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Bills from the 2015–16 session

Senate Bill 214

A Grow Wisconsin pilot program providing benefits to FoodShare recipients for purchasing Wisconsin-grown foods and making an appropriation

Stopped in committee

It never got a ⁠, so it never came up for a vote. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.

  1. Introduced, passed

    Jul 16, 2015

  2. Committee, stopped here

    Stopped here. No public hearing was held.

  3. Senate vote, not reached

  4. Assembly vote, not reached

  5. Governor, not reached

  6. Law, not reached

Latest entry in the official record, Apr 13, 2016: “Failed to pass pursuant to ⁠”

It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.

Read the bill

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What it would have done

Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

This bill directs the Department of Health Services (DHS) to design and implement a pilot program, known as Grow Wisconsin, that will operate in Dane, Rock, and Milwaukee counties and facilitate the purchasing, by recipients under the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known as FoodShare in Wisconsin and formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, of foods and food products that are grown or made in Wisconsin. FoodShare provides benefits to eligible low-income individuals and households for the purchase of food. The benefits, which are electronically debited to a Quest card, are paid entirely with federal funds. FoodShare is administered by DHS, and the state and federal governments share the cost of administration.

Under the bill, farmers' markets and grocery stores located in Dane, Rock, or Milwaukee County that apply to, and satisfy criteria set by, DHS may participate in Grow Wisconsin. Under the program, DHS issues to participating farmers' markets tokens worth $2 each. For every $2 that a recipient spends on food with his or her Quest card at a participating farmers' market, up to $20 per farmers' market per day, the recipient receives a token, which the recipient may then use at any time at any participating farmers' market to purchase fruit, vegetables, meat, or dairy products that were grown or made in Wisconsin. DHS issues to participating grocery stores rewards cards worth $10 each. A recipient who spends at least $10 with his or her Quest card on fresh fruit or vegetables at a participating grocery store receives a rewards card, limited to one rewards card per day, from the participating grocery store. The rewards card must be used, during the same or next shopping trip at the participating grocery store that issued it, to purchase fruit, vegetables, meat, or dairy products that were grown or made in Wisconsin.

Read the full summary

The bill specifies certain duties for DHS related to the pilot program, such as establishing criteria for participation by farmers' markets and grocery stores;

establishing guidelines for labeling Wisconsin-grown or Wisconsin-made fruits, vegetables, meats, and dairy products; and establishing accounting and reporting requirements for farmers' markets and grocery stores. In addition, DHS must submit a report on the program to the legislature no later than September 1, 2018.

The report must contain recommendations on making changes to the program and whether the program should be expanded statewide. The bill appropriates $144,902 of general purpose revenue per fiscal year in the 2015-2017 fiscal biennium for the program.

Who's behind it

9 senators are its ⁠. All 9 are Democrats.

22 more lawmakers ⁠.

See all 31 names

Authors (9)

Signed on in support (22)

What happened

  1. Apr 13, 2016

    The session ended, and the bill died with it.

  2. Jul 16, 2015

    Sent to the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services.

  3. Jul 16, 2015

    Introduced in the Senate.

See the official record, word for word
  1. Jul 16, 2015 · Senate

    Introduced by Senators Shilling, Carpenter, Hansen, Harris Dodd, C. Larson, Miller, Ringhand, Vinehout and Wirch; cosponsored by Representatives Jorgensen, Spreitzer, Subeck, Goyke, Kolste, Berceau, Brostoff, Bowen, Considine, Doyle, Genrich, Hesselbein, Johnson, Kahl, Kessler, Mason, Ohnstad, Pope, Sargent, Sinicki, Zamarripa and Zepnick

  2. Jul 16, 2015 · Senate

    Read first time and referred to Committee on Health and Human Services

  3. Apr 13, 2016 · Senate

    Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1

Terms on this page

Committee

A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.

More in the glossary

Public hearing

A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.

More in the glossary

Senate Joint Resolution 1

The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.

Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary

Legislative Reference Bureau

The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.

Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary

Author

A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary

Signed on in support

Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.

Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary

From the Wisconsin Legislature's official record, checked Sep 15, 2026. See the source

Committee

A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.

Public hearing

A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.

Senate Joint Resolution 1

The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.

Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1

Legislative Reference Bureau

The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.

Official term: LRB analysis

Author

A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Official term: Author, coauthor

Signed on in support

Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.

Official term: Cosponsor