A bill to amend the Agricultural Market Transition Act to convert the price support program for sugarcane and sugar beets into a system of solely recourse loans to provide for the gradual elimination of the program.

Summary: Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act with respect to the sugar program to: (1) reduce sugarcane loan rates through crop year 2002; (2) revise the sugar beet loan rate; (3) eliminate nonrecourse loans; and (4) eliminate sugar price supports after crop year 2002. 
Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to repeal sugar and crystalline fructose marketing quota and allotment provisions. 
Amends the Food Security Act of 1985, beginning after the 1998- 1999 quota year, to direct the President to use all available authority to ensure that U.S. market raw sugar shall be available at not more than the higher of the world sugar price or the U.S. loan rate.

SECTION 1. RECOURSE LOANS FOR PROCESSORS OF SUGARCANE AND SUGAR BEETS 
              AND REDUCTION IN LOAN RATES.

    (a) Gradual Reduction in Loan Rates.--
            (1) Sugarcane processor loans.--Section 156(a) of the 
        Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272(a)) is 
        amended by striking ``equal to 18 cents per pound for raw cane 
        sugar.'' and inserting the following: ``, per pound for raw 
        cane sugar, equal to the following:
            ``(1) In the case of raw cane sugar processed from the 
        1996, 1997, or 1998 crop, $0.18.
            ``(2) In the case of raw cane sugar processed from the 1999 
        crop, $0.17.
            ``(3) In the case of raw cane sugar processed from the 2000 
        crop, $0.16.
            ``(4) In the case of raw cane sugar processed from the 2001 
        crop, $0.15.
            ``(5) In the case of raw cane sugar processed from the 2002 
        crop, $0.14.''.
            (2) Sugar beet processor loans.--Section 156(b) of the 
        Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272(b)) is 
        amended by striking ``equal to 22.9 cents per pound for refined 
        beet sugar.'' and inserting the following: ``, per pound of 
        refined beet sugar, that reflects--
            ``(1) an amount that bears the same relation to the loan 
        rate in effect under subsection (a) for a crop as the weighted 
        average of producer returns for sugar beets bears to the 
        weighted average of producer returns for sugarcane, expressed 
        on a cents per pound basis for refined beet sugar and raw cane 
        sugar, for the most recent 5-year period for which data are 
        available; and
            ``(2) an amount that covers sugar beet processor fixed 
        marketing expenses.''.
    (b) Conversion to Recourse Loans.--Section 156(e) of the 
Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272(e)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``only'' after ``this 
        section''; and
            (2) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(2) National loan rates.--Recourse loans under this 
        section shall be made available at all locations nationally at 
        the rates specified in this section, without adjustment to 
        provide regional differentials.''.
    (c) Conversion to Private Sector Financing.--Section 156 of the 
Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (j);
            (2) by inserting after subsection (h) the following:
    ``(i) Conversion to Private Sector Financing.--Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law--
            ``(1) no processor of any of the 2003 or subsequent crops 
        of sugarcane or sugar beets shall be eligible for a loan under 
        this section with respect to the crops; and
            ``(2) the Secretary may not make price support available, 
        whether in the form of loans, payments, purchases, or other 
        operations, for any of the 2003 and subsequent crops of sugar 
        beets and sugarcane by using the funds of the Commodity Credit 
        Corporation or other funds available to the Secretary.''; and
            (3) in subsection (j) (as redesignated by paragraph (1)) by 
        striking ``subsection (f)'' and inserting ``subsections (f) and 
        (i)''.
    (d) Termination of Marketing Quotas and Allotments.--
            (1) Termination.--Part VII of subtitle B of title III of 
        the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1359aa et 
        seq.) is repealed.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 344(f)(2) of the 
        Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1344(f)(2)) is 
        amended by striking ``sugar cane for sugar, sugar beets for 
        sugar,''.
    (e) Other Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Price support for nonbasic agricultural commodities.--
                    (A) Designated nonbasic agricultural commodities.--
                Section 201(a) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 
                U.S.C. 1446(a)) is amended by striking ``milk, sugar 
                beets, and sugarcane'' and inserting ``, and milk''.
                    (B) Other nonbasic agricultural commodities.--
                Section 301 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 
                1447) is amended by inserting ``(other than sugarcane 
                and sugar beets)'' after ``title II''.
            (2) Powers of commodity credit corporation.--Section 5(a) 
        of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 
        714c(a)) is amended by inserting ``(except for the 2003 and 
        subsequent crops of sugarcane and sugar beets)'' after 
        ``agricultural commodities''.
            (3) Section 32 activities.--Section 32 of the Act of August 
        24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c), is amended in the second sentence of 
        the first paragraph by inserting ``(other than sugarcane and 
        sugar beets)'' after ``commodity'' the last place it appears.
    (f) Assurance of Adequate Supplies of Sugar.--Section 902 of the 
Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1446g note; Public Law 99-198) is 
amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
    ``(a) In General.--Beginning with the quota year for sugar imports 
that begins after the 1998/1999 quota year, the President shall use all 
authorities available to the President as may be necessary to enable 
the Secretary of Agriculture to ensure that adequate supplies of raw 
cane sugar are made available to the United States market at prices 
that are not greater than the higher of--
            ``(1) the world sugar price (adjusted to a delivered 
        basis); or
            ``(2) the raw cane sugar loan rate in effect under section 
        156 of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272), 
        plus interest.''.