses and minority and female employment. If a project labor agreement would advance those interests, then the Department may require one as part of the agreement.