Committee lays over bill to expand food‑shelf infrastructure after testimony about turned-away donations and capacity limits

The committee heard testimony on House File 10 98, a proposal to provide grants for food‑shelf infrastructure — refrigeration, storage, expanded space and other capital improvements — and laid the bill over for possible inclusion in a later omnibus bill.

Sponsor Representative Sensamura described the bill as a next step following last session’s competitive infrastructure grants; she said the need remains large: in 2023 requests for infrastructure grants outpaced available funding by more than $52 million, and prior appropriations covered only a portion of applicants. Sensamura said the measure would help smaller food shelves accept refrigerated and frozen donations and reduce food waste.

Multiple operators described immediate capacity limits. Daisy De Leonesqueda, manager at Emergency Community Health Organization (ECHO) in Mankato, said ECHO turned away 150 pallets of donations in one year (about $465,000 worth) because the facility lacked space; the pantry serves about 500 clients per weekday and averages about 130 households daily. Jamie Dalinchuk of Community Emergency Service in the Phillips neighborhood said CES operates with dated equipment and now provides refrigerated food lockers and appointment systems to reduce wait times; she said CES was unable to secure last session’s infrastructure funds and remains at capacity.

Jessica Francis of Open Cupboard recounted how a prior infrastructure grant enabled expansion and the opening of a new site in Maplewood that now serves thousands of households weekly; she urged additional capital support across the state.

The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in a later omnibus bill.