The Prince George’s County Council voted Tuesday in favor of an incentive program to encourage restaurants to offer healthier menu options, with the goal of improving access to more nutritious food and mitigating long-term health disparities in the county.

Under the voluntary program, the county would incentivize restaurants to include more healthy food and drink options on their menus through grants, zero interest loans, marketing and publicity. Restaurants participating in the program would need 40% of their meals to be considered healthy by the county health department’s Healthcare Action Coalition and offer at least one “healthy” plant-based option.

Supporters of the bill noted the high concentration of fast food restaurants, as well as high rates of long-term illnesses like heart disease and diabetes in the county. Black residents in the majority African-American county have higher rates of diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease than white residents.

Out of the 10 council members who were present, nine supported the bill and Councilmember Sydney Harrison abstained, expressing support for the bill’s goals but citing concerns about funding generally, calling it a “major problem” for the county.

A number of local agencies opposed the bill. Leslie Graves, president of Experience Prince George’s, supported the idea of having restaurants make their menus more nutritious but said it would not be sustainable for them to rely on government funds, saying that tourism districts (which assist with restaurant marketing) would be more suitable for that sort of effort.

“If the government changes its priorities, and it will, you’ll be left without a resource,” Graves said.

Ebony Stalks, Executive Vice President of the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation (EDC), said the program as proposed “does not address some of the practicalities of business operations and the financial feasibility to participate.”

She argued the new menu options may not be profitable for businesses and could cause them to incur debt.

“EDC supports the goal to provide healthy food options to the citizens of the county,” Stalks said. “But it is our view that the program will not achieve its intended goals.”

Council Vice-Chair Wala Blegay pushed back against those concerns, saying that some minority-owned businesses already have taken on debt to provide healthier food without assistance and that the EDC exists to support those businesses.

An overwhelming number of residents, she said, have called for healthier food options in the community.

“It’s very interesting to find that we have almost every county agency coming out against this, saying that this isn’t the right option. So what is the option?” Blegay said. “Instead of us fighting against – for political reasons – a program that would actually benefit our community, how about we get together and support an actual effort that’s creative?”

Residents, she said, should not have to rely on grocery stores or farmer’s markets to get healthy meals.

District 7 Councilmember Krystal Oriadha echoed Blegay, saying she was “perplexed” by opposition to the bill, noting that opponents did not propose any amendments in the months since the bill was first introduced.

Oriadha called it “an investment” and countered concerns about funding the program.

“To say that we can’t afford that is just laughable, and it’s a lie,” Oriadha said. “Because we can afford it. You just don’t want to.”

District 8 Councilmember Edward Burroughs III said there has not been a “single alternative” bill and that residents deserve “more than a McDonald’s, a Chinese carryout, a Burger King on every corner.”

“We need healthy options that reflect the dignity of the people who live in our communities,” he said.

Though the bill won near unanimous support from the council and several residents and businesses testified in favor Tuesday, County Executive Angela Alsobrooks might not sign it into law. Her office has expressed opposition to the bill before, and a spokesperson told DCist/WAMU Tuesday the program doesn’t target specific lower income communities in the county or necessarily make nutritious food more affordable.

“We believe the legislation passed today is not the most effective way to address these issues and will not result in an increase in access to healthy foods,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We look forward to working with this Council to find programs and initiatives that will have a real impact on health disparities and food insecurities experienced by all Prince Georgians.” He also said there is no funding for the program in the already finalized budget for the ongoing fiscal year.

If Alsobrooks does sign the bill, it will take effect within 45 calendar days.