II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4042 

To protect agricultural workers from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2020 

Mr. MERKLEY (for himself, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. HARRIS, 

Ms. WARREN, and Mr. LEAHY) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To protect agricultural workers from the impacts of the 

coronavirus pandemic, 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 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Frontline At-Risk 

5 Manual Laborers Protection Act’’ or the ‘‘FARM Labor6 ers Protection Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 

9 (1) AGRICULTURAL WORK.—The term ‘‘agricul10 tural work’’ means food production work involving 


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1 the physical interaction with food products, includ2 ing— 

3 (A) all agricultural work, farming, fishing, 

4 forestry, ranching, processing, canning, slaugh5 tering, packaging, baking, butchering, and 

6 other food production work, such as any service 

7 or activity included within the provisions of sec8 tion 3(f) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

9 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(f)), or section 3121(g) of 

10 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and 

11 (B) the handling, planting, drying, pack12 ing, packaging, processing, freezing, or grading 

13 prior to delivery for storage of any agricultural 

14 or horticultural commodity in its unmanufac15 tured state. 

16 (2) AGRICULTURAL WORKER.—The term ‘‘agri17 cultural worker’’ means an individual— 

18 (A) regardless of citizenship or immigra19 tion status; 

20 (B) who is— 

21 (i) an employee of a covered agricul22 tural producer; or 

23 (ii) an individual performing any serv24 ice or labor for remuneration for a covered 

25 agricultural producer, without regard as to 


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1 whether the individual is classified as an 

2 independent contractor by the covered ag3 ricultural producer; and 

4 (C) whose work and duties include agricul5 tural work. 

6 (3) CORONAVIRUS.—The term ‘‘coronavirus’’ 

7 means the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID– 

8 19). 

9 (4) COVERED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCER.—The 

10 term ‘‘covered agricultural producer’’ means an em11 ployer engaged in commerce, including any agricul12 tural employer as defined in section 3 of the Migrant 

13 and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act 

14 (29 U.S.C. 1802), that receives any Federal agri15 culture-specific coronavirus funding. 

16 (5) COVERED CONTRACTOR.—The term ‘‘cov17 ered contractor’’ means a person who— 

18 (A) has entered into an agreement with a 

19 covered agricultural producer— 

20 (i) to provide agricultural workers to 

21 perform work for the covered agricultural 

22 producer; or 

23 (ii) to pay the agricultural workers of 

24 a covered agricultural producer; and 


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1 (B) has accepted grant funds under section 

2 202 from the covered agricultural producer. 

3 (6) COVERED PERIOD.—The term ‘‘covered pe4 riod’’, when used with respect to a covered agricul5 tural producer, means the period— 

6 (A) beginning on the first date after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act that the covered 

8 agricultural producer is approved for Federal 

9 agriculture-specific coronavirus funding; and 

10 (B) ending on the date that is 90 days 

11 after the date of the expiration of the public 

12 health emergency declared by the Secretary of 

13 Health and Human Services under section 319 

14 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

15 247d) on January 31, 2020, with respect to the 

16 coronavirus. 

17 (7) EMPLOY.—The term ‘‘employ’’ has the 

18 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Fair 

19 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203) and 

20 section 3 of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural 

21 Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1802). 

22 (8) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ in23 cludes— 


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1 (A) an employee, as defined in section 3 of 

2 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

3 U.S.C. 203); and 

4 (B) an employee, as such term is used for 

5 purposes of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricul6 tural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1801 et 

7 seq.). 

8 (9) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘employer’’ in9 cludes— 

10 (A) an employer, as defined in section 3 of 

11 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

12 U.S.C. 203); and 

13 (B) an employer, as such term is used for 

14 purposes of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricul15 tural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1801 et 

16 seq.). 

17 (10) FEDERAL AGRICULTURE-SPECIFIC

18 CORONAVIRUS FUNDING.—The term ‘‘Federal agri19 culture-specific coronavirus funding’’ means Federal 

20 funding that is provided— 

21 (A) during the period beginning on the 

22 date of enactment of this Act and ending on the 

23 date described in paragraph (6)(B); and 

24 (B) to the covered agricultural producer 

25 for purposes— 


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1 (i) of addressing, responding to, or 

2 mitigating the spread of the coronavirus in 

3 agriculture; or 

4 (ii) related to the effects of coronavi5 rus on agriculture production or sales. 

6 (11) HIGHLY COMPENSATED.—The term ‘‘high7 ly compensated’’, when used with respect to an agri8 cultural worker, means an agricultural worker who 

9 is paid $100,000 or more per year by a covered agri10 cultural producer. 

11 (12) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ includes— 

12 (A) a person as defined in section 3 of the 

13 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

14 203); and 

15 (B) a person as defined in section 3 of the 

16 Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Pro17 tection Act (29 U.S.C. 1802). 

18 SEC. 3. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

19 (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

20 shall be construed to in any way diminish the rights or 

21 benefits that an employee is entitled to under any— 

22 (1) other Federal, State, or local law; 

23 (2) collective bargaining agreement; or 

24 (3) existing employer policy to provide greater 

25 rights or benefits, including more emergency paid 


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1 sick leave or other leave, to an employee than is oth2 erwise required under this title. 

3 (b) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this Act is intended 

4 to limit any other Federal, State, or local authority to pro5 mulgate, enforce, or maintain laws or rules regarding pro6 tections, rights, or benefits related to the coronavirus. 

7 TITLE I—DIRECT FUNDING 

8 REQUIREMENTS 

9 SEC. 101. SICK LEAVE. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—A covered agricultural producer 

11 shall, during the covered period, provide all agricultural 

12 workers of the covered agricultural producer with emer13 gency paid sick leave, in the same manner as emergency 

14 paid sick leave is provided under division E of the Families 

15 First Coronavirus Response Act (29 U.S.C. 2601 note), 

16 without regard to the number of employees employed by 

17 the covered agricultural producer. 

18 (b) TAX CREDITS.—For purposes of section 7001(c) 

19 of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (26 

20 U.S.C. 3111 note), paid sick leave required to be provided 

21 under subsection (a) by covered agricultural producers 

22 employing 500 or less employees shall be treated as re23 quired to be paid by reason of the Emergency Paid Sick 

24 Leave Act. 


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1 SEC. 102. PREMIUM PAY. 

2 (a) PANDEMIC PREMIUM PAY.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—A covered agricultural pro4 ducer or a covered contractor shall, in accordance 

5 with this section, provide each agricultural worker of 

6 the covered agricultural producer with premium pay 

7 at a rate equal to $13 for each hour of work per8 formed by the agricultural worker for the covered 

9 agricultural producer during the period described in 

10 subsection (f). 

11 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNTS.—The total amount of 

12 all premium pay under this subsection that a cov13 ered agricultural producer or covered contractor is 

14 required to provide to an agricultural worker shall 

15 not exceed— 

16 (A) for an agricultural worker who is not 

17 highly compensated, $10,000 reduced by em18 ployer payroll taxes with respect to such pre19 mium pay; or 

20 (B) for an agricultural worker who is high21 ly compensated, $5,000 reduced by employer 

22 payroll taxes with respect to such premium pay. 

23 (3) NO EMPLOYER DISCRETION.—A covered ag24 ricultural producer or covered contractor shall not 

25 have any discretion to determine which portions of 

26 work performed by an agricultural worker qualify for 


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1 premium pay under this subsection, but shall pay 

2 such premium pay for any increment of time worked 

3 by the agricultural worker up to the maximum 

4 amount applicable to the agricultural worker under 

5 paragraph (2). 

6 (4) TIMING.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—A covered agricultural 

8 producer or covered contractor shall commence 

9 payment of the premium pay required under 

10 this subsection as quickly as practicable, but 

11 not later than the earlier of— 

12 (i) the date that is 30 days after the 

13 receipt of grant funds under section 202 

14 by the covered agricultural producer or 

15 covered contractor, respectively; or 

16 (ii) the date that is 90 days after the 

17 first day of the emergency period applica18 ble to the covered agricultural producer. 

19 (B) PAST PAYMENTS.—A covered agricul20 tural producer or covered contractor shall in21 clude, in the first payment of premium pay 

22 made under this subsection to an agricultural 

23 worker, all premium pay due to the agricultural 

24 worker for work occurring before the date of 


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1 payment and during the emergency period ap2 plicable to the covered agricultural producer. 

3 (b) PROHIBITION ON REDUCING COMPENSATION AND

4 DISPLACEMENT.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any payments made to an 

6 agricultural worker as premium pay under sub7 section (a) shall be in addition to all other com8 pensation, including all wages, remuneration, or 

9 other pay and benefits, that the agricultural worker 

10 otherwise receives from the covered agricultural pro11 ducer or covered contractor. 

12 (2) REDUCTION OF COMPENSATION.—A covered 

13 agricultural producer or covered contractor shall not, 

14 during the period described in subsection (f), reduce 

15 or in any other way diminish, any other compensa16 tion, including the wages, remuneration, or other 

17 pay or benefits, that the covered agricultural pro18 ducer or covered contractor provided to the agricul19 tural worker on the day before the date of enact20 ment of this Act. 

21 (3) DISPLACEMENT.—A covered agricultural 

22 producer or covered contractor shall not take any ac23 tion to displace an agricultural worker (including 

24 partial displacement such as a reduction in hours, 

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1 ing an individual for an equivalent position at a rate 

2 of compensation that is less than is required to be 

3 provided to an agricultural worker under paragraph 

4 (2). 

5 (c) DEMARCATION FROM OTHER COMPENSATION.— 

6 The amount of any premium pay paid under subsection 

7 (a) shall be clearly demarcated as a separate line item in 

8 each paystub or other document provided to an agricul9 tural worker that details the remuneration the agricultural 

10 worker received from the covered agricultural producer or 

11 covered contractor for a particular period of time. If any 

12 agricultural worker does not otherwise regularly receive 

13 any such paystub or other document, the covered agricul14 tural producer or the covered contractor shall provide such 

15 paystub or other document to the agricultural worker for 

16 the duration of the premium pay period. 

17 (d) EXCLUSION FROM WAGE-BASED CALCULA18 TIONS.—Any premium pay under subsection (a) paid to 

19 an agricultural worker under this section by a covered ag20 ricultural producer or covered contractor shall be excluded 

21 from the amount of remuneration for work paid to the 

22 agricultural worker for purposes of— 

23 (1) calculating the agricultural worker’s eligi24 bility for any wage-based benefits offered by the cov25 ered agricultural producer or covered contractor; 


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1 (2) computing the regular rate at which such 

2 agricultural worker is employed under section 7 of 

3 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

4 207); and 

5 (3) determining whether such agricultural work6 er is exempt from application of such section 7 

7 under section 13(a)(1) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

8 213(a)(1)). 

9 (e) AGRICULTURAL WORKER DEATH.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which an ag11 ricultural worker of a covered agricultural producer 

12 exhibits symptoms of the coronavirus and dies as a 

13 result of the coronavirus during the period described 

14 in subsection (f), the covered agricultural producer 

15 or covered contractor shall pay as a lump sum to the 

16 next of kin of the agricultural worker for premium 

17 pay under subsection (a)— 

18 (A) for an agricultural worker who is not 

19 highly compensated, the amount determined 

20 under subsection (a)(2)(A) minus the total 

21 amount of any premium pay the worker re22 ceived under subsection (a) prior to the death; 

23 or 

24 (B) for an agricultural worker who is high25 ly compensated, the amount determined under 


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1 subsection (a)(2)(B) minus the amount of any 

2 premium pay the worker received under sub3 section (a) prior to the death. 

4 (2) TREATMENT OF LUMP SUM PAYMENTS.— 

5 (A) TREATMENT AS PREMIUM PAY.—For 

6 purposes of this title, any payment made under 

7 this subsection shall be treated as premium pay 

8 under subsection (a). 

9 (B) TREATMENT FOR PURPOSES OF IN10 TERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986.—For pur11 poses of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

12 any payment made under this subsection shall 

13 be treated as a payment for work performed by 

14 the agricultural worker. 

15 (f) EMERGENCY PERIOD.—The emergency period de16 scribed in this subsection shall be, for each covered agri17 cultural producer or covered contractor of a covered agri18 cultural producer, the period— 

19 (1) beginning on the first date that the covered 

20 agricultural producer is approved to receive Federal 

21 agriculture-specific coronavirus funding; and 

22 (2) ending on the earlier of— 

23 (A) the date that is 60 days after the date 

24 of the expiration of the public health emergency 

25 declared by the Secretary of Health and 


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1 Human Services under section 319 of the Pub2 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) on 

3 January 31, 2020, with respect to the coronavi4 rus; or 

5 (B) the date on which— 

6 (i) all grant funds available to the 

7 Secretary of Agriculture for grants under 

8 section 202 have been obligated; and 

9 (ii) in the case of a covered producer 

10 who has received a grant under section 

11 202 or a covered contractor, the covered 

12 producer or covered contractor (as the case 

13 may be) has expended all funds provided 

14 under the grant for the purposes described 

15 in section 202(a). 

16 SEC. 103. JOB SECURITY FOR AGRICULTURAL WORKERS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each covered agricultural pro18 ducer shall limit the involuntary furloughing or termi19 nation of employment or contracts of agricultural workers 

20 during the covered period, in accordance with the regula21 tions promulgated by the Secretary of Labor. 

22 (b) REGULATIONS.—By not later than 30 days after 

23 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor 

24 shall promulgate regulations to carry out subsection (a) 

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1 tinue working during the covered period, taking into ac2 count the protection of the health, safety, and economic 

3 security of agricultural workers. 

4 SEC. 104. CORONAVIRUS GUIDELINES OF THE CENTERS 

5 FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—To safeguard the food security of 

7 the United States and prevent the spread of the coronavi8 rus in agriculture, each covered agricultural producer shall 

9 make a substantial and demonstrable effort to document 

10 and implement the guidelines described in subsection (b) 

11 during the covered period. 

12 (b) GUIDELINES.—The guidelines described in this 

13 subsection— 

14 (1) are the most recent guidelines or rec15 ommendations developed by the Centers for Disease 

16 Control and Prevention relating to agricultural 

17 workers and employment and agricultural producers, 

18 including guidelines related to sanitation in work 

19 sites, housing, and transportation provided to agri20 cultural workers; and 

21 (2) include, at the minimum, the following: 

22 (A) The immediate shutdown, deep clean23 ing, and disinfecting of all areas where a symp24 tomatic employee was present. 


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1 (B) Immediate notice of possible exposure 

2 to employees who worked in close proximity of 

3 someone who has tested positive for the corona4 virus. 

5 (C) Informing employees of their rights to 

6 secure compensation during any resulting quar7 antine period, including— 

8 (i) emergency paid sick leave under 

9 section 101 of this title or under division 

10 E of the Families First Coronavirus Re11 sponse Act (29 U.S.C. 2601 note), as ap12 plicable; and 

13 (ii) for covered agricultural producers 

14 who are employers covered by the Family 

15 and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 

16 2601), emergency paid family leave de17 scribed in section 102(a)(1)(F) of such Act 

18 (29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)(F)). 

19 (D) Such steps as are necessary to ensure 

20 that— 

21 (i) ill employees stay home or remain 

22 isolated in housing; 

23 (ii) employees leave the worksite if 

24 feeling or appearing ill with coronavirus-re25 lated symptoms; and 


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1 (iii) employees are provided with 

2 transportation to leave the worksite, as 

3 needed. 

4 (E) The immediate informing of the rel5 evant State or local health department of any 

6 employees testing positive for the coronavirus or 

7 sent to quarantine for possible exposure to the 

8 coronavirus, which report shall include the cov9 ered agricultural producer’s name, the exact 

10 field location, and the names, addresses, and 

11 telephone numbers of impacted employees. 

12 (F) At the beginning of each work day— 

13 (i) a review of the symptom checklist 

14 with the agricultural workers concerning 

15 themselves and their households; and 

16 (ii) a temperature check of all the em17 ployees of the covered agricultural pro18 ducers, with respect to which— 

19 (I) all thermometers shall be 

20 properly sanitized between each use 

21 and each day; and 

22 (II) any worker with a tempera23 ture of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or 

24 higher shall be considered to have a 

25 fever. 


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1 (G) Continual monitoring for and review of 

2 guidance issued by the Centers for Disease 

3 Control and Prevention regarding the coronavi4 rus. 

5 (H) Providing a copy of the guidelines re6 quired under this section to all employees of the 

7 covered agricultural producer in the language or 

8 languages the employees understand. 

9 SEC. 105. ENFORCEMENT. 

10 (a) PROHIBITED ACTS, PENALTIES, AND ENFORCE11 MENT.— 

12 (1) PROHIBITED ACTS.—It shall be unlawful for 

13 a person to— 

14 (A) violate any provision of this title appli15 cable to such person; or 

16 (B) discharge or in any other manner dis17 criminate against any agricultural worker be18 cause such agricultural worker has filed any 

19 complaint or instituted or caused to be insti20 tuted any proceeding under or related to this 

21 title, or has testified or is about to testify in 

22 any such proceeding. 

23 (2) ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTIES.— 

24 (A) DUTIES OF SECRETARY OF LABOR.— 

25 The Secretary of Labor shall have authority to 


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1 enforce the requirements of this title, as pro2 vided in this section. 

3 (B) UNPAID SICK LEAVE.—A violation of 

4 section 101 shall be deemed a failure to pay 

5 minimum wages in violation of section 6 of the 

6 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

7 206) and be subject to enforcement and the 

8 penalties described in sections 16 and 17 of 

9 such Act (29 U.S.C. 216, 217) with respect to 

10 such violation, subject to subparagraph (F). 

11 (C) PREMIUM PAY VIOLATIONS.—A viola12 tion of section 102 shall be deemed a violation 

13 of section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

14 of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207) and unpaid amounts 

15 required under this section shall be treated as 

16 unpaid overtime compensation under such sec17 tion 7 and subject to enforcement and the pen18 alties described in sections 16 and 17 of such 

19 Act (29 U.S.C. 216, 217) for such a violation, 

20 subject to subparagraph (F). 

21 (D) JOB SECURITY AND CORONAVIRUS

22 GUIDELINE VIOLATIONS.—A violation of section 

23 103 or 104 shall be treated as a violation of 

24 section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

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1 ment and the penalties described in section 16 

2 and 17 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216, 217) for 

3 such a violation— 

4 (i) except that the remedies available 

5 for an agricultural worker shall be the re6 lief available under subsection (c)(2)(B); 

7 and 

8 (ii) subject to subparagraph (F). 

9 (E) DISCHARGE OR DISCRIMINATION.—A 

10 violation of paragraph (1)(B) shall be deemed a 

11 violation of section 15(a)(3) of the Fair Labor 

12 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 215(a)(3)), 

13 and subject to enforcement and the penalties 

14 described in sections 16 and 17 of such Act (29 

15 U.S.C. 216, 217) for such a violation, subject 

16 to subparagraph (F). 

17 (F) NO CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—A violation 

18 of this Act shall not be subject to any criminal 

19 penalty. 

20 (b) INVESTIGATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—To ensure compliance with 

22 the provisions of this title, including any regulation 

23 or order issued under this title, the Secretary of 

24 Labor shall have the authority to receive, inves25 tigate, and attempt to resolve complaints in the 


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1 same manner as the Secretary receives, investigates, 

2 and attempts to resolve complaints of violations 

3 under section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

4 1938 (29 U.S.C. 209), including the investigative 

5 authority provided under section 11(a), and the sub6 poena authority under section 9, of such Act (29 

7 U.S.C. 211(a), 209). 

8 (2) STATE AGENCIES.—The Secretary of Labor 

9 may, for the purpose of carrying out the functions 

10 and duties under this section, utilize the services of 

11 State and local agencies in accordance with section 

12 11(b) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

13 U.S.C. 211(b)). 

14 (c) AGRICULTURAL WORKER ENFORCEMENT.— 

15 (1) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action alleging a 

16 violation of this title may be maintained against a 

17 person in any Federal or State court of competent 

18 jurisdiction by one or more agricultural workers or 

19 their representative for and on behalf of the agricul20 tural workers, or the agricultural workers and others 

21 similarly situated, in the same manner as an action 

22 brought by an employee under section 16(b) of the 

23 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

24 216(b)). 


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1 (2) LIABILITY.—Damages available under para2 graph (1) shall include— 

3 (A) in the case of a violation of section 101 

4 or 102, the damages and remedies available for 

5 a violation of section 6 or 7 of the Fair Labor 

6 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206, 207); 

7 (B) in the case of a violation of section 

8 103 or 104, an amount not to exceed the actual 

9 damages, statutory damages of not more than 

10 $500 per plaintiff per violation, or other equi11 table relief (including reinstatement), except— 

12 (i) multiple infractions of a single pro13 vision of section 103 or 104, or regulations 

14 promulgated under either such section, 

15 shall constitute only one violation for pur16 poses of determining the amount of statu17 tory damages due a plaintiff; and 

18 (ii) in any class action, the amount of 

19 damages shall not exceed the lesser of— 

20 (I) the amount equal to $500 per 

21 plaintiff per violation; and 

22 (II) $500,000; and 

23 (C) in the case of a violation of subsection 

24 (a)(1)(B), the damages and remedies available 

25 for a violation of section 15(a)(3) of the Fair 


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1 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

2 215(a)(3)). 

3 (D) COURT COSTS AND ATTORNEY’S

4 FEES.—In any action commenced under this 

5 subsection, if the plaintiff is a prevailing party, 

6 the court shall, in addition to any judgment 

7 awarded to a plaintiff, allow a reasonable attor8 ney’s fee to be paid by the defendant, and costs 

9 of the action. 

10 (3) NO WAIVER.—In an action alleging a viola11 tion of subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(1) 

12 brought by one or more agricultural workers or their 

13 representative for and on behalf of the persons as 

14 described in paragraph (1), no court of competent 

15 jurisdiction may grant the motion of the respondent 

16 to compel arbitration, under chapter 1 of title 9, 

17 United States Code, or any analogous State arbitra18 tion statute, of the claims involved. An agricultural 

19 worker’s right to bring an action under this sub20 section on behalf of similarly situated agricultural 

21 workers to enforce such rights may not be subject to 

22 any private agreement that purports to require the 

23 agricultural workers to pursue claims on an indi24 vidual basis. 


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1 (d) RECORDKEEPING.—A covered agricultural pro2 ducer or a covered contractor shall make, keep, and pre3 serve records pertaining to compliance with any applicable 

4 provisions of this title in accordance with section 11(c) of 

5 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 211(c)) 

6 and in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Sec7 retary of Labor. 

8 SEC. 106. EFFECTIVE DATE; TERMINATION. 

9 The requirements of this title shall— 

10 (1) take effect beginning on the date of enact11 ment of this Act; and 

12 (2) cease to have force and effect on the date 

13 that is 90 days after the date of the expiration of 

14 the public health emergency declared by the Sec15 retary of Health and Human Services under section 

16 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 247d) on January 31, 2020, with respect to the 

18 coronavirus. 

19 TITLE II—AGRICULTURAL 

20 WORKER ASSISTANCE 

21 SEC. 201. GRANTS FOR AGRICULTURAL PRODUCERS TO IM22 PLEMENT CDC RECOMMENDATIONS. 

23 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) ELIGIBLE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCER.—The 

2 term ‘‘eligible agricultural producer’’ means an agri3 cultural producer with not more than 50 employees. 

4 (2) QUALIFYING EQUIPMENT.—The term ‘‘qual5 ifying equipment’’ means— 

6 (A) a handwashing station; 

7 (B) a portable restroom; and 

8 (C) personal protective equipment. 

9 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

11 (b) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall provide grants to 

12 eligible agricultural producers for the purchase of quali13 fying equipment. 

14 (c) AMOUNT.—The amount of a grant under sub15 section (b) shall be the product obtained by multiplying— 

16 (1) $500; and 

17 (2) the number of employees of the eligible ag18 ricultural producer. 

19 (d) PROOF OF PURCHASE; RETURN OF FUNDS.—Not 

20 later than 60 days after the date on which an eligible agri21 cultural producer receives a grant under this section, the 

22 eligible agricultural producer shall— 

23 (1) submit to the Secretary proof of purchase 

24 of qualifying equipment; and 


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1 (2) return to the Secretary the amount of the 

2 grant funds, if any, that was not used by the eligible 

3 agricultural producer to purchase qualifying equip4 ment, as described in the proof of purchase sub5 mitted under paragraph (1). 

6 (e) CONDITIONS.—An eligible agricultural producer 

7 shall use a grant under this section— 

8 (1) to purchase qualifying equipment as nec9 essary to meet guidelines for sanitation issued by the 

10 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and 

11 (2) to purchase— 

12 (A) not more than 1 hand washing station 

13 and 1 portable restroom per 10 employees of 

14 the eligible agricultural producer, unless the 

15 guidelines described in paragraph (1) require a 

16 greater number of qualifying equipment; and 

17 (B) such personal protective equipment as 

18 the eligible agricultural producer determines to 

19 be necessary to meet the guidelines described in 

20 paragraph (1). 

21 SEC. 202. PREMIUM PAY GRANTS. 

22 (a) GRANTS.— 

23 (1) FOR PANDEMIC PREMIUM PAY.—The Sec24 retary of Agriculture shall, from amounts made 

25 available under subsection (g), award a grant to 


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1 each covered agricultural producer that applies for a 

2 grant, in accordance with this section, for the pur3 pose of providing premium pay to agricultural work4 ers under section 102, including amounts paid under 

5 section 102(e). 

6 (2) ELIGIBILITY.—Any covered agricultural 

7 producer, including a covered agricultural producer 

8 subject to a civil penalty under section 105, shall be 

9 eligible for a grant under paragraph (1). 

10 (b) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The maximum amount avail12 able for making a grant under subsection (a)(1) to 

13 a covered agricultural producer shall be equal to the 

14 sum of— 

15 (A) the amount obtained by multiplying 

16 $10,000 by the number of agricultural workers 

17 the producer certifies, in the application sub18 mitted under subsection (c)(1), as employing, or 

19 providing remuneration to for services or labor, 

20 who are paid wages or remuneration by the pro21 ducer at a rate that is less than $100,000 per 

22 year; and 

23 (B) the amount obtained by multiplying 

24 $5,000 by the number of highly compensated 

25 agricultural workers the producer certifies, in 


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1 the application submitted under subsection 

2 (c)(1), as employing, or providing remuneration 

3 to for services or labor, who are paid wages or 

4 remuneration by the producer at a rate that is 

5 equal to or greater than $100,000 per year. 

6 (2) NO PARTIAL GRANTS.—The Secretary of 

7 Agriculture shall not award a grant under this sec8 tion in an amount less than the maximum described 

9 in paragraph (1). 

10 (c) GRANT APPLICATION AND DISBURSAL.— 

11 (1) APPLICATION.—Any covered agricultural 

12 producer seeking a grant under subsection (a)(1) 

13 shall submit an application to the Secretary of Agri14 culture at such time, in such manner, and complete 

15 with such information as the Secretary may require. 

16 (2) NOTICE AND CERTIFICATION.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agri18 culture shall, within 15 days after receiving a 

19 complete application from a covered agricultural 

20 producer eligible for a grant under this sec21 tion— 

22 (i) notify the producer of the Sec23 retary’s findings with respect to the re24 quirements for the grant; and 


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1 (ii)(I) if the Secretary finds that the 

2 covered agricultural producer meets the re3 quirements under this section for a grant 

4 under subsection (a), provide a certifi5 cation to the producer— 

6 (aa) that the producer has met 

7 such requirements; and 

8 (bb) of the amount of the grant 

9 payment that the Secretary has deter10 mined the producer shall receive based 

11 on the requirements under this sec12 tion; or 

13 (II) if the Secretary finds that the 

14 covered agricultural producer does not 

15 meet the requirements under this section 

16 for a grant under subsection (a), provide a 

17 notice of denial stating the reasons for the 

18 denial and provide an opportunity for ad19 ministrative review by not later than 10 

20 days after the denial. 

21 (B) TRANSFER.—Not later than 7 days 

22 after making a certification under subpara23 graph (A)(ii) with respect to a covered agricul24 tural producer, the Secretary of Agriculture 


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1 shall make the appropriate transfer to the pro2 ducer of the amount of the grant. 

3 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—A covered agricultural pro5 ducer receiving a grant under this section shall use 

6 the amount of the grant solely for the following pur7 poses: 

8 (A) Providing premium pay under section 

9 102(a) to agricultural workers in accordance 

10 with the requirements for such payments under 

11 such section, including providing payments de12 scribed in section 102(e) to the next of kin of 

13 agricultural workers in accordance with the re14 quirements for such payments under such sec15 tion. 

16 (B) Paying employer payroll taxes with re17 spect to premium pay amounts described in 

18 subparagraph (A), including such payments de19 scribed in section 102(e). 

20 Each dollar of a grant received by a covered agricul21 tural producer under this section shall be used as 

22 provided in subparagraph (A) or (B) or returned to 

23 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

24 (2) NO OTHER USES AUTHORIZED.—A covered 

25 agricultural producer who uses any amount of a 


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1 grant for a purpose not required under paragraph 

2 (1) shall be considered to have misused funds in vio3 lation of section 102. 

4 (3) USE OF COVERED CONTRACTORS.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—In any case where a 

6 covered agricultural producer receiving a grant 

7 under this section has, or enters into, an agree8 ment with another entity regarding providing or 

9 paying agricultural workers for the covered ag10 ricultural producer— 

11 (i) the covered agricultural producer 

12 shall— 

13 (I) not later than 3 days after re14 ceipt of the grant funds under this 

15 section, notify, in writing, the con16 tracting entity about the requirement 

17 under section 102 to provide premium 

18 pay to agricultural workers; 

19 (II) not later than 14 days after 

20 receipt of the grant funds under this 

21 section, transfer the amounts needed 

22 to provide premium pay under section 

23 102(a), including providing payments 

24 described in section 102(e), to the 


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1 contracting entity for disbursement to 

2 the agricultural workers; and 

3 (III) remain responsible for the 

4 use of the funds in accordance with 

5 paragraph (1) and section 102; and 

6 (ii) the contracting entity shall— 

7 (I) as a condition of receipt of 

8 such amounts, agree, in writing, to 

9 comply with the requirements of sec10 tion 102, with respect to the agricul11 tural workers of the covered agricul12 tural producer; and 

13 (II) maintain, and report to the 

14 covered agricultural producer and the 

15 Secretary of Labor, payroll documents 

16 recording the payment of premium 

17 pay to the agricultural workers. 

18 (B) EFFECT OF TRANSFER OF FUNDS.— 

19 By accepting grant funds under subparagraph 

20 (A) from a covered agricultural producer— 

21 (i) the covered contractor agrees to 

22 provide premium pay, in accordance with 

23 paragraph (1) and as required under sec24 tion 102, to the agricultural workers of the 

25 covered agricultural producer and to comVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:24 Jul 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4042.IS S4042

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1 ply with the requirements of section 

2 105(a)(1)(B) with respect to such agricul3 tural workers; and 

4 (ii) the covered contractor shall be 

5 subject to the enforcement provisions 

6 under section 105 for violating section 102 

7 or section 105(a)(1)(B) with respect to 

8 such agricultural workers. 

9 (4) REFUND.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a covered agricul11 tural producer receives a grant under this sec12 tion and, for any reason, does not provide every 

13 dollar of such grant to agricultural workers in 

14 accordance with the requirements of this Act, 

15 then the producer shall refund any such dollars 

16 to the Secretary of Agriculture not later than 

17 June 30, 2021. Any amounts returned to the 

18 Secretary shall remain available to the Sec19 retary for additional grants under this section. 

20 (B) REQUIREMENT FOR NOT REDUCING

21 COMPENSATION.—A covered agricultural pro22 ducer who is required to refund any amount 

23 under this paragraph shall not reduce or other24 wise diminish an eligible worker’s compensation 


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1 or benefits in response to or otherwise due to 

2 such refund. 

3 (e) RECOUPMENT.—In addition to all other enforce4 ment and remedies available under this Act or any other 

5 law, the Secretary of Agriculture shall establish a process 

6 under which the Secretary shall recoup the amount of any 

7 grant awarded under subsection (a)(1) if the Secretary de8 termines that the covered agricultural producer receiving 

9 the grant— 

10 (1) did not provide all of the dollars of such 

11 grant to the agricultural workers of the producer or, 

12 in the case of payments made under section 102(e), 

13 the next of kin of such workers; 

14 (2) did not, in fact, have the number of agricul15 tural workers certified by the producer in accordance 

16 with subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection 

17 (b)(1); 

18 (3) did not pay the agricultural workers for the 

19 number of hours the producer claimed to have paid; 

20 or 

21 (4) otherwise misused funds or violated this 

22 section. 

23 (f) TAX TREATMENT.— 

24 (1) EXCLUSION FROM INCOME.—For purposes 

25 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, any grant reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:24 Jul 08, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4042.IS S4042

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1 ceived by a covered agricultural producer under this 

2 section shall not be included in the gross income of 

3 such covered agricultural producer. 

4 (2) DENIAL OF DOUBLE BENEFIT.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a covered 

6 agricultural producer that receives a grant 

7 under this section— 

8 (i) amounts paid under subsection (a) 

9 or (e) of section 102 shall not be taken 

10 into account as wages for purposes of sec11 tions 41, 45A, 51, or 1396 of the Internal 

12 Revenue Code of 1986 or section 2301 of 

13 the CARES Act (Public Law 116–136); 

14 and 

15 (ii) any deduction otherwise allowable 

16 under such Code for applicable payments 

17 during any taxable year shall be reduced 

18 (but not below zero) by the excess (if any) 

19 of— 

20 (I) the aggregate amounts of 

21 grants received under this section; 

22 over 

23 (II) the sum of any amount re24 funded under subsection (d) plus the 

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1 ments made for all preceding taxable 

2 years. 

3 (B) APPLICABLE PAYMENTS.—For pur4 poses of this paragraph, the term ‘‘applicable 

5 payments’’ means amounts paid as premium 

6 pay under subsection (a) or (e) of section 102 

7 and amounts paid for employer payroll taxes 

8 with respect to such amounts. 

9 (C) AGGREGATION RULE.—Rules similar 

10 to the rules of subsections (a) and (b) of section 

11 52 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall 

12 apply for purposes of this section. 

13 (3) INFORMATION REPORTING.—The Secretary 

14 of Agriculture shall submit to the Commissioner of 

15 Internal Revenue statements containing— 

16 (A) the name and tax identification num17 ber of each covered agricultural producer receiv18 ing a grant under this section; 

19 (B) the amount of such grant; and 

20 (C) any amounts refunded under sub21 section (d)(4). 

22 (g) AUTHORIZATION AND APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated, and there are appro24 priated, out of any amounts in the Treasury not appro25 priated, such sums as are necessary for the Secretary of 


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1 Agriculture to award grants under this section to all eligi2 ble agricultural producers that submit a complete applica3 tion under subsection (c). 

4 (h) EMERGENCY DESIGNATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amounts provided by 

6 this section are designated as an emergency require7 ment pursuant to section 4(g) of the Statutory Pay8 As-You-Go Act of 2010 (2 U.S.C. 933(g)). 

9 (2) DESIGNATION IN SENATE.—In the Senate, 

10 this section is designated as an emergency require11 ment pursuant to section 4112(a) of H. Con. Res. 

12 71 (115th Congress), the concurrent resolution on 

13 the budget for fiscal year 2018. 

Æ 


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