No. SB 852
Filed under Development & Land Use.
Food Insecure Areas; Authorizing a local government to enact land development regulations to permit land use for a small-footprint grocery store located in a food insecure area; authorizing a local government to include in its comprehensive plan a provision permitting land use for a small-footprint grocery store located in a food insecure area, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDLocal governments may now allow small grocery stores in designated food deserts, overriding existing zoning rules that might otherwise prohibit them.
The state defines a food desert as an area with high poverty or low income where many residents live far from a supermarket.
Local governments may also require these new stores to report specific information, though the exact details of that reporting are not defined in the bill.
This change takes effect on July 1, 2026, giving local governments the option to update their land use rules to support these stores.
AILocal governments can now legally approve land use for small grocery stores in designated food-insecure areas, even if their current zoning rules would forbid it.
AILocal governments can update their long-term comprehensive plans to explicitly include land use for small grocery stores in food-insecure areas.
AILocal governments can require small-footprint grocery stores to submit specific information, though the exact data points are not defined in the bill.
AIEstablishes a legal definition for food-insecure areas based on poverty rates, income levels, and distance from supermarkets, which determines where the new land use permissions apply.