# § 7511a. Emergency food program infrastructure grants
**(a)** **Definition of eligible entity** In this section, the term “eligible entity” means an emergency feeding organization.
**(b)** **Program authorized**
**(1)** **In general** The Secretary shall use funds made available under subsection (d) to make grants to eligible entities to pay the costs of an activity described in subsection (c).
**(2)** **Rural preference** The Secretary shall use not less than 50 percent of the funds described in paragraph (1) for a fiscal year to make grants to eligible entities that serve predominantly rural communities for the purposes of—
**(A)** expanding the capacity and infrastructure of food banks, State-wide food bank associations, and food bank collaboratives that operate in rural areas; and
**(B)** improving the capacity of the food banks to procure, receive, store, distribute, track, and deliver time-sensitive or perishable food products.
**(c)** **Use of funds** An eligible entity shall use a grant received under this section for any fiscal year to carry out activities of the eligible entity, including—
**(1)** the development and maintenance of a computerized system for the tracking of time-sensitive food products;
**(2)** capital, infrastructure, and operating costs associated with the collection, storage, distribution, and transportation of time-sensitive and perishable food products;
**(3)** improving the security and diversity of the emergency food distribution and recovery systems of the United States through the support of small or mid-size farms and ranches, fisheries, and aquaculture, and donations from local food producers and manufacturers to persons in need;
**(4)** providing recovered foods to food banks and similar nonprofit emergency food providers to reduce hunger in the United States;
**(5)** improving the identification of—
**(A)** potential providers of donated foods;
**(B)** potential nonprofit emergency food providers; and
**(C)** persons in need of emergency food assistance in rural areas; and
**(6)** constructing, expanding, or repairing a facility or equipment to support hunger relief agencies in the community.
**(d)** **Authorization of appropriations** There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2023.
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**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 98–8, title II, § 209, as added Pub. L. 110–234, title IV, § 4202, May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1121; Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title IV, § 4202, June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 1883; amended Pub. L. 113–79, title IV, § 4027(b), Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 812; Pub. L. 115–334, title IV, § 4018(d), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4650.)
## Editorial Notes
### Codification
and enacted identical sections. was repealed by .
### Prior Provisions
A prior , which related to commodity supplemental food program administrative expenses, was set out in a note under prior to repeal by , , .
### Amendments
2018—Subsec. (d). substituted “2023” for “2018”.
2014—Subsec. (d). substituted “2018” for “2012”.
## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
### Effective Date
Enactment of this section and repeal of by effective , the date of enactment of , except as otherwise provided, see , set out as a note under .
Section effective , see , set out as an Effective Date of 2008 Amendment note under , The Congress.