National Composting Act of 1994

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Composting Act of 1994''.

SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE COORDINATION OF COMPOSTING.

    (a) Composting Program.--Subtitle F of title XIV of the Food, 
Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-624; 
104 Stat. 3619) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
chapter:

                ``CHAPTER 2--COORDINATION OF COMPOSTING

``SEC. 1476. FINDINGS, PURPOSE, AND DEFINITIONS.

    ``(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            ``(1) billions of dollars are spent annually on municipal 
        solid waste management in the United States;
            ``(2) a substantial portion of discarded municipal solid 
        waste is organic material that could be separated at the 
        generating source and composted;
            ``(3) approximately half of this compostable material could 
        be diverted from the waste stream by composting at home, 
        school, and work, and on farms, thereby avoiding at least 20 
        percent of the ever increasing social and economic burden of 
        municipal solid waste management;
            ``(4) the incorporation in soil of organic material derived 
        from composting enhances soil productivity by adding nutrients 
        and natural disease suppressing factors;
            ``(5) greater use of compost as a soil additive will reduce 
        erosion and run-off by increasing infiltration and 
        permeability, thereby discouraging nonpoint source pollution; 
        and
            ``(6) composting and use of soil-enriching compost on farms 
        is the most efficient and inexpensive way for farmers to move 
        toward sustainable agriculture.
    ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this chapter is to establish a 
structure to foster the development of source-separated composting and 
the use of the resulting compost at home, school, and work and on farms 
in order to demonstrate that communities can achieve `zero-discharge' 
of these materials.

``SEC. 1477. FEDERAL COORDINATION OF COMPOSTING AND USE OF COMPOST.

    ``(a) National Composting Coordinator.--In order to make the 
Federal Government the leader in composting and the use of compost, the 
Secretary of Agriculture shall appoint a national composting 
coordinator.
    ``(b) Activities of Coordinator.--The national composting 
coordinator shall be responsible for carrying out the following 
activities regarding composting:
            ``(1) Development of cooperative agreements with all 
        Federal agencies to institute composting and facilitate on-site 
        use of the resulting compost at Federal installations.
            ``(2) Development of Federal procurement guidelines for 
        obtaining source-separated compost for use on public lands and 
        promotion of the adoption of such guidelines by Federal 
        agencies.
            ``(3) Establishment of a soil conservation program for 
        compost production and use as part of the Soil Conservation 
        Service and a cost-sharing program for compost use as part of 
        the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service 
        protocol for organic matter management and soil loss 
        prevention.
            ``(4) Implementation of a `Zero-Discharge Community 
        Challenge', in which communities, categorized by size and 
        region, compete for national awards or grants rewarding those 
        communities that strive to achieve zero-discharge of 
        compostables.
            ``(5) Establishment of a clearinghouse for information 
        available to the public on composting and use of compost 
        generated by States, Government agencies (including the 
        Department of Agriculture), environmental groups, composting 
        organizations and private enterprises.
            ``(6) Establishment of a nationwide `compost from 
        cafeterias' demonstration program to compost organic discards 
        from school and workplace cafeterias together with yard 
        trimmings.
            ``(7) Development of compost programs in association with 
        restaurant, grocery, and other industry where food scraps are 
        generated.
            ``(8) Development of guidelines for the use of compost in 
        agriculture and public lands in conjunction with initiatives in 
        the Soil Conservation Service and the Agricultural 
        Stabilization and Conservation Service and demonstration of the 
        suitability of the guidelines through the use of compost in 
        public programs.
            ``(9) Institution of outreach programs using the 
        Cooperative Extension Service to demonstrate backyard 
        composting for homes, schools, workplaces, and farms and 
        promotion and coordination of cooperative composting and 
        compost utilization programs involving farms and communities by 
        providing training and technical support.

``SEC. 1478. DEFINITIONS.

    ``As used in this chapter--
            ``(1) Compost.--Organic materials that have been 
        biologically decomposed.
            ``(2) Composting.--The term `composting' means the 
        controlled biological decomposition of organic matter into a 
        stable humus.

``SEC. 1479. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
Agriculture to carry out this chapter $2,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 1995 through 1999.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Such subtitle is further amended by 
inserting after the subtitle heading the following:

                ``CHAPTER 1--ADMINISTRATION GENERALLY''.

    (c) Clerical Amendments.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of 
such Act (104 Stat. 3359) is amended--
            (1) by striking the item relating to section 1446;
            (2) by inserting after the item relating to subtitle F of 
        title XIV the following new item:

                ``Chapter 1--Administration Generally'';

        and
            (3) by inserting after the item relating to section 1473 
        the following new items:

                ``Chapter 2--Coordination of Composting

``Sec. 1476. Findings, purpose, and definitions.
``Sec. 1477. Federal coordination of composting and use of compost.
``Sec. 1478. Definitions.
``Sec. 1479. Authorization of appropriations.''.

SEC. 3. INCLUSION OF COMPOST USAGE AS CONSERVATION PRACTICE ELIGIBLE 
              FOR COST SHARE ASSISTANCE

    The Secretary of Agriculture shall designate use of compost as an 
activity eligible for Federal cost sharing under programs of the 
Department of Agriculture promoting soil conservation practices and the 
establishment or renovation of permanent vegetative cover.

Summary: National Composting Act of 1994 - Amends the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to appoint a national composting coordinator to develop source-separated composting programs, guidelines, and related activities. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to include compost usage as a conservation practice eligible for Federal cost sharing.