I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2720 

To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to reform 

commodity programs and to increase nutrition, conservation, and energy 

programs of the Department of Agriculture, to reduce the national budget deficit, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 14, 2007 

Mr. KIND (for himself, Mr. FLAKE, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. REICHERT, Ms. 

BERKLEY, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. KIRK, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. PETRI, 

Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin, Mr. SHAYS, and Mr. SMITH of Washington) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor, Foreign Affairs, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act 

of 2002 to reform commodity programs and to increase 

nutrition, conservation, and energy programs of the Department of Agriculture, to reduce the national budget 

deficit, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘Food and Agriculture Risk Management for the 21st 

4 Century Act of 2007’’ or the ‘‘FARM 21 Act of 2007’’. 

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

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—RISK MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTS 

Sec. 101. Adjusted gross income limitation. 

Sec. 102. Risk management accounts. 

Sec. 103. Direct payments. 

Sec. 104. Counter-cyclical payments. 

Sec. 105. Dairy. 

Sec. 106. Repeal of other commodity programs. 

Sec. 107. Recourse loan program. 

Sec. 108. Crop insurance reimbursement rate. 

TITLE II—REALLOCATIONS 

Subtitle A—Conservation 

Sec. 201. Conservation. 

Subtitle B—Healthy Foods 

Sec. 221. Domestic Nutrition and Health. 

Subtitle C—McGovern-Dole 

Sec. 231. Reauthorization of McGovern-Dole International Food for Education 

and Child Nutrition Program. 

Subtitle D—Renewable Energy 

Sec. 241. Energy. 

Subtitle E—Rural Development 

Sec. 251. Rural development. 

Sec. 252. Rural entrepreneur and microenterprise assistance program. 

Sec. 253. Enhancing rural infrastructure. 

Subtitle F—Nutrition 

Sec. 261. Exclusion of combat-related military pay from countable income. 

Sec. 262. Strengthening the food purchasing power of low-income Americans. 

Sec. 263. Supporting working families with child care expenses. 

Sec. 264. Increasing the minimum benefit. 

Sec. 265. Exclusion of retirement accounts from countable financial resources. 

Sec. 266. Facilitating simplified reporting. 


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Sec. 267. Reauthorization of food stamp program and food distribution program on Indian reservations, and the commodity supplemental 

food program. 

Sec. 268. Outreach grants. 

Sec. 269. Funds to States for improving and innovating program access and integrity. 

Sec. 270. Supporting State efforts during natural disasters. 

Sec. 271. Community food grants. 

Sec. 272. Expanding the use of food stamps at farmers’ markets. 

Sec. 273. Commodities for the emergency food assistance program. 

Sec. 274. Community food assistance and food bank infrastructure grants 

under the Food Stamp Act. 

Sec. 275. Food for the hungry transportation grant program. 

Subtitle G—Deficit Reduction 

Sec. 281. Deficit reduction. 

1 TITLE I—RISK MANAGEMENT 

2 ACCOUNTS 

3 SEC. 101. ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME LIMITATION. 

4 Section 1001D(b) of the Farm Security Act of 1985 

5 is amended by adding at the end the following new para6 graph: 

7 ‘‘(3) FURTHER LIMITATIONS ON PAYMENTS.— 

8 After 2007, notwithstanding any other provision of 

9 law, an individual or entity shall not be eligible to 

10 receive any direct, counter-cyclical or transition pay11 ment under any provision of law administered by the 

12 Department of Agriculture if the average adjusted 

13 gross income of the individual or entity exceeds 

14 $200,000. For purposes of this paragraph,’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. RISK MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTS. 

2 (a) ACCOUNTS REQUIRED.—The Secretary shall offer 

3 to enter into a risk management account contract with an 

4 operator of a farm. 

5 (b) OPERATOR.—For the purposes of this section, an 

6 operator means an individual or entity that— 

7 (1) either— 

8 (A) during each of the preceding 5 taxable 

9 years, filed a schedule F of the Federal income 

10 tax returns or a comparable tax form related to 

11 the agricultural operations of the individual or 

12 entity, as approved by the Secretary; or 

13 (B) is a beginning farmer or rancher, as 

14 determined by the Secretary; and 

15 (2) earned— 

16 (A) at least $10,000 in average adjusted 

17 gross revenue for the preceding 5 taxable years; 

18 (B) less than such amount, but is a limited 

19 resource farmer or rancher, as determined by 

20 the Secretary; or 

21 (C) at least $10,000 in estimated income 

22 from all agricultural operations for the applica23 ble year, as determined by the Secretary, and is 

24 a beginning farmer or rancher under paragraph 

25 (1)(B). 


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1 (c) FARM.—For the purposes of this section, a farm 

2 is land used for production of crops, livestock and other 

3 agricultural products of which the operator has more than 

4 de-minimis control or ownership. 

5 (d) ADJUSTED GROSS REVENUE.—In this section, 

6 the term ‘‘adjusted gross revenue’’ means the adjusted 

7 gross income as determined by the Secretary, from the 

8 sale of agricultural crops grown, dairy products produced, 

9 and livestock raised as part of an agricultural operation— 

10 (1) by taking into account gross receipts from 

11 the sale of agricultural crops, eligible livestock and 

12 dairy products on the agricultural operation, includ13 ing insurance indemnities; 

14 (2) by including all farm payments paid by the 

15 Secretary or any other government entity for the ag16 ricultural operation related to agricultural crops, eli17 gible livestock and dairy products; 

18 (3) by deducting the cost or basis of livestock 

19 or other items purchased for resale, such as feeder 

20 livestock, on the agricultural operation; 

21 (4) by excluding revenues that do not arise 

22 from the sale of crops grown, dairy products pro23 duced or livestock raised on an agricultural oper24 ation, such as revenues associated with the pack25 aging, merchandising, marketing and reprocessing of 


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1 the agricultural product beyond that typically under2 taken by a producer of the crop, dairy products or 

3 livestock as determined by the Secretary; 

4 (5) by using with such adjustments, additions 

5 and additional documentation as the Secretary de6 termines is appropriate, information presented on— 

7 (A) a schedule F of the Federal income tax 

8 returns of the producer; or 

9 (B) a comparable tax form related to the 

10 agricultural operations of the producer, as ap11 proved by the Secretary. 

12 (e) AVERAGE ADJUSTED GROSS REVENUE.—In this 

13 section, the term ‘‘average adjusted gross revenue’’ 

14 means— 

15 (1) the rolling average of the adjusted gross 

16 revenue of a producer for each of the preceding 5 

17 taxable years; or 

18 (2) in the case of a beginning farmer or rancher 

19 or other agricultural operation that does not have 

20 adjusted gross revenue for each of the preceding 5 

21 taxable years, the estimated income of the agricul22 tural operation for the applicable year, as deter23 mined by the Secretary. 

24 (f) ESTABLISHMENT.—Any operator of a farm may 

25 establish a risk management account in the name of the 


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1 farm to be jointly administered by the Secretary and the 

2 Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board. 

3 (g) VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS.—An operator of a 

4 farm may make voluntary contributions up to the limits 

5 specified in section 219(b)(5)(A) of the Internal Revenue 

6 Code of 1986. 

7 (h) WITHDRAWALS.—An operator who establishes an 

8 account may withdraw funds under following conditions 

9 and amounts: 

10 (1) In a year when the farm’s adjusted gross 

11 revenue is less than 95 percent of the five-year aver12 age adjusted gross revenue, the producer may with13 draw funds up to the amount of the difference. 

14 (2) Up to 10 percent of the account balance for 

15 investments in rural enterprises that contribute to 

16 the agricultural economy, as defined by the Sec17 retary, no more than once in any five-year period. 

18 (3) When withdrawals are necessary to protect 

19 the solvency of the farm, as determined by the Sec20 retary. 

21 (4) To purchase revenue or crop insurance. 

22 (i) LIMITATION.—Payments to an account created 

23 under this section shall be made in the interest of the 

24 farm. 


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1 (j) TAX TREATMENT.—Contributions shall not be 

2 subject to Federal income tax, except that withdrawals will 

3 be counted toward the gross income of the producer in 

4 the year withdrawn. 

5 (k) VIOLATIONS.—If an operator fails to meet the 

6 conditions established for a contribution to an account, the 

7 operator shall refund to the Secretary an amount equal 

8 to the contribution in any fiscal year in which a violation 

9 occurred. 

10 (l) SALE OR TRANSFER.—If an operator sells or 

11 transfers a farm, the operator may elect to— 

12 (1) transfer all or a portion of the account to 

13 another farm in which the operator has a controlling 

14 ownership interest or acquires a controlling owner15 ship interest within two years of the sale or transfer 

16 of the original agricultural operation; 

17 (2) transfer the account to the purchaser of the 

18 farm if the operator is not already a holder of a ac19 count; or 

20 (3) rollover the account into an Individual Re21 tirement Account pursuant to section 408 of the In22 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 of the operator, if the 

23 operator is a natural person, or, if the operator is 

24 an entity, into the accounts of any natural person 


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1 who has a substantial beneficial interest in the farm 

2 that is the subject of the account. 

3 (m) CONSERVATION COMPLIANCE.—Any operator 

4 and any holder of a beneficial interest in a farm subject 

5 to an account shall— 

6 (1) comply with applicable conservation require7 ments under subtitle B of title XII of the Food Se8 curity Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3811 et seq.); and 

9 (2) comply with applicable wetland conservation 

10 requirements under subtitle C of title XII of that 

11 Act (16 U.S.C. 3821 et seq.). 

12 SEC. 103. DIRECT PAYMENTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1103 of the Farm Secu14 rity and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7913) 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ each place it appears and 

16 inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

17 (b) REDUCTION IN DIRECT PAYMENT AMOUNTS.— 

18 Notwithstanding subsection (c) of section 1103 of the 

19 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, pro20 ducers otherwise eligible for direct payments under such 

21 section shall receive— 

22 (1) 65 percent of their direct payment for fiscal 

23 year 2008; 

24 (2) 45 percent of their direct payment for fiscal 

25 year 2009; 


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1 (3) 25 percent of their direct payment for fiscal 

2 year 2010; 

3 (4) 20 percent of their direct payment for fiscal 

4 year 2011; and 

5 (5) 10 percent of their direct payment for fiscal 

6 years 2012 through 2014. 

7 (c) PAYMENT LIMIT.—Section 1001(b)(1) of the 

8 Food Security of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308) is amended by 

9 striking ‘‘$40,000’’ and insert ‘‘$30,000’’. 

10 (d) PLANTING RESTRICTIONS.—Section 

11 1105(a)(1)(C) and section 1106 of the Farm Security and 

12 Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7915(a)(1)(C), 

13 7916) are repealed. 

14 (e) ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT.—Sec15 tion 1103(a) of the Farm Security and Rural Investment 

16 Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7913(a)) is amended by inserting 

17 at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘To be eligible to 

18 receive a direct payment under this section, a producer 

19 must be actively engaged in agriculture on the land for 

20 which the direct payment is paid, as determined by the 

21 Secretary.’’. 

22 (f) CONTRIBUTION TO ACCOUNT.—Section 1103 of 

23 the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following new sub25 section: 


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1 ‘‘(d) CONTRIBUTIONS TO RISK MANAGEMENT AC2 COUNT.—50 percent of the direct payments of a producer 

3 in fiscal years 2008 and 2009 shall be deposited in the 

4 risk management account of the producer, 75 percent of 

5 the direct payments of a producer for fiscal years 2010 

6 and 2011 shall be deposited in the risk management ac7 count of the producer, and 100 percent of the direct pay8 ments of a producer for fiscal year 2012 shall be deposited 

9 in the risk management account of the producer.’’. 

10 (g) STEWARDSHIP.—Section 1103 of Farm Security 

11 and Rural Investment Act of 2002 is amended by inserting 

12 after subsection (d), as added by subsection (f), the fol13 lowing new subsection: 

14 ‘‘(e) ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP.—Direct pay15 ments shall be linked to environmental stewardship as fol16 lows: 

17 ‘‘(1) The Secretary, acting through the Chief of 

18 the Natural Resources Conservation Service, shall 

19 develop an index of environmental performance, to 

20 be linked to management intensity and significant 

21 resource concerns, for the each of the crops provided 

22 a direct payment under this section. 

23 ‘‘(2) To be eligible for a direct payment linked 

24 to stewardship, an individual or entity shall develop 

25 a plan that describes the level of stewardship to be 


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1 achieved and the conversation practices or measures 

2 to be implemented. The individual or entity shall 

3 certify environmental performance through a quali4 fied third-party. 

5 ‘‘(3) Subject to the percentage restrictions on 

6 direct payment amounts imposed by section 102(b) 

7 of the Food and Agriculture Risk Management for 

8 the 21st Century Act of 2007, 85 percent of the 

9 available direct payment shall be provided so long as 

10 the agricultural producer meets the conservation re11 quirements of subtitles B and C of title XII of the 

12 Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3811 et seq.). 

13 ‘‘(4) Subject to the percentage restrictions on 

14 direct payment amounts imposed by section 102(b) 

15 of the Food and Agriculture Risk Management for 

16 the 21st Century Act of 2007, 90 percent of the 

17 available direct payment shall be provided so long as 

18 the agricultural producers meet the first level of en19 vironmental performance, as determined by the 

20 index of environmental performance. 

21 ‘‘(5) Subject to the percentage restrictions on 

22 direct payment amounts imposed by section 102(b) 

23 of the Food and Agriculture Risk Management for 

24 the 21st Century Act of 2007, 95 percent of the 

25 available direct payment shall be provided so long as 


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1 the agricultural producers meet the second level of 

2 environmental performance, as determined by the 

3 index of environmental performance. 

4 ‘‘(6) Subject to the percentage restrictions on 

5 direct payment amounts imposed by section 102(b) 

6 of the Food and Agriculture Risk Management for 

7 the 21st Century Act of 2007, 100 percent of the 

8 available direct payment shall be provided so long as 

9 the agricultural producers meet the third level of en10 vironmental performance, as determined by the 

11 index of environmental performance.’’. 

12 SEC. 104. COUNTER-CYCLICAL PAYMENTS. 

13 (a) ONE-YEAR EXTENSION.—Section 1104 of the 

14 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 is 

15 amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ each place it appears and 

16 inserting ‘‘2008’’. 

17 (b) RELATION TO OTHER CHANGES MADE BY THIS

18 ACT.—Counter-cyclical payments described in section 

19 1104 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 

20 2002 for the 2007 and 2008 crop years are to be cal21 culated under such section without regard to the changes 

22 made by section 103 with regard to direct payments or 

23 the repeal of other commodity programs under section 

24 106. Under no circumstances may counter-cyclical pay25 ments be made for the 2011 or subsequent crop years. 


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1 SEC. 105. DAIRY. 

2 (a) MILK PRICE SUPPORT PROGRAM.—Section 1501 

3 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 

4 (7 U.S.C. 7981) is repealed. 

5 (b) MILC PROGRAM.—Section 1502 of the Farm Se6 curity and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7982) 

7 is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 1502. SUPPORT FOR MILK PRODUCERS. 

9 ‘‘Dairy operators shall receive equal annual payments 

10 in each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2012, cumula11 tively equal to 90 percent of the milk income loss contract 

12 payments the operator received in fiscal years 2003 

13 through 2007. One half of the annual payment shall be 

14 immediately available to the producer, and one half of the 

15 payment shall be placed in the risk management account 

16 of the operator’’. 

17 SEC. 106. REPEAL OF OTHER COMMODITY PROGRAMS. 

18 (a) REPEAL OF COMMODITY PROGRAMS.—Except as 

19 otherwise provided by this Act, all commodity programs 

20 set forth in subtitles A, B, C, and D of title I of the Farm 

21 Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 and sections 

22 1501 and 1502 of such Act are repealed. 

23 (b) REPEAL OF SUSPENDED AUTHORITIES.—The 

24 provisions of law that were suspended by section 1602 of 

25 the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 pur26 suant to paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4) of subsection 


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1 (a), paragraphs (1) through (12) of subsection (b), and 

2 subsection (c) are repealed. 

3 (c) REPEAL OF SUGAR TARIFF RATE QUOTA.—The 

4 existing sugar tariff rate quota is repealed. 

5 SEC. 107. RECOURSE LOAN PROGRAM. 

6 The Secretary of Agriculture shall establish a re7 course loan program for all commodities, including sugar, 

8 for which marketing loans were available under the terms 

9 of title I of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act 

10 of 2002 at a rate of interest determined by the Secretary. 

11 SEC. 108. CROP INSURANCE REIMBURSEMENT RATE. 

12 Section 508(k)(4)(A)(ii) of the Federal Crop Insur13 ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(k)(4)(A)(ii)) is amended by 

14 striking ‘‘24.5’’ and inserting ‘‘23.2’’. 

15 TITLE II—REALLOCATIONS 

16 Subtitle A—Conservation 

17 SEC. 201. CONSERVATION. 

18 (a) EXTENSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY IN19 CENTIVES PROGRAM.—Section 1241(a) of the Food Secu20 rity Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is amended by strik21 ing paragraph (6) and inserting the following new para22 graph: 

23 ‘‘(6) The environmental quality incentives pro24 gram under chapter 4, using, to the maximum ex25 tent practicable— 


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1 ‘‘(A) $1,550,000,000 in fiscal year 2008; 

2 ‘‘(B) $1,700,000,000 in fiscal year 2009; 

3 ‘‘(C) $1,800,000,000 in fiscal year 2010; 

4 ‘‘(D) $1,900,000,000 in fiscal year 2011; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(E) $2,000,000,000 in fiscal year 2012.’’. 

7 (b) EXTENSION OF CONSERVATION INNOVATION

8 GRANTS PROGRAM.—Section 1240H of such Act (16 

9 U.S.C. 3839aa–8) is amended by adding at the end the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—Of the funds made available under 

12 section 1241(a)(6), the Secretary shall use funds of the 

13 Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out this section 

14 in the following amounts: 

15 ‘‘(1) $40,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. 

16 ‘‘(2) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

17 ‘‘(3) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

18 ‘‘(4) $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 

19 through 2012.’’. 

20 (c) EXTENSION OF WETLANDS RESERVE PRO21 GRAM.— 

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

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

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1 serting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2002 through 

2 2012, the’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

4 1237(c) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(c)) is amended 

5 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

6 (d) MAXIMUM AND YEARLY ENROLLMENT.—Section 

7 1237(b)(1) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

8 3837(b)(1)) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘2,275,000 acres’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘3,350,000 acres’’; and 

11 (2) by striking ‘‘250,000’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘250,000 acres in 2008 and 2009, 275,000 acres in 

13 2010 and 2011, and 300,000 acres in 2012.’’. 

14 (e) EXTENSION OF GRASSLANDS RESERVE PRO15 GRAM.— 

16 (1) EXTENSION AND FUNDING.—Section 

17 1241(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 

18 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is amended by striking paragraph 

19 (5) and inserting the following new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(5) For each of fiscal years 2002 through 

21 2012, the grassland reserve program under sub22 chapter C of chapter 2.’’. 

23 (2) ENROLLMENT GOALS.—Section 1238N(b) 

24 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838N(b)) is amended in 

25 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘2,000,000 acres’’ and 


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1 inserting ‘‘500,000 acres in each of fiscal years 2008 

2 through 2012’’. 

3 (f) EXTENSION OF WILDLIFE HABITAT INCENTIVES

4 PROGRAM.—Section 1241(a)(7) of the Food Security Act 

5 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)(7)) is amended by striking 

6 subparagraphs (A) through (D) and inserting the fol7 lowing new subparagraphs: 

8 ‘‘(A) $80,000,000 in fiscal years 2008 and 

9 2009; 

10 ‘‘(B) $100,000,000 in fiscal years 2010 

11 and 2011; and 

12 ‘‘(C) $150,000,000 in fiscal year 2012.’’. 

13 (g) EXTENSION OF FARM AND RANCHLAND PROTEC14 TION PROGRAM.—Paragraph (4) of subsection (a) of sec15 tion 1241 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

16 3841) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(4) The farmland protection program under 

18 subchapter B of chapter 2, using $100,000,000 in 

19 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012.’’. 

20 (h) HEALTHY FORESTS RESERVE PROGRAM.—Sec21 tion 508 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

22 6578) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 508 FUNDING FOR HEALTHY FORESTS RESERVE PRO2 GRAM. 

3 ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012, the 

4 Secretary shall use the funds, facilities, and authorities of 

5 the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out the 

6 healthy forests reserve program, including the provision 

7 of technical assistance under the program, in an amount 

8 not to exceed $50,000,000 each fiscal year.’’. 

9 Subtitle B—Healthy Foods 

10 SEC. 221. DOMESTIC NUTRITION AND HEALTH. 

11 (a) FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SNACK PROGRAM.—Sec12 tion 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 

13 Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended in subsection (g)— 

14 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

15 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

16 (A), by striking ‘‘July 2004’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘July 2007’’; and 

18 (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

19 and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) 100 elementary or secondary schools 

21 in each State; 

22 ‘‘(B) additional elementary or secondary 

23 schools in each State in proportion to the stu24 dent population of the State; and’’; 

25 (2) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘paragraph 

26 (1)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; 


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1 (3) in paragraph (5), in each of subparagraphs 

2 (A) and (B), by striking ‘‘2008’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘2011’’; and 

4 (4) in paragraph (6)(B)(i)— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘October 1, 2004,’’ and in6 serting ‘‘October 1, 2007,’’; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘$9,000,000’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘$9,000,000 in fiscal year 2008, 

9 $12,000,000 in fiscal year 2009, and 

10 $75,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2010 

11 through 2012’’. 

12 (b) FARM TO SCHOOL PROGRAM.—Section 18 of the 

13 Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 

14 1769) is amended in subsection (i)(2) by striking ‘‘such 

15 sums as are necessary’’ and all that follows through the 

16 period at the end and inserting ‘‘to carry out this sub17 section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009, 

18 $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2012.’’. 

19 (c) FARMERS MARKET PROMOTION PROGRAM.—Sec20 tion 6 of the Farmer-to-Consumer Direct Marketing Act 

21 of 1976 (7 U.S.C. 3005) is amended by striking sub22 sections (d) and (e) and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(d) CRITERIA AND GUIDELINES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab25 lish criteria and guidelines for the submission, evalVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:10 Jun 20, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2720.IH H2720

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1 uation, and funding of proposed projects under the 

2 Program. 

3 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall prioritize 

4 the funding of projects that will support, encourage, 

5 or promote the transition to organic and other envi6 ronmentally beneficial forms of agricultural produc7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

9 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use $25,000,000 

10 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2012 to carry 

11 out this section, of which $5,000,000 shall be used to sup12 port the use of electronic benefit transfers at farmers’ 

13 markets.’’. 

14 (d) FRUIT AND VEGETABLE NUTRITION PROMOTION

15 PROGRAM.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agri17 culture, acting through the Administrator of the Ag18 ricultural Marketing Service, shall establish and 

19 carry out a program to provide assistance to eligible 

20 trade organizations described in paragraph (3) to in21 crease the consumption of fruits and vegetables in 

22 the United States to meet Federal health guidelines. 

23 (2) REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATION.—To 

24 be eligible for assistance under this section, an eligi25 ble trade organization shall— 


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1 (A) prepare and submit a plan to increase 

2 the consumption of fruits and vegetables in the 

3 United States to the Administrator of the Agri4 cultural Marketing Service that meets any 

5 guidelines governing such plans established by 

6 the Administrator; and 

7 (B) meet any other requirements estab8 lished by the Administrator. 

9 (3) ELIGIBLE TRADE ORGANIZATIONS.—An eli10 gible trade organization referred to in paragraph (1) 

11 means any of the following: 

12 (A) A nonprofit fruit and vegetable trade 

13 organizations in the United States. 

14 (B) A nonprofit State or regional fruit and 

15 vegetable organization. 

16 (C) A fruit and vegetable agricultural co17 operative in the United States. 

18 (D) A commodity board or commission in 

19 the United States. 

20 (E) A small business engaged in the fruit 

21 and vegetable industry in the United States. 

22 (4) MATCHING FUNDS.—Assistance provided 

23 under this section shall not exceed— 

24 (A) in the case of an organization de25 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 


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1 paragraph (3), 90 percent of the cost of the 

2 plan to increase the consumption of fruits and 

3 vegetables in the United States submitted under 

4 paragraph (2)(A); and 

5 (B) in the case of an organization de6 scribed in paragraph (3)(E), 50 percent of the 

7 cost of the plan to increase the consumption of 

8 fruits and vegetables in the United States sub9 mitted under paragraph (2)(A). 

10 (5) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

11 Credit Corporation, the Administrator of the Agri12 cultural Marketing Service shall use $10,000,000 in 

13 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012 to carry out 

14 this section. 

15 Subtitle C—McGovern-Dole 

16 SEC. 231. REAUTHORIZATION OF MCGOVERN-DOLE INTER17 NATIONAL FOOD FOR EDUCATION AND 

18 CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM. 

19 (a) ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM.—Section 3107 

20 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 

21 (7 U.S.C. 1736o–1) is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (d), in the matter preceding 

23 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘The President shall des24 ignate 1 or more Federal agencies to’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘The Secretary shall’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (f)(2), in the matter preceding 

2 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘implementing agen3 cy’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’; and 

4 (3) in subsections (c)(2)(B), (f)(1), (h)(1) and 

5 (2), and (i), by striking ‘‘President’’ each place it 

6 appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’. 

7 (b) FUNDING.—Section 3107(l) of the Farm Security 

8 and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 1736o–1(l)) 

9 is amended— 

10 (1) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and in11 serting the following: 

12 ‘‘(1) USE OF COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION

13 FUNDS.—Of the funds of the Commodity Credit 

14 Corporation, the Secretary shall use to carry out this 

15 section— 

16 ‘‘(A) not less than $50,000,000 for fiscal 

17 year 2008; 

18 ‘‘(B) not less than $50,000,000 for fiscal 

19 year 2009; 

20 ‘‘(C) not less than $100,000,000 for fiscal 

21 year 2010; 

22 ‘‘(D) not less than $150,000,000 for fiscal 

23 year 2011; and 

24 ‘‘(E) not less than $150,000,000 for fiscal 

25 year 2012.’’; 


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1 (2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para2 graph (2); and 

3 (3) in paragraph (2) (as redesignated by para4 graph (2)), by striking ‘‘any Federal agency imple5 menting or assisting’’ and inserting ‘‘the Depart6 ment of Agriculture or any other Federal agency as7 sisting’’. 

8 Subtitle D—Renewable Energy 

9 SEC. 241. ENERGY. 

10 (a) EXTENSION OF BIOREFEINERY GRANTS AND

11 LOANS.— 

12 (1) ASSISTANCE METHODS.—Subsection (c) of 

13 section 9003 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest14 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8103) to read as fol15 lows: 

16 ‘‘(c) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall award grants 

17 and make loans and loan guarantees to eligible entities 

18 to assist in covering the cost of development and construc19 tion of biorefineries or for the construction or deployment 

20 of methane digesters used to capture the methane gas 

21 from livestock manure for use as a fuel source for biofuel 

22 production to carry out projects to demonstrate the com23 mercial viability of one or more processes for converting 

24 biomass to fuels or chemicals.’’. 


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1 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS.—Subsection 

2 (e)(2)(A) of such section is amended— 

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

4 (i); 

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

6 (iii); and 

7 (C) by inserting after clause (i) the fol8 lowing new clause: 

9 ‘‘(ii) shall select projects based on the 

10 extent to which the projects meet environ11 mental goals for feed stocks and refineries, 

12 including goals related to reductions in 

13 greenhouse gas emissions and improvement 

14 in water quality and wildlife habitat, devel15 oped by the Secretary in consultation with 

16 the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary 

17 of Energy, and the National Academy of 

18 Sciences; and’’. 

19 (3) FUNDING.—Subsection (i) of such section, 

20 as amended by subsection (d)(1), is amended to read 

21 as follows: 

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

23 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall make available 

24 $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009 and 


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1 $75,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2010 through 

2 2012 to carry out this section.’’. 

3 (4) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Such section 

4 is further amended— 

5 (A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘GRANTS’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘ASSISTANCE’’; 

7 (B) in subsection (c)— 

8 (i) in the heading, by striking 

9 ‘‘GRANTS’’ and inserting ‘‘GRANTS, 

10 LOANS, AND LOAN GUARANTEES’’; and 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘grants’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘grants and make loans and loan guaran13 tees’’; and 

14 (C) in subsection (e)— 

15 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking 

16 ‘‘grants’’ and inserting ‘‘grants and make 

17 loans and loan guarantees’’; and 

18 (ii) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking 

19 ‘‘grants’’ and inserting ‘‘grants, loans, and 

20 loan guarantees’’. 

21 (b) EXTENSION OF RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS

22 AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS PROGRAM.— 

23 (1) PRIORITIES.—Section 9006 of the Farm 

24 Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 

25 U.S.C. 8106) is amended— 


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1 (A) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), 

2 (e), and (f) as subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g), 

3 respectively; and 

4 (B) by inserting after subsection (b) the 

5 following new subsection: 

6 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall prioritize for 

7 the awarding of a grant, loan, or loan guarantee under 

8 this section projects that— 

9 ‘‘(1) will produce environmental benefits, in10 cluding reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, 

11 other improvements in air quality, and improve12 ments in water quality; and 

13 ‘‘(2) foster community or cooperative ap14 proaches to renewable energy development.’’. 

15 (2) FUNDING.—Subsection (g) of such section, 

16 as redesignated by paragraph (1)(A), is amended to 

17 read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(g) FUNDING.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Of the funds of the Com20 modity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall make 

21 available to carry out this section— 

22 ‘‘(A) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

23 ‘‘(B) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; 

24 ‘‘(C) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 


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1 ‘‘(D) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(E) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

4 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Funds made available 

5 under paragraph (1) shall remain available until ex6 pended.’’. 

7 (c) REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED FUNDING

8 FOR BIOMASS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.—Section 

9 310 of the Biomass Research and Development Act of 

10 2000 (7 U.S.C. 7624 note; Public Law 106–224) is 

11 amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 310. FUNDING. 

13 ‘‘(a) FUNDING.—Of funds of the Commodity Credit 

14 Corporation, the Secretary shall make available to carry 

15 out this title $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

16 through 2012. 

17 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In ad18 dition to amounts transferred under subsection (a), there 

19 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 

20 $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012. 

21 ‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts made 

22 available under subsection (a) or appropriated pursuant 

23 to the authorization of appropriations in subsection (b) 

24 shall remain available until expended.’’. 


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1 Subtitle E—Rural Development 

2 SEC. 251. RURAL DEVELOPMENT. 

3 (a) TARGETING OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT FUNDING

4 TO LOW-INCOME RURAL AREAS.—Subtitle D of the Con5 solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 

6 1981–2008r) is amended by inserting after section 364 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 365. CRITERIA TO BE APPLIED IN CONSIDERING AP9 PLICATIONS FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT 

10 PROJECTS. 

11 ‘‘The Secretary shall not approve an application 

12 which is submitted under any program authorized or 

13 modified by, or funded pursuant to, an amendment made 

14 by title VI of the Farm Security and Rural Investment 

15 Act of 2002, and which proposes to serve a rural area 

16 (as defined by the applicable law), unless— 

17 ‘‘(1)(A) the median family income in the area 

18 is not more than 85 percent of the median household 

19 income in the State in which the area is located; and 

20 ‘‘(B) the area is not— 

21 ‘‘(i) included within the boundaries of any 

22 city, town, borough, or village, whether incor23 porated or unincorporated, with a population of 

24 more than 20,000 inhabitants; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) included within the boundaries of an 

2 urbanized area or urban cluster; or 

3 ‘‘(iii) within 10 miles of the boundary of 

4 any such city, village, borough, town, urbanized 

5 area, or urban cluster; 

6 ‘‘(2) the area— 

7 ‘‘(A) is in a county designated as Non8 metro by the Economic Research Service of the 

9 Department of Agriculture; and 

10 ‘‘(B) has experienced net population out11 migration over the last 5 years; or 

12 ‘‘(3) the area is in a county designated a Non13 metro Persistent Poverty County by the Economic 

14 Research Service of the Department of Agri15 culture.’’. 

16 (b) VALUE-ADDED PRODUCER GRANT PROGRAM.— 

17 Section 231(b) of the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 

18 2000 (7 U.S.C. 1621 note; Public Law 106–224) is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘2002’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘2008’’; and 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘2006’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘2012’’; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(5) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

2 section, the Secretary shall give priority to proposals 

3 that are most likely to increase the profitability and 

4 viability of small- and medium-sized farms and 

5 ranches. 

6 ‘‘(6) SET-ASIDE FOR BEGINNING FARMERS AND

7 RANCHERS.—Not less than 10 percent and not more 

8 than 15 percent of the amounts made available for 

9 grants under this section for a fiscal year shall be 

10 available for grants to qualified beginning farmers or 

11 ranchers (as defined in section 343(a)(11) of the 

12 Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act). 

13 ‘‘(7) SET-ASIDE FOR SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED

14 FARMER AND RANCHERS.—Not less than 10 percent 

15 and not more than 15 percent of the amounts made 

16 available for grants under this section for a fiscal 

17 year shall be available for grants to socially dis18 advantaged farmers or ranchers (as defined in sec19 tion 355(e) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De20 velopment Act).’’. 

21 (c) RURAL BROADBAND ACCESS.—Section 601(j) of 

22 the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 950bb(j)) 

23 is amended by striking ‘‘—’’ and all that follows and in24 serting ‘‘$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

25 through 2012, to remain available until expended.’’. 


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1 (d) RURAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY GRANTS.—Sec2 tion 306(a)(11)(D) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 

3 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(11)(D)) is amended 

4 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

5 (e) FARMWORKER TRAINING GRANT PROGRAM.— 

6 Section 379C(c) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De7 velopment Act (7 U.S.C. 2008q(c)) is amended by striking 

8 ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

9 SEC. 252. RURAL ENTREPRENEUR AND MICROENTERPRISE 

10 ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

11 Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De12 velopment Act (7 U.S.C. 1981–2008r), as amended by 

13 section 251(a) of this Act, is amended by inserting after 

14 section 365 the following:: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 366. RURAL ENTREPRENEUR AND MICROENTER16 PRISE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

17 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED MICRO19 ENTREPRENEUR.—The term ‘economically disadvan20 taged microentrepreneur’ means an owner, majority 

21 owner, or developer of a microenterprise that has the 

22 ability to compete in the private sector but has been 

23 impaired because of diminished capital and credit 

24 opportunities, as compared to other microentre25 preneurs in the industry. 


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1 ‘‘(2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’ 

2 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

4 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

5 ‘‘(3) INTERMEDIARY.—The term ‘intermediary’ 

6 means a private, nonprofit entity that provides as7 sistance— 

8 ‘‘(A) to a microenterprise development or9 ganization; or 

10 ‘‘(B) for a microenterprise development 

11 program. 

12 ‘‘(4) LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUAL.—The term low13 income individual means an individual with an in14 come (adjusted for family size) of not more than the 

15 greatest of— 

16 ‘‘(A) 80 percent of median income of an 

17 area; 

18 ‘‘(B) 80 percent of the statewide non-met19 ropolitan area median income; or 

20 ‘‘(C) 80 percent of the national median in21 come. 

22 ‘‘(5) MICROCREDIT.—The term ‘microcredit’ 

23 means a business loan or loan guarantee of not more 

24 than $50,000 that is provided to a rural entre25 preneur. 


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1 ‘‘(6) MICROENTERPRISE.—The term ‘micro2 enterprise’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a sole proprietorship; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a business entity with not more than 

5 10 full-time-equivalent employees. 

6 ‘‘(7) MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT ORGA7 NIZATION.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘microenter9 prise development organization’ means a pri10 vate, nonprofit entity that— 

11 ‘‘(i) provides training and technical 

12 assistance to rural entrepreneurs; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) facilitates access to capital or an14 other service described in subsection (b) 

15 for rural entrepreneurs. 

16 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘microenter17 prise development organization’ includes an or18 ganization described in subparagraph (A) with 

19 a demonstrated record of delivering services to 

20 economically disadvantaged microentrepreneurs, 

21 or an effective plan to develop a program to de22 liver microenterprise services to rural entre23 preneurs effectively, as determined by the Sec24 retary. 


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1 ‘‘(8) MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT PRO2 GRAM.—The term ‘microenterprise development or3 ganization’ means a program administered by an or4 ganization serving a rural area. 

5 ‘‘(9) MICROENTREPRENEUR.—The term ‘micro6 entrepreneur’ means the owner, operator, or devel7 oper of a microenterprise. 

8 ‘‘(10) PROGRAM.—The term ‘program’ means 

9 the rural entrepreneur and microenterprise program 

10 established under subsection (b)(1). 

11 ‘‘(11) QUALIFIED ORGANIZATION.—The term 

12 ‘qualified organization’ means— 

13 ‘‘(A) a microenterprise development orga14 nization or microenterprise development pro15 gram that has a demonstrated record of deliv16 ering microenterprise services to rural entre17 preneurs, or an effective plan to develop a pro18 gram to deliver microenterprise services to rural 

19 entrepreneurs effectively, as determined by the 

20 Secretary. 

21 ‘‘(B) an intermediary that has a dem22 onstrated record of delivery assistance to micro23 enterprise development organizations or micro24 enterprise development programs; 


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1 ‘‘(C) a microenterprise development orga2 nization or microenterprise development pro3 gram that serves rural entrepreneurs; 

4 ‘‘(D) an Indian tribe, the tribal govern5 ment of which certifies to the Secretary that no 

6 microenterprise development organization or 

7 microenterprise development program exists 

8 under the jurisdiction of the Indian tribe; 

9 ‘‘(E) a group of 2 or more organizations or 

10 Indian tribes described in any of subparagraphs 

11 (A) through (D) that agree to act jointly as a 

12 qualified organization under this section; or 

13 ‘‘(F) for purposes of subsection (b), a pub14 lic college or university. 

15 ‘‘(12) RURAL AREA.—The term ‘rural area’ 

16 means any community that is rural in character and 

17 has a population of not more than 25,000 individ18 uals. 

19 ‘‘(13) RURAL CAPACITY BUILDING SERVICE.— 

20 The term ‘rural capacity building service’ means a 

21 service provided to an organization that— 

22 ‘‘(A) is, or is in the process of becoming, 

23 a microenterprise development organization or 

24 microenterprise development program; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) serves rural areas for the purpose of 

2 enhancing the ability of the organization to pro3 vide training, technical assistance, and other re4 lated services to rural entrepreneurs. 

5 ‘‘(14) RURAL ENTREPRENEUR.—The term 

6 ‘rural entrepreneur’ means a microentrepreneur, or 

7 prospective microentrepreneur— 

8 ‘‘(A) the principal place of business of 

9 which is in a rural area; and 

10 ‘‘(B) that is unable to obtain sufficient 

11 training, technical assistance, or microcredit 

12 elsewhere, as determined by the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(15) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 

14 means the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through 

15 the Rural Business-Cooperative Service. 

16 ‘‘(16) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘tribal 

17 government’ means the governing body of an Indian 

18 tribe. 

19 ‘‘(b) RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND MICRO20 ENTERPRISE PROGRAM.— 

21 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es22 tablish a rural entrepreneurship and microenterprise 

23 program. 


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1 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the program 

2 shall be to provide low-income individuals and mod3 erate-income individuals with— 

4 ‘‘(A) the skills necessary to establish new 

5 small businesses in rural areas; and 

6 ‘‘(B) continuing technical and financial as7 sistance as individuals and business starting or 

8 operating small businesses. 

9 ‘‘(3) GRANTS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

11 make a grant under the program to a qualified 

12 organization— 

13 ‘‘(i) to provide training, operational 

14 support, or a rural capacity building serv15 ice to a qualified organization to assist the 

16 qualified organization in developing micro17 enterprise training, technical assistance, 

18 market development assistance, and other 

19 related services, primarily for business with 

20 5 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees; 

21 ‘‘(ii) to assist in researching and de22 veloping the best practices in delivering 

23 training, technical assistance, and micro24 credit to rural entrepreneurs; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) to carry out such other projects 

2 and activities as the Secretary determines 

3 to be consistent with the purposes of this 

4 section. 

5 ‘‘(B) SUBGRANTS.—Subject to such regu6 lations as the Secretary may promulgate, a 

7 qualified organization that receives a grant 

8 under this paragraph may use the grant to pro9 vide assistance to other qualified organizations, 

10 such as small or emerging qualified organiza11 tions. 

12 ‘‘(C) DIVERSITY.—In making grants under 

13 this paragraph, the Secretary shall ensure, to 

14 the maximum extent practicable, that grant re15 cipients include qualified organizations— 

16 ‘‘(i) of varying sizes; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) that serve racially- and eth18 nically-diverse populations. 

19 ‘‘(D) COST SHARING.— 

20 ‘‘(i) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal 

21 share of the cost of a project carried out 

22 using funds from a grant made under this 

23 paragraph shall be 75 percent. 

24 ‘‘(ii) FORM OF NON-FEDERAL

25 SHARE.—The non-Federal share of the 


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1 cost of a project described in clause (i) 

2 may be provided— 

3 ‘‘(I) in cash (including through 

4 fees, grants (including community de5 velopment block grants), and gifts); or 

6 ‘‘(II) in kind. 

7 ‘‘(4) RURAL MICROLOAN PROGRAM.— 

8 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—In carrying out 

9 the program, the Secretary may carry out a 

10 rural microloan program. 

11 ‘‘(B) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the rural 

12 microloan program shall be to provide technical 

13 and financial assistance to sole proprietorships 

14 and small businesses located in rural areas with 

15 a particular focus on those businesses with 5 or 

16 fewer full-time equivalent employees. 

17 ‘‘(C) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—In car18 rying out the rural microloan program, the Sec19 retary may— 

20 ‘‘(i) make direct loans to qualified or21 ganizations for the purpose of making 

22 short-term, fixed interest rate microloans 

23 to startup, newly established, and growing 

24 rural microbusiness concerns; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) in conjunction with those loans, 

2 provide grants in accordance with subpara3 graph (E) to those qualified organizations 

4 for the purpose of providing intensive mar5 keting, management, and technical assist6 ance to small business concerns that are 

7 borrowers under this paragraph. 

8 ‘‘(D) LOAN DURATION; INTEREST RATES; 

9 CONDITIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) LOAN DURATION.—A loan made 

11 by the Secretary under this paragraph 

12 shall be for a term of 20 years. 

13 ‘‘(ii) APPLICABLE INTEREST RATES.— 

14 A loan made by the Secretary under this 

15 paragraph to a qualified organization shall 

16 bear an annual interest rate of at least 1 

17 percent. 

18 ‘‘(iii) DEFERRAL OF INTEREST AND

19 PRINCIPAL.—The Secretary may permit 

20 the deferral of payments, for principal and 

21 interest, on a loan made under this para22 graph for a period of not more than 2 

23 years, beginning on the date on which the 

24 loan was made. 

25 ‘‘(E) GRANT AMOUNTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as other2 wise provided in this section, each qualified 

3 organization that receives a loan under this 

4 paragraph shall be eligible to receive a 

5 grant to provide marketing, management, 

6 and technical assistance to small business 

7 concerns that are borrowers or potential 

8 borrowers under this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(ii) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF GRANT

10 FOR MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

11 ORGANIZATIONS.—Each microenterprise 

12 development organization that receives a 

13 loan under this paragraph shall receive an 

14 annual grant in an amount equal to not 

15 more than 25 percent of the total out16 standing balance of loans made to the 

17 microenterprise development organization 

18 under this paragraph, as of the date of 

19 provision of the grant. 

20 ‘‘(iii) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 

21 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—As a condi22 tion of any grant made to a qualified 

23 organization under this subparagraph, 

24 the Secretary shall require the quali25 fied organization to match not less 


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1 than 15 percent of the total amount 

2 of the grant. 

3 ‘‘(II) SOURCES.—In addition to 

4 cash from non-Federal sources, a 

5 matching share provided by the quali6 fied organization may include indirect 

7 costs or in-kind contributions funded 

8 under non-Federal programs. 

9 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more than 

10 10 percent of assistance received by a qualified organiza11 tion for a fiscal year under this section may be used to 

12 pay administrative expenses. 

13 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, and on Octo16 ber 1, 2008, and each October 1 thereafter through 

17 October 1, 2012, out of any funds in the Treasury 

18 not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the 

19 Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary to carry out 

20 this section $50,000,000, to remain available until 

21 expended. 

22 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Of the amount 

23 made available by paragraph (1) for each fiscal 

24 year— 


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1 ‘‘(A) not less than $30,000,000 shall be 

2 available for use in carrying out subsection 

3 (b)(3); and 

4 ‘‘(B) not less than $20,000,000 shall be 

5 available for use in carrying out subsection 

6 (b)(4), of which not more than $7,000,000 shall 

7 be used to support direct loans. 

8 ‘‘(C) RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE.—The 

9 Secretary shall be entitled to receive, shall ac10 cept, and shall use to carry out this section the 

11 funds transferred under paragraph (1), without 

12 further appropriation.’’. 

13 SEC. 253. ENHANCING RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE. 

14 (a) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

15 shall use funds made available under subsection (d) to pro16 vide funds for applications that are pending on the date 

17 of enactment of this Act for— 

18 (1) water or waste disposal grants or direct 

19 loans under paragraph (1) or (2) of section 306(a) 

20 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development 

21 Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)); 

22 (2) emergency community water assistance 

23 grants under section 306A of that Act (7 U.S.C. 

24 1926a); 


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1 (3) community facilities grants and direct loans 

2 under paragraphs (1), (19), (20), (21) of section 

3 306(a) of that Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)) that support 

4 projects that assist rural first responders, as defined 

5 by the Secretary of Agriculture; 

6 (4) broadband access loans under title VI of the 

7 Rural Electrification Act (7 U.S.C. 950bb et seq.); 

8 and 

9 (5) distance learning and telemedicine grants 

10 under chapter 1 of subtitle D of title XXII of the 

11 Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 

12 1990 (7 U.S.C. 950aaa et seq.). 

13 (b) LIMITATIONS.— 

14 (1) APPROPRIATED AMOUNTS.—Funds made 

15 available under this section shall be available to the 

16 Secretary of Agriculture to provide funds for appli17 cations for loans and grants described in subsection 

18 (a) that are pending on the date of enactment of 

19 this Act only to the extent that funds for the loans 

20 and grants appropriated in the annual appropria21 tions Act for fiscal years 2008 and 2009, as appro22 priate, have been exhausted. 

23 (2) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 

24 of Agriculture may use funds made available under 

25 this section to provide funds for a pending applicaVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:10 Jun 20, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2720.IH H2720

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1 tion for a loan or grant described in subsection (a) 

2 only if the Secretary of Agriculture processes, re3 views, and approves the application in accordance 

4 with regulations in effect on the date of enactment 

5 of this Act. 

6 (c) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN PENDING APPLICA7 TIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘application’’ does not 

8 include an application for a loan or grant that, as of the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, is in the preapplication 

10 phase of consideration under regulations of the Secretary 

11 of Agriculture in effect on the date of enactment of this 

12 Act. 

13 (d) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity Cred14 it Corporation, the Secretary of Agriculture shall make 

15 available to carry out this section $50,000,000 in fiscal 

16 year 2008, $75,000,000 in fiscal year 2009, $100,000,000 

17 in fiscal years 2010 and 2011, and $75,000,000 in fiscal 

18 year 2012. 

19 Subtitle F—Nutrition 

20 SEC. 261. EXCLUSION OF COMBAT-RELATED MILITARY PAY 

21 FROM COUNTABLE INCOME. 

22 Section 5(d) of the food stamp act of 2007 (7 U.S.C. 

23 2014(d)) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘and (18)’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘(18)’’; and 


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1 (2) by inserting before the period at the end the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘, and (19) any additional payment received under chapter 

4 5 of title 37, United States Code, by a member of the 

5 United States Armed Forces deployed to a designated 

6 combat zone for the duration of the members deployment 

7 if the additional pay is the result of deployment to or while 

8 serving in a combat zone, and it was not received imme9 diately prior to serving in the combat zone’’. 

10 SEC. 262. STRENGTHENING THE FOOD PURCHASING 

11 POWER OF LOW-INCOME AMERICANS. 

12 Section 5(e)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

13 U.S.C. 2014(e)(1)) is amended— 

14 (1) in subparagraph (A)(ii) by striking ‘‘not 

15 less than $134’’ and all that follows to the end of 

16 the clause and inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘not less than $149, $255, $210, and 

18 $131, respectively. For October 1, 2008 

19 and each fiscal year thereafter, such 

20 amounts shall be adjusted to the nearest 

21 lower dollar increment to reflect changes in 

22 the Consumer Price Index for all urban 

23 consumers published by the Bureau of 

24 Labor Statistics, for items other than food, 


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1 for the twelve months ending the preceding 

2 June 30.’’; and 

3 (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii) by striking ‘‘not 

4 less than $269.’’ and inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘not less than $299. For October 1, 2008 

6 and each fiscal year thereafter, such 

7 amount shall be adjusted to the nearest 

8 lower dollar increment to reflect changes in 

9 the Consumer Price Index for all urban 

10 consumers published by the Bureau of 

11 Labor Statistics, for items other than food, 

12 for the twelve months ending the preceding 

13 June 30.’’. 

14 SEC. 263. SUPPORTING WORKING FAMILIES WITH CHILD 

15 CARE EXPENSES. 

16 Section 5(e)(3)(A) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

17 (7 U.S.C. 2014(e)(3)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘, the 

18 maximum allowable level of which shall be $200 per month 

19 for each dependent child under 2 years of age and $175 

20 per month for each other dependent,’’. 

21 SEC. 264. INCREASING THE MINIMUM BENEFIT. 

22 Section 8(a) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

23 U.S.C. 2017(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘$10 per month.’’ 

24 and inserting— 


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1 ‘‘(1) for fiscal year 2008 through 2011, 10 per2 cent of the thrifty food plan for a household con3 taining one member, as determined by the Secretary 

4 under section 3(o); 

5 ‘‘(2) for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal year 

6 thereafter, 15 percent of the thrifty food plan for a 

7 household containing one member, as determined by 

8 the Secretary under section 3(o).’’. 

9 SEC. 265. EXCLUSION OF RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS FROM 

10 COUNTABLE FINANCIAL RESOURCES. 

11 (a) ACCOUNTS.—Section 5(g)(2)(B)(v) of the Food 

12 Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2014(g)(2)(B)(v)) is amend13 ed by striking ‘‘or retirement account (including an indi14 vidual account)’’ and inserting ‘‘account’’. 

15 (b) MANDATORY AND DISCRETIONARY EXCLU16 SIONS.—Section 5(g) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

17 U.S.C. 2014(g)) is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(7) EXCLUSION OF RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS

20 FROM COUNTABLE FINANCIAL RESOURCES.— 

21 ‘‘(A) MANDATORY EXCLUSIONS.—The Sec22 retary shall exclude from financial resources 

23 under this subsection the value of any funds in 

24 a plan, contract, or account, described in sec25 tions 401(a), 403(a), 403(b), 408, 408A, 


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1 457(b), and 501(c)(18) of the Internal Revenue 

2 Code of 1986 and the value of funds in a Fed3 eral Thrift Savings Plan account as provided in 

4 section 8439 of title 5, United States Code. 

5 ‘‘(B) DISCRETIONARY EXCLUSIONS.—The 

6 Secretary may exclude from financial resources 

7 under this subsection the value of any other re8 tirement plans, contracts, or accounts (as deter9 mined by the Secretary through regulation).’’. 

10 SEC. 266. FACILITATING SIMPLIFIED REPORTING. 

11 Section 6(c) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

12 U.S.C. 2015(c)) is amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘reporting by’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘reporting’’; 

16 (B) in clause (i) by inserting ‘‘for periods 

17 shorter than 4 months by’’ before ‘‘migrant’’; 

18 (C) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘for periods 

19 shorter than 4 months by’’ before ‘‘households’’; 

20 and 

21 (D) in clause (iii), by inserting ‘‘by’’ before 

22 ‘‘households’’; and 

23 (2) in paragraph (3), by— 

24 (A) in the third sentence— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘Reports required to be 

2 filed monthly under paragraph (1)’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘Except as provided in paragraph 

4 (1)(D)(ii), periodic reports filed under 

5 paragraph (1)’’; and 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘subject matter in7 cluded in such reports’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

8 households required to make the reports’’; 

9 and 

10 (B) by inserting after the third sentence 

11 the following: ‘‘The State agency shall not be 

12 required to act on information about a house13 hold described in the preceding sentence re14 ceived from any source between the periodic re15 ports unless the information clearly indicated 

16 that the household is not eligible, subject to 

17 standards established by the Secretary, or the 

18 household requested an increase in benefits.’’. 

19 SEC. 267. REAUTHORIZATION OF FOOD STAMP PROGRAM 

20 AND FOOD DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM ON IN21 DIAN RESERVATIONS, AND THE COMMODITY 

22 SUPPLEMENTAL FOOD PROGRAM. 

23 (a) REDUCTIONS IN PAYMENTS FOR ADMINISTRA24 TIVE COSTS.—Section 16(k)(3) of the Food Stamp Act 

25 of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2025(k)(3)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the first sentence of subparagraph (A), 

2 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’; and 

3 (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii) by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

5 (b) CASH PAYMENT PILOT PROJECTS.—Section 

6 17(b)(1)(B)(vi) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 

7 2026(b)(1)(B(vi)) is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ and in8 serting ‘‘2012’’. 

9 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

10 18(a)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 

11 2027(a)(1)) is amended in the first sentence by striking 

12 ‘‘2003 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2008 through 

13 2012’’. 

14 (d) CONSOLIDATED BLOCK GRANTS FOR PUERTO

15 RICO AND AMERICAN SAMOA.—Section 19(a)(2) of the 

16 Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2028(a)(2)) is amend17 ed in subparagraph (A)(ii) by striking ‘‘2007’’ and insert18 ing ‘‘2012’’. 

19 (e) COMMODITY DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM.—Section 

20 4(a) of the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 

21 1973 (7 U.S.C. 612c note; Public Law 93–86) is amended 

22 in the first sentence by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘2012’’. 


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1 SEC. 268. OUTREACH GRANTS. 

2 Section 11(t) of the Food Stamp Act of 2007 (7 

3 U.S.C. 2020(t)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘For each of 

5 fiscal years’’ and all that follows through 

6 $5,000,000, and inserting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 

7 2008 through 2012, the Secretary shall use not 

8 more than amounts specified in paragraph (2) out’’; 

9 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), 

10 and (5) as paragraphs (3), (4), (5), and (6) respec11 tively; and 

12 (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol13 lowing:: 

14 ‘‘(2) AMOUNTS.—The amounts to be expended 

15 under paragraph (1) shall be— 

16 ‘‘(A) for fiscal year 2008, 15,000,000; and 

17 ‘‘(B) for fiscal year 2009 and each fiscal 

18 year thereafter, the amount specified in sub19 paragraph (A), as adjusted to reflect changes in 

20 the Consumer Price Index for all urban con21 sumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta22 tistics for the twelve months ending the pre23 ceding June 30.’’. 


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1 SEC. 269. FUNDS TO STATES FOR IMPROVING AND INNO2 VATING PROGRAM ACCESS AND INTEGRITY. 

3 Section 16 of the Food Stamp Act of 2007 (7 U.S.C. 

4 2025), as amended by øsection 304,¿ is amended by add5 ing at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(m) FUNDS TO STATES FOR IMPROVING AND INNO7 VATING PROGRAM ACCESS AND INTEGRITY.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

9 and (3), the Secretary shall provide that with re10 spect to administrative expenditures described in 

11 paragraph (2) the percent specified in (a) shall be 

12 increased to such percentage as the Secretary speci13 fies. 

14 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURES DE15 SCRIBED.—The administrative expenditures de16 scribed in this paragraph are expenditures described 

17 in (a) that a State demonstrates to the satisfaction 

18 of the Secretary are attributable to a program inno19 vation that— 

20 ‘‘(A) improves access to the food stamp 

21 program; 

22 ‘‘(B) improves the efficiency and effective23 ness of program operations; or 

24 ‘‘(C) improves program integrity. 

25 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.—The total amount of addi26 tional Federal funds that are made available under 


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1 this subsection shall not exceed $10,000,000 in each 

2 of the fiscal years 2008 through 2012. In applying 

3 this paragraph, the Secretary shall use discretion in 

4 determining the State innovations that have the 

5 greatest likelihood of meeting the goals described in 

6 paragraph (2). The Secretary shall only make funds 

7 available under paragraph (2) that will result in new 

8 activities or operations.’’. 

9 SEC. 270. SUPPORTING STATE EFFORTS DURING NATURAL 

10 DISASTERS. 

11 Section 5(h) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

12 U.S.C. 2014(h)) is amended by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(4) In lieu of the payments section 16(a) would oth15 erwise require, the Secretary shall pay each State agency 

16 an amount equal to 90 percent of administrative costs al17 lowable under section 16(a) for costs related to planning 

18 and operating disaster food stamp programs under this 

19 subsection.’’. 

20 SEC. 271. COMMUNITY FOOD GRANTS. 

21 Section 25(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

22 U.S.C. 2034(b)) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘From 

24 amounts made available to carry out this Act, the 


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1 Secretary may’’ and inserting ‘‘The Secretary shall’’; 

2 and 

3 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(2) FUNDING AMOUNTS.—From amounts 

6 made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary 

7 shall use $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and $30 

8 million for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 

9 2012, to make grants under this section.’’. 

10 SEC. 272. EXPANDING THE USE OF FOOD STAMPS AT FARM11 ERS’ MARKETS. 

12 Section 25 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 

13 2034) is amended by adding at the end: 

14 ‘‘(i) GRANTS TO EXPAND THE NUMBER OF FARM15 ERS’ MARKETS THAT ACCEPT FOOD STAMP BENEFITS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For fiscal year 2008, the 

17 Secretary shall use not more than $5 million of 

18 funds made available under section 18(a)(1) to make 

19 grants to pay 100 percent of the costs of eligible en20 tities approved by the Secretary to carry out projects 

21 to expand the number of farmer’ markets that ac22 cept food stamp benefits by— 

23 ‘‘(A) providing equipment and training 

24 necessary for markets to accept food stamp 

25 benefits; 


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1 ‘‘(B) educating and providing technical as2 sistance to farmers and farmers’ market opera3 tors about the process and benefits of accepting 

4 food stamp benefits; or 

5 ‘‘(C) other activities deemed appropriate 

6 by the Secretary. 

7 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—A grant made under this 

8 subsection shall not be made for the cost of the on9 going cost of carrying out any project. 

10 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to re11 ceive a grant under this subsection, an entity shall 

12 be— 

13 ‘‘(A) a State agency administering the food 

14 stamp program; 

15 ‘‘(B) a State or local government; or 

16 ‘‘(C) a private nonprofit entity that coordi17 nates farmers’ markets in or within a State and 

18 that operates in cooperation with State or local 

19 government. 

20 ‘‘(4) SELECTION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The 

21 Secretary— 

22 ‘‘(A) shall develop criteria for the selection 

23 of eligible entities to receive grants under this 

24 subsection; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) may give preference to any eligible 

2 entity that consists of a partnership between a 

3 government entity and a nongovernmental enti4 ty.’’. 

5 SEC. 273. COMMODITIES FOR THE EMERGENCY FOOD AS6 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

7 Section 27(a) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

8 U.S.C. 2036(a)) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘(a) purchase of commodities’’ 

10 and all that follows through ‘‘2007’’ and inserting 

11 the following: 

12 ‘‘(a) PURCHASE OF COMMODITIES.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As provided in paragraph 

14 (2), for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012’’; 

15 (2) by striking ‘‘$140,000,000 of’’; and 

16 (3) by inserting at the end: 

17 ‘‘(2) AMOUNTS.—The following amounts are 

18 made available to carry out this subsection: 

19 ‘‘(A) for fiscal year 2008, $220,000,000; 

20 ‘‘(B) for fiscal year 2009, $230,000,000; 

21 ‘‘(C) for fiscal year 2010, $240,000,000; 

22 ‘‘(D) for fiscal year 2011, $245,000,000; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(E) for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal 

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1 ities available in the immediately preceding fis2 cal year adjusted by the percentage by which 

3 the thrifty food plan has been adjusted under 

4 section 3(o)(4) between June 30, 2007 and 

5 June 30 of the immediately preceding fiscal 

6 year.’’. 

7 SEC. 274. COMMUNITY FOOD ASSISTANCE AND FOOD BANK 

8 INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS UNDER THE 

9 FOOD STAMP ACT. 

10 The Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 28. COMMUNITY FOOD ASSISTANCE AND FOOD BANK 

13 INFRASTRUCTURE COMPETITIVE GRANTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this sec15 tion, the term ‘eligible entity’ means an emergency feeding 

16 organization (as defined in section 201A(4) of the Emer17 gency Food Assistance Act of 1983 (7 U.S.C. 7501(4)). 

18 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—To carry out this sec19 tion, there are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 

20 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012. 

21 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To receive a grant under 

23 this section, an eligible entity shall submit an appli24 cation to the Secretary at the time and manner and 


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1 accompanied by any information the Secretary may 

2 require. 

3 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 

4 under paragraph (1) shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) identify the activity described in sub6 section (d) that the grant will be used to fund; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(B) describe the means by which an activ9 ity identified under subparagraph (A) will re10 duce hunger in the community or support the 

11 efforts of food banks or other nonprofit emer12 gency feeding organizations as defined in sub13 section (a) to reduce hunger or food insecurity 

14 in their communities. 

15 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—In making grants under this 

16 section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible 

17 entities the applications of which demonstrate 2 of 

18 the following criteria: 

19 ‘‘(A) The eligible entity serves a predomi20 nantly rural and geographically underserved 

21 area. 

22 ‘‘(B) The eligible entity serves a commu23 nity in which the rates of food insecurity, very 

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1 ployment are demonstrably higher than national 

2 average rates. 

3 ‘‘(C) The eligible entity serves a commu4 nity that provides demonstrable public support 

5 for the efforts of the eligible entity through the 

6 direct provision of private sector food assistance 

7 to low-income individuals. 

8 ‘‘(D) The eligible entity can show that the 

9 grant will assist in the support of rural commu10 nities, small or mid-size farms, and the con11 sumption of locally produced agricultural prod12 ucts by low-income people in need of temporary 

13 food assistance. 

14 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity shall use a 

15 grant received under this section for fiscal year to carry 

16 out activities of the eligible entity, including— 

17 ‘‘(1) constructing, expanding, or repairing a fa18 cility or equipment to support hunger relief agencies 

19 in the community; 

20 ‘‘(2) assisting an emergency feeding organiza21 tion in the community in obtaining locally-grown or 

22 raised produce, dairy or protein products; and 

23 ‘‘(3) assisting an emergency feeding organiza24 tion in the community for the procurement, storage, 


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1 handling and distribution of locally produced agricul2 tural products.’’. 

3 SEC. 275. FOOD FOR THE HUNGRY TRANSPORTATION 

4 GRANT PROGRAM. 

5 (a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are— 

6 (1) to authorize the creation of the National 

7 Food For the Hungry Transportation, Self-Help, 

8 and Job Training Fund to facilitate the procurement 

9 and transportation of highly perishable, healthy food 

10 to low-income individuals in the United States; 

11 (2) to establish a competitive mechanism in the 

12 Department of Agriculture by which appropriations 

13 made available from the Fund would be allocated; 

14 (3) to ensure the direct involvement of the pri15 vate carrier trucking fleet of the United States in 

16 carrying out this section; 

17 (4) to increase the quantity of nutritious food 

18 available to low-income individuals in the United 

19 States by supporting the procurement and distribu20 tion of highly perishable food, such as fresh produce 

21 and protein products, to the low-income individuals; 

22 (5) to offer job training and employment oppor23 tunities in the food transportation and distribution 

24 systems; 


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1 (6) to better identify potential providers of do2 nated foods and enhance the nonprofit food donation 

3 system; and 

4 (7) to provide adequate funding to carry out 

5 this section. 

6 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Na8 tional Food For the Hungry Transportation, Self9 Help, and Job Training Fund established under sub10 section (c). 

11 (2) NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION.—The 

12 term ‘‘nongovernmental organization’’ means a na13 tional nonprofit charitable organization that— 

14 (A) is described in section 501(c)(3) of the 

15 Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

16 (B) is capable of, and has at least 10 years 

17 experience in, procuring donated food and other 

18 services from major domestic food manufactur19 ers and processors, grocery wholesalers and re20 tailers, food warehouse operations, agricultural 

21 producer organizations, fishing interests com22 mercial transport providers (such as trucking 

23 companies), and Federal and State food assist24 ance agencies; 


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1 (C) is capable of, and has shown pro2 ficiency in, the national distribution of highly 

3 perishable food through contracts with member 

4 emergency feeding organizations (as defined in 

5 section 201A of the Emergency Food Assist6 ance Act of 1983 (7 U.S.C. 7501)); 

7 (D) has at least 10 years experience in 

8 procuring commercial freight for the distribu9 tion of time-sensitive food products through a 

10 network of emergency food assistance organiza11 tions; 

12 (E) has at least 10 years experience in 

13 working with transport providers in creating, 

14 coordinating, and maintaining transfer systems 

15 designed to assist, at the national level, the de16 livery of time-sensitive food products, for dis17 tribution to emergency food assistance organi18 zations in all 50 States and the District of Co19 lumbia; 

20 (F) does not operate any commercial, pri21 vate, or public subsidiary trucking or freight 

22 operations for the purposes of transporting 

23 food; and 

24 (G) agrees— 


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1 (i) to contribute in-kind resources to 

2 help carry out this section; 

3 (ii) to provide to eligible emergency 

4 food assistance organizations services and 

5 information free of charge; and 

6 (iii) to regularly certify and inspect 

7 any member emergency feeding organiza8 tion with which the nongovernmental orga9 nization entered into a contract to carry 

10 out an activity described in subparagraph 

11 (B). 

12 (3) PRIMARY NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZA13 TION.—The term ‘‘primary nongovernmental organi14 zation’’ means a nongovernmental organization se15 lected by the Secretary on a competitive basis from 

16 among nongovernmental organizations. 

17 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

18 the Secretary of Transportation. 

19 (5) TIME-SENSITIVE FOOD PRODUCT.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘time-sen21 sitive food product’’ means a fresh, raw, or 

22 processed food with a short time limitation for 

23 safe and acceptable consumption, as determined 

24 by the Secretary. 


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1 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘time-sen2 sitive food product’’ includes fruits, vegetables, 

3 dairy products, meat, fish, and poultry. 

4 (c) NATIONAL FOOD FOR THE HUNGRY TRANSPOR5 TATION FUND.—The Secretary shall offer to enter into 

6 a contract or grant agreement with a primary nongovern7 mental organization to establish the National Food for the 

8 Hungry Transportation Fund to track, collect, and deliver 

9 time-sensitive food products. 

10 (d) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall 

11 ensure that funds made available under this Act are used 

12 for 

13 (1) the development and maintenance of a com14 puterized system for the tracking of time-sensitive 

15 food products; 

16 (2) capital and operating costs associated with 

17 the collection and transportation of time-sensitive 

18 food products; 

19 (3) capital and operating costs associated with 

20 the storage and distribution of time-sensitive food 

21 products; 

22 (4) job training opportunities in trucking, food 

23 handling, food recovery, and related industries; 


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1 (5) improving the security and diversity of the 

2 food distribution and recovery systems of the United 

3 States with the use of— 

4 (A) family-sized farms; and 

5 (B) donations from entities of food prod6 ucts to persons in need; 

7 (6) providing recovered healthy foods to non8 profit emergency food providers to reduce hunger in 

9 the United States; and 

10 (7) improving the identification of— 

11 (A) potential providers of donated foods; 

12 (B) potential nonprofit emergency food 

13 providers; and 

14 (C) persons in need of emergency food as15 sistance throughout the United States. 

16 (e) ADDITIONAL NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZA17 TIONS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The primary nongovern19 mental organization may enter into 1 or more con20 tracts with, and provide funds to, not more than 2 

21 additional nongovernmental organizations that the 

22 Secretary determines meet the requirements in para23 graph (2) to carry out some of the functions re24 quired by this section. 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—An additional nongovern2 mental organization selected under paragraph (1) 

3 shall— 

4 (A) have expertise in operating for several 

5 years a national information clearinghouse re6 lating to anti-hunger activities; 

7 (B) have extensive experience in working 

8 with other anti-hunger organizations through9 out the United States; 

10 (C) have significant experience in working 

11 with the Department of Agriculture; and 

12 (D) operate, at a national level, a hotline 

13 to provide information about— 

14 (i) access to food for low-income fami15 lies; 

16 (ii) programs in existence on the date 

17 of enactment of this Act that transport 

18 fresh produce to food pantries, homeless 

19 shelters, and soup kitchens that could 

20 serve as national models for replication in 

21 other areas; and 

22 (iii) ways low-income individuals and 

23 families may become self-reliant. 


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1 (f) AUDITS.—The Secretary shall establish fair and 

2 reasonable procedures to audit the expenditure of funds 

3 made available to carry out this section. 

4 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated, $5,000,000 for fiscal 

6 year 2008 and for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012, 

7 the amount available in the immediately preceding fiscal 

8 year adjusted to reflect changes in the Consumer Price 

9 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau 

10 of Labor Statistics for the twelve months ending the pre11 ceding June 30. 

12 Subtitle G—Deficit Reduction 

13 SEC. 281. DEFICIT REDUCTION. 

14 Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, savings 

15 resulting from provisions of this Act, when compared with 

16 the Congressional Budget Office March 2008 baseline es17 timate, are to be applied direct towards deficit reduction 

18 and are not available for offsetting additional spending un19 related to this Act. 

Æ 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS