I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1766 

To amend conservation and biofuels programs of the Department of Agriculture to promote the compatible goals of economically viable agricultural production and reducing nutrient loads in the Chesapeake Bay 

and its tributaries by assisting agricultural producers to make beneficial, 

cost-effective changes to cropping systems, grazing management, and 

nutrient management associated with livestock and poultry production, 

crop production, bioenergy production, and other agricultural practices 

on agricultural land within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 29, 2007 

Mr. VAN HOLLEN (for himself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. 

TOM DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. HOYER, Mr. WYNN, Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of 

Virginia, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. 

WOLF, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mrs. DRAKE, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. PLATTS, Mr. CARNEY, and Mr. HALL of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To amend conservation and biofuels programs of the Department of Agriculture to promote the compatible goals 

of economically viable agricultural production and reducing nutrient loads in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries by assisting agricultural producers to make beneficial, cost-effective changes to cropping systems, grazing 

management, and nutrient management associated with 

livestock and poultry production, crop production, bioVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:46 Apr 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H1766.IH H1766

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energy production, and other agricultural practices on 

agricultural land within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Chesapeake’s Healthy and Environmentally Sound Stew6 ardship of Energy and Agriculture Act of 2007’’ or the 

7 ‘‘CHESSEA Act of 2007’’ . 

8 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

9 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Environmental quality incentives program. 

Sec. 4. Regional water quality enhancement program. 

Sec. 5. Conservation innovation grants. 

Sec. 6. Conservation reserve program. 

Sec. 7. Conservation security program. 

Sec. 8. Comprehensive planning technical assistance pilot program. 

Sec. 9. Wetlands reserve program. 

Sec. 10. Agricultural management assistance. 

Sec. 11. Biorefinery and biofuel project grants. 

Sec. 12. Renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements program. 

10 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

11 Congress finds the following: 

12 (1) The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary 

13 in North America, the world’s most productive estu14 ary, and a resource of worldwide significance. 

15 (2) The Chesapeake Bay watershed encom16 passes portions of six States, New York, PennsylVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:46 Apr 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1766.IH H1766

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1 vania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Vir2 ginia, and the District of Columbia, and contains 

3 150 major tributaries. 

4 (3) Agricultural operations, small family farms 

5 in particular, is a defining feature of the economy, 

6 heritage, culture, landscape, and environment of the 

7 States of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and these 

8 agricultural operations account for nearly one quar9 ter of the land in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, 

10 stretching across 10 million acres and involving tens 

11 of thousands of individual farmers. 

12 (4) Unfortunately, these same agricultural oper13 ations are the source of more than 40 of the nitro14 gen and phosphorus loads going into the Chesapeake 

15 Bay; 

16 (5) In the landmark regional agreement known 

17 as Chesapeake 2000, the Federal Government, the 

18 six States of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and the 

19 District of Columbia, agreed to significantly reduce 

20 annual nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loadings 

21 by 2010 to restore the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal 

22 tributaries sufficiently to remove them from the list 

23 of impaired waters under the Clean Water Act. 

24 (6) Current efforts to implement Chesapeake 

25 2000 and achieve the nitrogen and phosphorus reVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:46 Apr 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1766.IH H1766

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1 duction goals specified in the agreement are signifi2 cantly underfunded. 

3 (7) The implementation of improved conserva4 tion practices in agricultural operations in the 

5 Chesapeake Bay watershed and increased agricul6 tural bioenergy production can serve the dual pur7 poses of enhancing the environmental health of the 

8 Chesapeake Bay and the economic vitality of farm9 ers in the watershed. 

10 SEC. 3. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY INCENTIVES PROGRAM. 

11 (a) EXTENSION.— 

12 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION AND INCREASE.— 

13 Section 1241(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 

14 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is amended by striking para15 graph (6) and inserting the following new para16 graph: 

17 ‘‘(6) The environmental quality incentives pro18 gram under chapter 4, using, to the maximum ex19 tent practicable, $2,000,000,000 in each of fiscal 

20 years 2008 through 2013.’’. 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

22 1240B of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2) is amend23 ed— 

24 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking 

25 ‘‘2010’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’; and 


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1 (B) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

3 (b) PRIORITY GIVEN TO STATE ALLOCATIONS.—Sec4 tion 1240F of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–6) is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘To’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) ASSIST7 ANCE, INFORMATION, AND TRAINING.—To’’; and 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub9 sections: 

10 ‘‘(b) INTERSTATE WATERSHEDS.—When making 

11 program allocations to States, the Secretary shall give pri12 ority to States located within watersheds that— 

13 ‘‘(1) encompass more than one State; 

14 ‘‘(2) are recognized under the Clean Water Act 

15 as having nutrient-related water quality impairments 

16 or sediment-related water quality impairments (or 

17 both); and 

18 ‘‘(3) are subject to State-approved tributary 

19 strategies or watershed management plans designed 

20 to address such impairments. 

21 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITED ALLOCATION FACTOR.—The Sec22 retary shall not use the total number of acres as an alloca23 tion factor.’’. 

24 (c) COST SHARE PAYMENT EXCEPTION.—Section 

25 1240B(d)(2) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2(d)(2)) is 


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1 amended by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the 

2 following new subparagraph: 

3 ‘‘(A) LIMITED RESOURCE AND BEGINNING

4 FARMERS.—The Secretary may increase the 

5 amount provided to a producer under para6 graph (1) to not more than 90 percent if the 

7 producer is a limited resource or beginning 

8 farmer or rancher, as determined by the Sec9 retary, but in no event shall the cost-share pay10 ment under the program be less than 15 per11 cent more than the payment that the Secretary 

12 may determine under paragraph (1).’’ 

13 (d) FOREST CONSERVATION AND PERFORMANCE IN14 CENTIVES FOR STATES.—Chapter 4 of subtitle D of title 

15 XII of such Act is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing new sections: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 1240J. PROMOTION OF FOREST STEWARDSHIP PRAC18 TICES. 

19 ‘‘(a) COST-SHARE PAYMENTS AND INCENTIVE PAY20 MENTS.—In carrying out the program under this chapter, 

21 the Secretary shall promote forest stewardship by pro22 viding cost-share payments and incentive payments to 

23 non-industrial private forest owners to carry out eligible 

24 conservation activities, to— 

25 ‘‘(1) improve water quality; 


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1 ‘‘(2) improve habitat for at-risk species; 

2 ‘‘(3) restore ecologically important forest types; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(4) control invasive species. 

5 ‘‘(b) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give priority to 

6 projects that involve multiple landowners implementing el7 igible conservation activities in a coordinated way to ad8 dress the purposes described in subsection (a). 

9 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.— 

10 ‘‘(1) AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall use funds 

11 of the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out 

12 this section in the following amounts: 

13 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. 

14 ‘‘(B) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

15 ‘‘(C) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

16 ‘‘(D) $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

17 2011 and 2012. 

18 ‘‘(E) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2013. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 1240K. PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES FOR STATES. 

20 ‘‘(a) HIGH LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE BONUS.—For 

21 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013, 10 percent of the 

22 funds made available under this chapter shall be reserved 

23 by the Secretary for bonus allocations to States that dem24 onstrate a high level of performance in implementing the 

25 program. 


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1 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS.—In evaluating 

2 State performance under subsection (a), the Secretary 

3 shall reward States that— 

4 ‘‘(1) consistently meet the requirements of sec5 tion 1240C in evaluating offers and payments; 

6 ‘‘(2) dedicate a portion of their annual environ7 mental quality incentives program allocation to 

8 multi-producer cooperative efforts to address specific 

9 resource concerns; 

10 ‘‘(3) collaborate with other Federal and State 

11 agencies, local governments, educational institutions, 

12 and for-profit and nonprofit organizations to mon13 itor and evaluate the environmental outcomes associ14 ated with implementation of the program; 

15 ‘‘(4) demonstrate effective and efficient pro16 gram delivery, including the provision of adequate 

17 technical assistance to all program participants 

18 through appropriate staffing and through coopera19 tion with other Federal, State, Tribal, and local 

20 agencies, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and 

21 individuals with demonstrated expertise in the plan22 ning and implementation of conservation practices, 

23 systems, and approaches; 

24 ‘‘(5) support and encourage innovative ap25 proaches to addressing resource concerns; 


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1 ‘‘(6) effectively leverage Federal funding with 

2 local and state matching funds; and 

3 ‘‘(7) demonstrate effective outreach and innova4 tive approaches to reaching and serving beginning 

5 farmers and ranchers, limited-resource producers, 

6 and operators with lower rates of historical partici7 pation in Federal farm and conservation programs.’’. 

8 SEC. 4. REGIONAL WATER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT PRO9 GRAM. 

10 (a) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—Chapter 5 of sub11 title D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 is 

12 amended by inserting after section 1240P (16 U.S.C. 

13 3839bb–3) the following new section: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 1240Q. REGIONAL WATER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT 

15 PROGRAM. 

16 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—In order to increase, fa17 cilitate, and further implement cooperative partnerships 

18 between States, producers, and other interested persons 

19 or parties to improve water quality in the largest 

20 waterbodies in the United States, the Secretary shall enter 

21 into agreements with States containing all or a portion 

22 of such a waterbody or containing tributaries of such a 

23 waterbody to assist such States to carry out special initia24 tives focused on the enhanced stewardship of such 

25 waterbodies. The Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries shall 


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1 be one of the waterbodies regarding which the Secretary 

2 enters into agreements under this section. 

3 ‘‘(b) TERM OF AGREEMENT.—An agreement under 

4 this section shall be for a term of not shorter than three 

5 years nor longer than five years. 

6 ‘‘(c) COMPETITIVE PROCESS; SET-ASIDE.—The Sec7 retary shall establish a competitive process for considering 

8 applications for agreements under this section, consistent 

9 with the evaluation criteria listed in subsection (d). How10 ever, not less than 25 percent of total funds available for 

11 agreements under this section shall be awarded to States 

12 containing a portion of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. 

13 ‘‘(d) EVALUATION OF APPLICATIONS; CRITERIA.—In 

14 evaluating applications for an agreement under this sec15 tion, the Secretary shall consider the extent to which the 

16 program proposed by the State will accomplish the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(1) Most cost-effectively achieve the greatest 

19 improvements to water quality, utilizing one or more 

20 of the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) Adoption of management practices 

22 and systems, including soil amendments, soil 

23 and stalk testing, alternative cropping systems, 

24 cover crops, buffers, and other measures. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Innovative or advanced conservation 

2 techniques that hold substantial promise for 

3 producing long-term, cost-effective improve4 ments to water quality. 

5 ‘‘(C) Reduction in nutrient inputs to agri6 cultural operations, such as through feed man7 agement. 

8 ‘‘(D) Manure processing and treatment 

9 technologies to permit more efficient use and 

10 transport of manure to produce energy, restore 

11 nutrient-deficient lands, or reduce air emissions. 

12 ‘‘(2) Leverage financial and technical resources 

13 from sources other than the programs authorized by 

14 this subtitle, including financial and technical re15 sources provided by other Federal agencies, State 

16 agencies, local governments, nongovernmental orga17 nizations and associations, and other private sector 

18 entities. 

19 ‘‘(3) Provide necessary technical assistance to 

20 producers and other cooperators participating in the 

21 project or initiative, including in the application cost 

22 estimates for technical assistance and whether such 

23 assistance will be provided by technical service pro24 viders. 


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1 ‘‘(4) Establish a program of education and out2 reach to attract new participants. 

3 ‘‘(5) Serve as a transferable model for other re4 gional watershed efforts. 

5 ‘‘(6) Evaluate progress and measure results. 

6 ‘‘(e) PRIORITIES.—To the maximum extent prac7 ticable, consistent with the requirements of subsection (d), 

8 the Secretary shall ensure that, each fiscal year, agree9 ments are entered into under this section to support 

10 projects and initiatives that collectively address water 

11 quality impairments. 

12 ‘‘(f) SELECTION PROCESS.—In evaluating applica13 tions under this section, the Secretary shall consider rec14 ommendations from scientists, regional experts, and other 

15 persons with appropriate expertise in the Department of 

16 Agriculture, other Federal and State agencies, and inter17 est groups, including producer associations and conserva18 tion and environmental organizations. 

19 ‘‘(g) COST SHARE REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 

20 shall not require more than 25 percent of the cost of a 

21 project or initiative supported under an agreement entered 

22 into under this section to come from non-Federal sources. 

23 However, the Secretary may award more points to projects 

24 or initiatives offering to cover a higher percentage of the 

25 cost of the project or initiative from non-Federal sources. 


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1 If the Secretary establishes a cost-share requirement for 

2 a project or initiative, the Secretary shall allow the use 

3 of in-kind contributions to meet that requirement. 

4 ‘‘(h) STATE.—In this section, the term ‘State’ in5 cludes the District of Columbia.’’. 

6 (b) FUNDING.—Section 1241(a) of such Act (16 

7 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(8) The regional water quality enhancement 

10 program under section 1240Q, using, to the max11 imum extent practicable— 

12 ‘‘(A) $175,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) $200,000,000 in each of fiscal years 

15 2009 through 2013.’’. 

16 SEC. 5. CONSERVATION INNOVATION GRANTS. 

17 Section 1240H of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–8) is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘may’’ and in20 serting ‘‘shall’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (b)— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘shall’’; 

24 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para25 graph (2); 


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1 (C) by striking the period at the end of 

2 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (D) by adding at the end the following new 

4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(4) include a plan for technology transfer.’’; 

6 and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub8 sections: 

9 ‘‘(d) TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER.—In making grants 

10 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to 

11 projects that ensure transferability of innovative conserva12 tion technologies and approaches to achieve widespread 

13 implementation by producers. 

14 ‘‘(e) ADDITIONAL FUNDING.—In addition to amounts 

15 made available under section 1241(a)(6) to carry out this 

16 chapter, the Secretary shall use $100,000,000 in funds of 

17 the Commodity Credit Corporation in each of fiscal years 

18 2008 through 2013 to carry out this section:’’. 

19 SEC. 6. CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM. 

20 (a) EXTENSION.— 

21 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION.—Section 1241(a) of 

22 the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) 

23 is amended— 

24 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

25 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’; and 


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1 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘The’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2002 

3 through 2013, the’’. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 1231 

5 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3831) is amended— 

6 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘2013’’; 

8 (B) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘2013’’; 

10 (C) in subsection (e)(3), by striking 

11 ‘‘2002’’ and inserting ‘‘2008’’; and 

12 (D) in subsection (h)(1), by striking 

13 ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

14 (b) ENROLLMENT GOALS AND USE OF GENERAL

15 SIGNUP.—Section 1231(d) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 3831(d)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting: 

18 ‘‘(1) ACREAGE AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary’’; 

19 and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraphs: 

22 ‘‘(2) ENROLLMENT GOALS.—For the period be23 ginning on the date of the enactment of this para24 graph and ending on December 31, 2013, the Sec25 retary shall establish a goal to enroll not less than 


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1 7,000,000 acres of eligible land through the contin2 uous enrollment program and the conservation re3 serve enhancement program, with priority given to 

4 riparian buffers, restored wetlands, and other habi5 tats known to improve water quality and called for 

6 under established, State-approved tributary strate7 gies or watershed management plans to reduce nu8 trients and sediments from agricultural sources to 

9 impaired waters. 

10 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON USE OF GENERAL

11 SIGNUP.—To the maximum extent practicable, the 

12 Secretary shall ensure that not more than 80 per13 cent of the acres maintained in the conservation re14 serve at any one time during the 2008 through 2013 

15 calendar years are acres that were enrolled through 

16 a general signup under section 1234(c)(2)(A). For 

17 an offer to be accepted into the conservation reserve 

18 under the general signup, the offer must have an en19 vironmental benefit index score at or above a thresh20 old that is 15 percent higher than the average of the 

21 thresholds used in general signups during fiscal 

22 years 1996 through 2006, adjusted for changes in 

23 the index over these fiscal years.’’. 

24 (c) PAYMENT LIMITATION.—Section 1234(f)(1) of 

25 such Act is (16 U.S.C. 3834(f)) is amended by adding at 


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1 the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Secretary may 

2 waive this payment limitation for persons participating in 

3 a conservation reserve enhancement program if the Sec4 retary determines such a waiver is necessary to achieve 

5 the objectives of the conservation reserve enhancement 

6 program.’’. 

7 SEC. 7. CONSERVATION SECURITY PROGRAM. 

8 (a) REPEAL OF FUNDING CAP.—Section 1241(a)(3) 

9 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)(3)) 

10 is amended by striking ‘‘, using not more than’’ and all 

11 that follows through ‘‘2015’’. 

12 (b) PROGRAM EXTENSION.—Section 1238A(a) of 

13 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838a(a)) is amended by striking 

14 ‘‘2011’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

15 (c) ASSISTANCE TO CERTAIN STATES.—Section 

16 1238A(b) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838a(b)) is amended 

17 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(5) CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT.—The Sec19 retary shall provide for a continuous enrollment of 

20 eligible land in any State that, through a written 

21 agreement, is partnering with other States and the 

22 Federal government to achieve specific numeric re23 ductions in nutrient and sediment pollution loadings 

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1 move the waters in that watershed from the list of 

2 impaired waters under the Clean Water Act.’’. 

3 (d) ENHANCED PAYMENTS FOR WATER QUALITY.— 

4 Section 3838C(b)(1)(C)(iii) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

5 3838c(b)(1)(C)(iii)) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subclause 

7 (IV); 

8 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub9 clause (V) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub11 clause: 

12 ‘‘(VI) implements practices that will sig13 nificantly improve water quality in watersheds 

14 associated with waters impaired by agricultural 

15 nutrients, with priority given to the most effec16 tive practices.’’. 

17 (e) DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.—Section 3838c of 

18 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838c) is amended by striking sub19 sections (f) and (g) and inserting the following new sub20 sections: 

21 ‘‘(f) ENROLLMENT PRIORITY.—In any fiscal year in 

22 which funding for the conservation security program is 

23 limited, the Secretary shall prioritize contracts to address 

24 water quality in watersheds of water bodies impaired by 

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1 poses to increase the management intensity with which the 

2 producer addresses nutrient impairment of water quality 

3 in the watershed. 

4 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITED ALLOCATION FACTOR.—The Sec5 retary shall not use the total number of acres as an alloca6 tion factor. 

7 ‘‘(h) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—For each of fiscal 

8 years 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall provide 

9 technical assistance to producers for the development and 

10 implementation of conservation security contracts in an 

11 amount based on actual cost, but not to exceed 23 percent 

12 of amounts expended for the fiscal year.’’. 

13 SEC. 8. COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING TECHNICAL ASSIST14 ANCE PILOT PROGRAM. 

15 Section 1242 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 

16 U.S.C. 3842) is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(c) COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING TECHNICAL AS19 SISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM.— 

20 ‘‘(1) CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED.—The Sec21 retary shall establish a pilot program in the Chesa22 peake Bay watershed to assist producers with com23 prehensive conservation planning, design, and imple24 mentation, both before applying for assistance under 

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1 title D and through the process of design and imple2 mentation of conservation projects. 

3 ‘‘(2) COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT.—The pilot 

4 program will assist producers by making a com5 prehensive assessment of the resource concerns, 

6 needs, and alternative solutions for the producer’s 

7 entire operation, as determined by the Secretary, fol8 lowing the procedures in the Natural Resources Con9 servation Service conservation planning manual, and 

10 by providing technical assistance in design and im11 plementation of the solutions. 

12 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE.—Assistance to 

13 producers under the pilot program shall be provided 

14 by the Secretary directly or through third party pro15 viders certified by the Secretary. The results of the 

16 comprehensive planning, design, and implementation 

17 assistance shall be provided to the producer to en18 able informed choices on the type of financial assist19 ance available through conservation programs ad20 ministered by the Secretary under subtitle D that 

21 would most effectively address the resource needs of 

22 the operation consistent with the environmental 

23 goals for the area in which the operation is located. 


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1 ‘‘(4) COST.—Assistance under the pilot pro2 gram shall be provided by the Secretary without cost 

3 to producers. 

4 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.—The Secretary shall provide 

5 $10,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit 

6 Corporation each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013 

7 to carry out the pilot program.’’. 

8 SEC. 9. WETLANDS RESERVE PROGRAM. 

9 (a) EXTENSION.— 

10 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION.—Section 1241(a)(2) 

11 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

12 3841(a)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘The’’ and in13 serting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2002 through 

14 2013, the’’. 

15 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

16 1237(c) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(c)) is amended 

17 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

18 (b) MAXIMUM AND YEARLY ENROLLMENT.—Section 

19 1237(b)(1) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(b)(1)) is amend20 ed by striking ‘‘2,275,000 acres,’’ and all that follows 

21 through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘3,500,000 

22 acres, of which, to the maximum extent practicable, 5,000 

23 acres in calendar year 2008 and 10,000 acres in each of 

24 calendar years 2009 and 2010 shall be enrolled to meet 

25 State and Federal 2010 goals established pursuant to the 


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1 Chesapeake 2000 agreement for the Chesapeake Bay wa2 tershed.’’. 

3 (c) PRIORITY.—Section 1237 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

4 3837) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

5 subsection: 

6 ‘‘(g) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give priority to 

7 enrollments benefitting water quality and shall consider 

8 whether States are implementing the program consistent 

9 with these priorities when allocating program funding to 

10 states.’’ 

11 (d) ADDITIONAL PURPOSE.—Section 1237A(b)(3) of 

12 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837a(b)(3)) is amended by inserting 

13 after ‘‘wetlands’’ the following: ‘‘, including the reduction 

14 of excess nutrients’’. 

15 (e) INCREASED COST SHARE.—Section 1237C(b)(2) 

16 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837c(b)(2)) is amended by adding 

17 at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘However, the Sec18 retary may increase the cost-share percentage if the res19 toration plan referred to in section 1237A(b) results in 

20 significant reduction of excess nutrients in watersheds of 

21 waterbodies impaired by agricultural nutrients or results 

22 in land placed under permanent easement.’’. 

23 (f) EASEMENT PRIORITY.—Section 1237C(d) of such 

24 Act (16 U.S.C. 3837c(d)) is amended by inserting before 

25 the period at the end the following: ‘‘or for achieving nuVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:46 Apr 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1766.IH H1766

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1 trient reductions in watersheds of waterbodies impaired by 

2 agricultural nutrients’’. 

3 SEC. 10. AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE. 

4 (a) ADDITIONAL STATE.—Subsection (b)(1) of sec5 tion 524 of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 

6 1524) is amended by inserting ‘‘Virginia,’’ after 

7 ‘‘Vermont,’’. 

8 (b) FUNDING AND DURATION.—Subsection (b)(4)(B) 

9 of such section is amended— 

10 (1) in clause (ii)— 

11 (A) by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2003 through 

12 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 through 

13 2013’’; and 

14 (B) by striking ‘‘$20,000,000’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘$50,000,000’’; and 

16 (2) in clause (iii)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2004 through 

18 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 through 

19 2013’’; 

20 (B) in subclause (I), by striking 

21 ‘‘$14,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$38,000,000’’; 

22 (C) in subclause (II), by striking 

23 ‘‘$1,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$2,000,000’’; and 

24 (D) in subclause (III), by striking 

25 ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$10,000,000’’. 


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1 SEC. 11. BIOREFINERY AND BIOFUEL PROJECT GRANTS. 

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Subsection (b) of section 9003 of 

3 the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 

4 U.S.C. 8103) is amended by— 

5 (1) redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 

6 (4); and 

7 (2) inserting after paragraph (3) the following 

8 new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(3) CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED STATES.— 

10 The term ‘Chesapeake Bay Watershed States’ means 

11 the States of Delaware, Maryland, New York, Penn12 sylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia and the Dis13 trict of Columbia.’’. 

14 (b) ASSISTANCE METHODS.—Subsection (c) of such 

15 section is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(c) ASSISTANCE.— 

17 ‘‘(1) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall award 

18 grants and make loans and loan guarantees to eligi19 ble entities to assist in covering the cost of develop20 ment and construction of biorefineries to carry out 

21 projects to demonstrate the commercial viability of 

22 one or more processes for converting biomass to 

23 fuels or chemicals. 

24 ‘‘(2) CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED

25 PROJECTS.—In the case of a project to be operated 

26 in one or more of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed 


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1 States, the Secretary shall award grants under this 

2 subsection for the purpose of developing and pro3 moting the commercial viability of no-till soybean 

4 biodiesel production, cellulosic ethanol production, 

5 manure to energy processes and technologies, and 

6 other technologies that promote the conversion of 

7 biomass to fuels and chemicals and the reduction of 

8 nutrient impacts to water quality.’’. 

9 (c) ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS; DISTRIBUTION OF

10 GRANTS.—Subsection (e) of such section is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (2)(A)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 

13 (i); 

14 (B) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause 

15 (iii); and 

16 (C) by inserting after clause (i) the fol17 lowing new clause: 

18 ‘‘(ii) shall select projects based upon 

19 the extent to which the projects meet envi20 ronmental goals for feed stocks and refin21 eries developed by the Secretary in con22 sultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 

23 the Secretary of Energy, the Administrator 

24 of the Environmental Protection Agency, 

25 and the National Academy of Sciences takVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:46 Apr 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1766.IH H1766

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1 ing into consideration clean water and air 

2 goals; and’’. 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(3) FUNDS FOR CHESAPEAKE BAY STATES.— 

6 The Secretary shall ensure that not less than 15 

7 percent of the total funds available under this sec8 tion are provided to projects operated in Chesapeake 

9 Bay Watershed States that benefit the Chesapeake 

10 Bay watershed .’’. 

11 (d) FUNDING.—Subsection (h) of such section is 

12 amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(h) Of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora14 tion, the Secretary shall use $100,000,000 for each of fis15 cal years 2008 through 2013 to carry out this section.’’. 

16 SEC. 12. RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS AND ENERGY EFFI17 CIENCY IMPROVEMENTS PROGRAM. 

18 Section 9006 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest19 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8106) is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (c)— 

21 (A) by striking paragraph (2)(C) and in22 serting the following: 

23 ‘‘(C) the expected environmental benefits 

24 of the renewable energy system, including in 


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1 watersheds of bodies of water degraded by agri2 cultural nutrients and to water quality;’’; and 

3 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(3) PREFERENCE FOR COMMUNITY

6 PROJECTS.—The Secretary shall give preference in 

7 funding and grant and loan selection to activities 

8 that the Secretary determines— 

9 ‘‘(A) are undertaken jointly by more than 

10 one eligible entity in a local community; 

11 ‘‘(B) involve direct cooperation between 

12 two or more eligible entities; and 

13 ‘‘(C) foster community or cooperative ap14 proaches to renewable energy and energy effi15 ciency development.’’; and 

16 (2) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(f) PRODUCTION-BASED INCENTIVE IN LIEU OF

19 GRANT.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the authority 

21 under subsection (a), the Secretary may, on the re22 quest of an applicant the Secretary determines is eli23 gible under subsection (b), make production-based 

24 payments to the applicant in lieu of a grant. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTINGENCY.—The Secretary shall only 

2 make a payment under paragraph (1) if the appli3 cant provides the Secretary with documentation 

4 showing energy production and sales from a renew5 able energy system to a third party. 

6 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—The total net present value 

7 of a production-based incentive may not exceed the 

8 lower of— 

9 ‘‘(A) 25 percent of the eligible project 

10 costs; and 

11 ‘‘(B) any other limits that the Secretary 

12 establishes by rule or guidance. 

13 ‘‘(g) DISTRIBUTION OF GRANTS.—The Secretary 

14 shall ensure that not less than 15 percent of the grants, 

15 loans, and loan guarantees provided under this section are 

16 provided to projects in Chesapeake Bay Watershed States 

17 that benefit the Chesapeake Bay watershed. 

18 ‘‘(h) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘Chesa19 peake Bay Watershed States’ means the States of Dela20 ware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and 

21 West Virginia and the District of Columbia. 

22 ‘‘(i) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

23 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall make available to 

24 carry out this section— 


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1 ‘‘(1) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, to re2 main available until expended; 

3 ‘‘(2) $90,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, to re4 main available until expended; 

5 ‘‘(3) $130,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, to re6 main available until expended; 

7 ‘‘(4) $180,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, to re8 main available until expended; and 

9 ‘‘(5) $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2012, to re10 main available until expended.’’. 

Æ 


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