II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4453 

To protect the continuity of the food supply chain of the United States 

in response to COVID–19, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 5, 2020 

Ms. STABENOW (for herself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. 

BROWN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. BENNET, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. CASEY, 

Ms. SMITH, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. 

WYDEN, and Mr. REED) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

A BILL 

To protect the continuity of the food supply chain of the 

United States in response to COVID–19, 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 ‘‘Food Supply Protec5 tion Act of 2020’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) COVID–19 EMERGENCY.—The term 

2 ‘‘COVID–19 emergency’’ means the public health 

3 emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and 

4 Human Services under section 319 of the Public 

5 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) on January 

6 31, 2020, with respect to COVID–19. 

7 (2) DONATION PERIOD.—The term ‘‘donation 

8 period’’ means the period— 

9 (A) beginning on January 31, 2020; and 

10 (B) ending on the later of— 

11 (i) December 31, 2020; and 

12 (ii) a date after December 31, 2020, 

13 if there are remaining food surpluses relat14 ing to the COVID–19 emergency, as deter15 mined by the Secretary. 

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

17 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

18 SEC. 3. INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS TO NONPROFIT FEED19 ING ORGANIZATIONS. 

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

21 (1) to reduce food waste by supporting the dis22 tribution of perishable food that would otherwise go 

23 to waste or be left unharvested; 

24 (2) to provide food and meals to individuals in 

25 need during the COVID–19 emergency; 


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1 (3) to improve the ability of food banks and 

2 other nonprofit feeding organizations to process, re3 pack, store, or distribute perishable food in response 

4 to the COVID–19 emergency; and 

5 (4) to facilitate partnerships with local and re6 gional organizations to store, repackage, prepare, 

7 process, or distribute food and meals. 

8 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 (1) ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘eligi10 ble organization’’ means an organization providing 

11 free food or meals during the donation period, in12 cluding— 

13 (A) a nonprofit organization, such as a 

14 food bank, a school, and an emergency feeding 

15 organization; 

16 (B) a faith-based organization that distrib17 utes food or meals, and any other similar pro18 gram, as determined by the Secretary; 

19 (C) a tribal organization that distributes 

20 food or meals; 

21 (D) a child or adult care center; and 

22 (E) any other similar feeding entity, as de23 termined by the Secretary. 


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1 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of 

3 the Food and Nutrition Service. 

4 (3) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘tribal 

5 organization’’ has the meaning given the term in 

6 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu7 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

8 (c) REIMBURSEMENT FOR STORAGE AND DISTRIBU9 TION OF PERISHABLE COMMODITIES.— 

10 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 15 days 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec12 retary shall establish a program under which the 

13 Secretary shall reimburse costs incurred during the 

14 donation period by an eligible organization for the 

15 distribution and temporary storage of perishable 

16 commodities, without regard to the source of those 

17 commodities. 

18 (2) REIMBURSEMENT RATE.—Under the pro19 gram established under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

20 shall reimburse eligible organizations at— 

21 (A) a rate of $0.10 per pound of perishable 

22 food stored and distributed during the donation 

23 period; or 

24 (B) such other appropriate rate, as deter25 mined by the Secretary. 


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1 (3) ADVANCE REIMBURSEMENT.—The Sec2 retary shall provide an advance reimbursement to an 

3 eligible organization under paragraph (1) if the Sec4 retary approves a plan submitted by the eligible or5 ganization that— 

6 (A) estimates the pounds of perishable 

7 food expected to be distributed during the sub8 sequent 30 days; and 

9 (B) demonstrates the ability of the eligible 

10 organization to accomplish that distribution. 

11 (4) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

12 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use not more 

13 than $500,000,000 to carry out this subsection, of 

14 which not more than 3 percent may be used for ad15 ministrative expenses. 

16 (d) GRANTS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, EQUIPMENT, 

17 AND SUPPLIES.— 

18 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 30 days 

19 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec20 retary shall establish a program under which the 

21 Secretary shall award grants to eligible organiza22 tions to improve, construct, rent, lease, or purchase 

23 infrastructure, equipment, and supplies that support 

24 the distribution of surplus perishable food or meals 


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1 prepared with that food and the purposes described 

2 in subsection (a). 

3 (2) APPLICATIONS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive 

5 a grant under paragraph (1), an eligible organi6 zation shall submit to the Secretary an applica7 tion at such time, in such manner, and con8 taining such information as the Secretary may 

9 require, including the information described in 

10 subparagraph (C). 

11 (B) REVIEW AND SUBMISSION.—The Sec12 retary shall approve or deny an application re13 ceived under subparagraph (A)— 

14 (i) not later than 30 days after the 

15 date of receipt of the application; and 

16 (ii) in the case of an application for a 

17 grant amount of less than $80,000 or an 

18 application that may be reviewed quickly 

19 otherwise, as determined by the Secretary, 

20 in accordance with the timeline in a fast21 track review process established by the 

22 Secretary for such applications. 

23 (C) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In determining 

24 whether to approve or deny an application of an 

25 eligible organization under subparagraph (B), 


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1 the Secretary shall consider whether the eligible 

2 organization— 

3 (i) demonstrates an ability to use the 

4 grant for the purposes described in para5 graph (1); and 

6 (ii) to the extent practicable, will— 

7 (I) use local and regional food 

8 business and small and medium busi9 nesses to carry out activities under 

10 the grant; 

11 (II) accept perishable food that 

12 would otherwise be wasted or 

13 unharvested; 

14 (III) develop innovative partner15 ships with institutions that have avail16 able, underutilized cold storage, food 

17 preparation, or other existing re18 sources or facilities; and 

19 (IV) make investments in infra20 structure or equipment that have 

21 short- or long-term value, have mul22 tiple uses, and would improve pre23 paredness for future surges in dona24 tions of perishable foods. 


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1 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—Activities carried out by 

2 eligible organizations using grant funds awarded 

3 under paragraph (1) may include the following: 

4 (A) Purchasing new or temporary pack5 aging materials and food labels. 

6 (B) Converting industrial-sized products to 

7 consumer-sized products. 

8 (C) Purchasing, renting, or leasing storage 

9 or preparation space, cold storage, equipment, 

10 or vehicles, trailers, or transportation services. 

11 (D) Purchasing test kits, disinfectant, 

12 sanitation systems, or hand washing stations. 

13 (E) Training relating to— 

14 (i) equipment purchased, rented, or 

15 leased with the grant funds; and 

16 (ii) new procedures established by the 

17 eligible organization that are supported by 

18 the grant funds. 

19 (F) Purchasing and decontaminating per20 sonal protective equipment. 

21 (G) Purchasing equipment and supplies to 

22 facilitate food or meal distribution. 

23 (4) OWNERSHIP OF INFRASTRUCTURE, EQUIP24 MENT, AND SUPPLIES.—Any infrastructure, equipVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:27 Aug 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4453.IS S4453

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1 ment, or supplies purchased by an eligible organiza2 tion using a grant awarded under paragraph (1)— 

3 (A) shall be required to support the pur4 poses of the grant but need not be exclusively 

5 used for those purposes; 

6 (B) shall not have Federal property track7 ing and inventory requirements applied beyond 

8 the end of the grant term; and 

9 (C) shall remain under the ownership of 

10 the eligible organization for future use or pan11 demic or food crisis preparedness. 

12 (5) PUBLIC GRANT ANNOUNCEMENTS.—Not 

13 later than 10 days after the date on which a grant 

14 is awarded under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

15 publicly announce the grant on the website of the 

16 Food and Nutrition Service, including a summary of 

17 the activities funded by the grant and the projected 

18 volume of food or meal distribution supported by the 

19 grant. 

20 (6) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

21 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use not more 

22 than $500,000,000 to carry out this subsection, of 

23 which not more than 3 percent may be used for ad24 ministrative expenses. 


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1 (e) OUTREACH.—The Secretary, in cooperation with 

2 national and regional food security organizations, shall 

3 conduct outreach to eligible organizations, including tribal 

4 organizations, that serve underserved communities or have 

5 minimal or no participation in Federal programs to ensure 

6 that those organizations are informed of the programs es7 tablished under this section. 

8 (f) DUPLICATION AND RELATION TO OTHER PRO9 GRAMS.—An eligible organization may not receive reim10 bursements, payments, or grants from Federal sources for 

11 activities carried out under this section in an amount that 

12 exceeds 100 percent of the costs incurred by the eligible 

13 organization in carrying out those activities. 

14 (g) ADDITIONAL FUNDING.—In addition to the funds 

15 used under subsections (c)(4) and (d)(6), of the funds of 

16 the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall 

17 use such sums as are necessary to carry out this section. 

18 SEC. 4. FOOD PURCHASE PARTNERSHIPS. 

19 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (1) ELIGIBLE FEEDING ORGANIZATION.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible 

22 feeding organization’’ means a public or private 

23 nonprofit organization (including a tribal orga24 nization (as defined in section 4 of the Indian 

25 Self-Determination and Education Assistance 


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1 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304))), or a restaurant or 

2 distributer operating an emergency feeding or 

3 food relief program, that distributes donated el4 igible food or meals prepared, at least in part, 

5 from eligible food. 

6 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘eligible feed7 ing organization’’ includes a department of ag8 riculture or other appropriate agency of a 

9 State, or an Indian Tribe, that receives funding 

10 under this section to distribute donated eligible 

11 food or meals prepared, at least in part, from 

12 eligible food. 

13 (2) ELIGIBLE FOOD.—The term ‘‘eligible food’’ 

14 means meat, poultry, eggs, fluid milk, dairy prod15 ucts, fruit, vegetables, seafood, and other unproc16 essed or minimally processed food that— 

17 (A) is produced and processed in the 

18 United States; and 

19 (B) would otherwise be unharvested or sur20 plus if not donated. 

21 (3) FOOD VALUE.—The term ‘‘food value’’— 

22 (A) means the typical wholesale value of 

23 food being donated in a nonsurplus situation; 

24 and 


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1 (B) may be adjusted to reflect the typical 

2 premium associated with local food, organic 

3 food, or other premiums. 

4 (4) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

5 has the meaning given the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ in 

6 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu7 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

8 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

9 the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of 

10 the Agricultural Marketing Service. 

11 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

12 (A) each of the several States of the 

13 United States; 

14 (B) the District of Columbia; 

15 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

16 (D) the United States Virgin Islands; 

17 (E) Guam; 

18 (F) American Samoa; and 

19 (G) the Commonwealth of the Northern 

20 Mariana Islands. 

21 (b) ESTABLISHMENT; PURPOSES.— 

22 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 15 days 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec24 retary shall establish— 


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1 (A) the State and Tribal surplus food pur2 chase program in accordance with subsection 

3 (c); and 

4 (B) the Federal surplus food reimburse5 ment program in accordance with subsection 

6 (d). 

7 (2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the programs 

8 established under paragraph (1) shall be— 

9 (A) to facilitate the purchase and donation 

10 of eligible food; 

11 (B) to provide nutrition assistance to indi12 viduals facing food insecurity; 

13 (C) to encourage the use of available infra14 structure and resources to respond to COVID– 

15 19-related food supply chain disruptions; and 

16 (D) to reduce food waste. 

17 (c) STATE AND TRIBAL SURPLUS FOOD PURCHASE

18 PROGRAM.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—To advance the purposes de20 scribed in subsection (b)(2), the Secretary shall 

21 carry out a State and Tribal surplus food purchase 

22 program, under which the Secretary shall provide 

23 funding to States and Indian Tribes to administer a 

24 grant or other reimbursement program to purchase 

25 surplus eligible food and distribute the food— 


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1 (A) to eligible feeding organizations (as de2 fined in subsection (a)(1)(A)); 

3 (B) through a department of agriculture or 

4 other appropriate agency of a State described in 

5 subsection (a)(1)(B) to individuals experiencing 

6 food insecurity; or 

7 (C) in the case of an Indian Tribe de8 scribed in subsection (a)(1)(B), directly to indi9 viduals experiencing food insecurity. 

10 (2) INSTRUCTIONS.—Not later than 15 days 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec12 retary shall provide instructions for States and In13 dian Tribes seeking funding under this subsection. 

14 (3) INITIAL APPLICATION.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State or Indian 

16 Tribe seeking funding under this subsection 

17 shall submit to the Secretary an initial applica18 tion that— 

19 (i) designates the one or more lead 

20 agencies of the State or Indian Tribe for 

21 administering the grant or other reim22 bursement program; and 

23 (ii) includes a plan for administering 

24 the grant or other reimbursement program 

25 in accordance with paragraph (4). 


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1 (B) JOINT APPLICATIONS.—Two or more 

2 States, Indian Tribes, or combinations of States 

3 and Indian Tribes— 

4 (i) may jointly submit an initial appli5 cation under subparagraph (A); and 

6 (ii) shall be eligible to receive a com7 bination of the amounts provided under 

8 the initial allocation under paragraph (5). 

9 (4) STATE OR TRIBAL PLAN.—The State or 

10 Tribal plan described in paragraph (3)(A)(ii) shall 

11 include descriptions of— 

12 (A) how the lead agencies of a State or In13 dian Tribe, or a joint applicant under para14 graph (3)(B), will— 

15 (i) facilitate connecting producers of 

16 surplus eligible food with eligible feeding 

17 organizations; or 

18 (ii) make available to individuals in19 formation relating to how to access food or 

20 meals provided through the program under 

21 this subsection; 

22 (B) mechanisms that eligible feeding orga23 nizations will use to distribute food and meals 

24 under the program under this subsection; 


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1 (C) how the plan advances the purposes 

2 described in subsection (b)(2); and 

3 (D) how innovative partnerships with orga4 nizations serving at-risk populations or facilities 

5 that have unused capacity due to the COVID– 

6 19 emergency (including restaurants, hospi7 tality companies, schools, senior centers, after8 school programs, sports franchises or other en9 terprises, distributors, and other public or pri10 vate organizations) will be encouraged and sup11 ported under the plan. 

12 (5) INITIAL ALLOCATION.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Of the funds of the 

14 Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary 

15 shall distribute $1,000,000,000 to States and 

16 Indian Tribes under this subsection. 

17 (B) MINIMUM ALLOCATION.—In distrib18 uting amounts under subparagraph (A), the 

19 Secretary shall allocate not less than— 

20 (i) $5,000,000 for each State; and 

21 (ii) $200,000 for each Indian Tribe. 

22 (C) FORMULA.—In allocating amounts 

23 under subparagraph (B), subject to the limita24 tions described in that subparagraph, the Sec25 retary shall allocate— 


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1 (i) 50 percent based on— 

2 (I) in the case of States, the for3 mula used to allocate among States 

4 the commodities and funding available 

5 under the emergency food assistance 

6 program established under the Emer7 gency Food Assistance Act of 1983 (7 

8 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.), using the most 

9 current data available as of the date 

10 of enactment of this Act; and 

11 (II) in the case of Indian Tribes, 

12 a formula determined by the Sec13 retary, in consultation with Indian 

14 Tribes, that is based on poverty rates, 

15 unemployment rates, and rates of par16 ticipation in Federal feeding pro17 grams; and 

18 (ii) 50 percent based on the market 

19 value of agricultural products (including 

20 seafood) sold within each State or Tribal 

21 area, including agricultural products (in22 cluding seafood) produced by the members 

23 of each Indian Tribe or Tribal businesses 

or enterprises, weighted such that 1 24 ⁄4 of 


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1 the amount under this clause is based on 

2 each of— 

3 (I) dairy and eggs; 

4 (II) meat, poultry, and seafood; 

5 (III) vegetables; and 

6 (IV) fruit. 

7 (6) REALLOCATION AND ADDITIONAL FUND8 ING.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

10 (i) reallocate to States or Indian 

11 Tribes described in subparagraph (B) 

12 amounts initially allocated under this sub13 section to a State or Indian Tribe that— 

14 (I) did not submit an application 

15 under paragraph (3); or 

16 (II) did not use the full amount 

17 allocated to the State or Indian Tribe; 

18 and 

19 (ii) distribute such sums as are nec20 essary of the funds of the Commodity 

21 Credit Corporation in addition to the 

22 amount made available under paragraph 

23 (5)(A) to States or Indian Tribes described 

24 in subparagraph (B). 


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1 (B) ADDITIONAL FUNDING.—The Sec2 retary shall distribute amounts reallocated or 

3 distributed under subparagraph (A) to States 

4 or Indian Tribes that— 

5 (i) demonstrate additional need; or 

6 (ii) have leveraged the amounts ini7 tially allocated to the State or Indian Tribe 

8 to form innovative partnerships described 

9 in paragraph (4)(D). 

10 (7) ADMINISTRATION.— 

11 (A) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

12 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

13 in clause (ii), a State or Indian Tribe re14 ceiving funding under this subsection may 

15 not use more than 8 percent for adminis16 trative expenses. 

17 (ii) WAIVER.—The Secretary may 

18 waive the requirement under clause (i) 

19 with respect to an Indian Tribe that dem20 onstrates that the administrative expenses 

21 of the Indian Tribe are greater than 8 per22 cent of the amount of funding received 

23 under this subsection. 

24 (B) NO DUPLICATION.—The combination 

25 of all purchases of eligible food or other reimVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:27 Aug 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4453.IS S4453

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1 bursements provided by a State or Indian Tribe 

2 for eligible food through a program under this 

3 subsection shall not exceed 100 percent of the 

4 food value of the eligible food. 

5 (d) FEDERAL SURPLUS FOOD REIMBURSEMENT

6 PROGRAM.— 

7 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

8 (A) ELIGIBLE EXPENSES.—The term ‘‘eli9 gible expenses’’ means harvesting, processing, 

10 packaging, cold storage prior to delivery to the 

11 eligible feeding organization, meeting food safe12 ty requirements, repacking, meal preparation, 

13 transportation, and related costs, as determined 

14 by the Secretary. 

15 (B) ELIGIBLE FOOD ORGANIZATION.—The 

16 term ‘‘eligible food organization’’ means— 

17 (i) a farming cooperative; 

18 (ii) a farmers organization, food hub, 

19 food distributor, majority-controlled pro20 ducer-based business venture (as defined in 

21 section 210A(a) of the Agricultural Mar22 keting Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1627c(a))), 

23 or other food aggregator; and 

24 (iii) a food or seafood processor. 


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1 (C) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term 

2 ‘‘eligible partnership’’ means a partnership be3 tween an eligible food organization and an eligi4 ble feeding organization (including any other 

5 entity that provides necessary services for the 

6 partnership that incurs eligible expenses) in 

7 order to prevent food waste and distribute food 

8 to individuals experiencing food insecurity. 

9 (D) PARTICIPATING PARTNERSHIP.—The 

10 term ‘‘participating partnership’’ means an eli11 gible partnership for which the Secretary has 

12 approved a reimbursement and distribution plan 

13 under paragraph (3)(B). 

14 (2) PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall carry out a 

15 Federal surplus food reimbursement program, under 

16 which the Secretary shall reimburse participating 

17 partnerships to facilitate the donation of surplus eli18 gible food in accordance with this subsection. 

19 (3) REIMBURSEMENT AND DISTRIBUTION

20 PLANS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive 

22 a reimbursement under this subsection, an eligi23 ble partnership shall submit to the Secretary a 

24 reimbursement and distribution plan that— 


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1 (i) describes the process that the eligi2 ble partnership will use to identify, obtain, 

3 harvest, process, transport, temporarily 

4 store, and distribute eligible food; 

5 (ii) includes an estimate of the quan6 tity and types of eligible food that the eli7 gible partnership will purchase and donate; 

8 (iii) describes the eligible expenses for 

9 which the eligible partnership seeks to be 

10 reimbursed; and 

11 (iv) demonstrates experience to com12 ply with the requirements of this sub13 section. 

14 (B) REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—On a rolling 

15 basis, the Secretary shall— 

16 (i) review reimbursement and distribu17 tion plans submitted under subparagraph 

18 (A); and 

19 (ii) determine whether to approve or 

20 disapprove each of those reimbursement 

21 and distribution plans. 

22 (4) REIMBURSEMENT.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—On receipt of appro24 priate documentation under subparagraph (B), 

25 the Secretary shall reimburse a participating 


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1 partnership or a member of a participating 

2 partnership that has incurred eligible expenses 

3 or donated eligible food on a regular basis for 

4 qualified expenses described in paragraph (5). 

5 (B) DOCUMENTATION.— 

6 (i) IN GENERAL.—A participating 

7 partnership shall submit to the Secretary 

8 such documentation as the Secretary may 

9 require to demonstrate the qualified ex10 penses described in paragraph (5). 

11 (ii) VERIFICATION.—The Secretary 

12 may verify the accuracy of documentation 

13 submitted under clause (i) by spot checks 

14 and audits. 

15 (C) RETROACTIVE REIMBURSEMENT.—In 

16 providing reimbursements under subparagraph 

17 (A), the Secretary may provide reimbursements 

18 for qualified expenses described in paragraph 

19 (5)— 

20 (i) incurred before the date on which 

21 the reimbursement and distribution plan 

22 for the applicable participating partnership 

23 was approved by the Secretary; and 

24 (ii) relating to purchases and dona25 tions made during the donation period. 


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1 (D) ADVANCE PAYMENT FOR ELIGIBLE EX2 PENSES.—The Secretary shall provide an ad3 vance payment on request of an eligible part4 nership in an amount equal to the lesser of— 

5 (i) 30 percent of the estimated eligible 

6 expenses of the eligible partnership during 

7 the donation period; and 

8 (ii) $1,000,000. 

9 (5) QUALIFIED EXPENSES.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.— 

11 (i) AMOUNT.—Subject to subpara12 graphs (B) and (C), the amount of a reim13 bursement under paragraph (4) shall be an 

14 amount equal to the sum obtained by add15 ing— 

16 (I) subject to clause (ii), the eli17 gible expenses of the eligible partner18 ship during the donation period; and 

19 (II) the food value of eligible food 

20 donated by the eligible partnership 

21 during the donation period. 

22 (ii) LIMITATION.—The amount of eli23 gible expenses described in clause (i)(I) 

24 shall not exceed 25 percent of the food 

25 value described in clause (i)(II). 


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1 (B) LIMITATION.—The amount of a reim2 bursement under paragraph (4)— 

3 (i) shall not exceed the amount of eli4 gible expenses that an eligible partnership 

5 incurred during the donation period; and 

6 (ii) may be limited by the Secretary 

7 based on prevailing or typical costs for 

8 each type of eligible expense. 

9 (C) NO DUPLICATION.—The combination 

10 of all payments or grants provided from all 

11 Federal sources to eligible partnership or mem12 bers of an eligible partnership to reimburse for 

13 eligible expenses or food value shall not exceed 

14 100 percent of the eligible expenses or food 

15 value. 

16 (6) CLEARINGHOUSE FOR AVAILABLE FOOD.— 

17 To support the program under this subsection, the 

18 Secretary shall establish a clearinghouse to collect 

19 information from— 

20 (A) eligible food organizations that have el21 igible food to donate; and 

22 (B) local and regional eligible feeding orga23 nizations that have capacity to receive or dis24 tribute additional eligible food. 


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1 (e) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PROGRAM.—Notwith2 standing any other provision of law, funding provided 

3 under this section may be used to meet matching funds 

4 or cost share requirements for any other Federal program. 

5 (f) PROHIBITION ON RESALE OF PRODUCTS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible feeding organiza7 tion that receives eligible food donated under this 

8 section may not sell the eligible food back into a 

9 commercial market. 

10 (2) PROHIBITION ON FUTURE PARTICIPA11 TION.—An eligible feeding organization that the Sec12 retary determines has violated paragraph (1) shall 

13 not be eligible for any future participation in the 

14 programs established under this section. 

15 (g) ADMINISTRATION.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall publicize 

17 opportunities to participate in the programs estab18 lished under this section. 

19 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—The Sec20 retary may use for administrative expenses not more 

21 than 3 percent of the funds made available to carry 

22 out this section. 

23 (3) OUTREACH.—The Secretary shall ensure 

24 that farmers and ranchers who are minorities, 

25 women, young, or veterans, and any eligible feeding 


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1 organizations that serve those farmers and ranchers 

2 or food insecure populations, are informed of oppor3 tunities through the programs under this section. 

4 (h) REVIEWS.—The Secretary shall conduct appro5 priate reviews or audits to ensure the integrity of the pro6 grams established under this section. 

7 (i) REPORTS.— 

8 (1) STATE AND TRIBAL SURPLUS FOOD PUR9 CHASE PROGRAM.—Every 30 days, the Secretary 

10 shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri11 tion, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee 

12 on Agriculture of the House of Representatives a re13 port describing, with respect to the State and Tribal 

14 surplus food purchase program under subsection 

15 (c)— 

16 (A) the funding made available to States 

17 and Indian Tribes; and 

18 (B) a summary of the reviews or audits 

19 conducted by the Secretary under subsection 

20 (h), including a description of— 

21 (i) each review or audit conducted; 

22 and 

23 (ii) the findings of each review or 

24 audit conducted. 


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1 (2) FEDERAL SURPLUS FOOD REIMBURSEMENT

2 PROGRAM.—Every 30 days, the Secretary shall sub3 mit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

4 Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Agri5 culture of the House of Representatives a report de6 scribing, with respect to the Federal surplus food re7 imbursement program under subsection (d)— 

8 (A) payments made under that program— 

9 (i) by participating partnership (as 

10 defined in subsection (d)(1)); and 

11 (ii) by State; and 

12 (B) a summary of the reviews or audits 

13 conducted by the Secretary under subsection 

14 (h), including a description of— 

15 (i) each review or audit conducted; 

16 and 

17 (ii) the findings of each review or 

18 audit conducted. 

19 (j) FUNDING.—In addition to the funds made avail20 able under paragraphs (5)(A) and (6)(A)(ii) of subsection 

21 (c), of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, 

22 the Secretary shall use such sums as are necessary to 

23 carry out this section. 

24 SEC. 5. FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN GRANTS AND LOANS. 

25 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) CUSTOM ESTABLISHMENT.—The term ‘‘cus2 tom establishment’’ means a very small or custom 

3 establishment that is exempt from inspection re4 quirements under the Federal Meat Inspection Act 

5 (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) pursuant to section 23 of 

6 that Act (21 U.S.C. 623). 

7 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti8 ty’’ means— 

9 (A) a small or midsized food processor or 

10 distributor (including a manufacturer, food hub, 

11 custom establishment, seafood processing facil12 ity, seafood processing vessel, business coopera13 tive, and food service provider) with fewer than 

14 1,500 employees; 

15 (B) a sole proprietor food business; 

16 (C) a producer, an agricultural producer 

17 group, a producer cooperative, or a majority18 controlled producer-based business venture (as 

19 defined in section 210A(a) of the Agricultural 

20 Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1627c(a))); 

21 (D) a farmers market; 

22 (E) a farm labor contractor or farm work23 er organization; 

24 (F) a food or seafood processing facility, or 

25 a seafood processing vessel, in a noncontiguous 


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1 State or territory of the United States that re2 lies on the mobilization of out-of-State or out3 of-territory employees; and 

4 (G) such other similar entities, as deter5 mined by the Secretary. 

6 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

8 a program to provide temporary assistance to eligi9 ble entities to address and respond to the COVID– 

10 19 emergency within the food supply chain through 

11 the provision of grants under subsection (d), direct 

12 loans under subsection (e), and guaranteed loans in 

13 accordance with subsection (f) to eligible entities in 

14 accordance with this section. 

15 (2) MULTIPLE FINANCING TOOLS.—An eligible 

16 entity may receive not more than 1 grant, 1 direct 

17 loan, and 1 guaranteed loan under this section. 

18 (c) PURPOSE AND USES OF ASSISTANCE.—An eligi19 ble entity that receives a grant, direct loan, or guaranteed 

20 loan under this section shall use the amounts received 

21 under the grant, direct loan, or guaranteed loan for the 

22 purpose of responding to the COVID–19 emergency by 

23 building flexibility into the food supply chain and 

24 incentivizing creative economic solutions to strengthen the 

25 farm and seafood economies and agricultural and fishing 


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1 communities, protect workers, and minimize food waste 

2 through any of the following uses: 

3 (1) Retooling processing lines. 

4 (2) Purchasing packaging materials and food 

5 labels. 

6 (3) Developing new food products to meet a 

7 change in demand. 

8 (4) Converting industrial-sized products to con9 sumer-sized products. 

10 (5) Upgrading technology, software, and com11 puters. 

12 (6) Purchasing or leasing temporary space or 

13 holding pens, dry or cold storage, equipment, or 

14 transportation services or equipment. 

15 (7) Developing and disseminating educational 

16 materials relating to COVID–19 protective meas17 ures. 

18 (8) Purchasing test kits or equipment to screen 

19 the body temperature of employees for the presence 

20 of COVID–19, disinfectant, sanitation systems, or 

21 hand washing stations. 

22 (9) Purchasing and decontaminating personal 

23 protective equipment. 

24 (10) Providing other measures to protect work25 ers against, or aid in preventing the spread of, 


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1 COVID–19, including providing for worker transpor2 tation, housing, and childcare. 

3 (11) In the case of a grant under subsection 

4 (d), repaying— 

5 (A) a direct loan made under subsection 

6 (e); or 

7 (B) a loan guaranteed in accordance with 

8 subsection (f). 

9 (d) GRANTS.— 

10 (1) APPLICATIONS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity desir12 ing to receive a grant under this subsection 

13 shall submit to the Secretary an application in 

14 accordance with an application process estab15 lished by the Secretary. 

16 (B) SIMPLIFIED APPLICATION PROCESS.— 

17 In establishing the application process under 

18 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall establish 

19 a simplified, separate application process for eli20 gible entities requesting less than $100,000 in 

21 grants. 

22 (2) REQUIREMENT.—Subject to paragraphs (3) 

23 and (4), the Secretary shall provide grants under 

24 this subsection in the order in which the Secretary 


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1 receives applications submitted in accordance with 

2 paragraph (1). 

3 (3) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give pri4 ority to applications submitted under paragraph (1) 

5 that include, at least in part, the use of the grant 

6 amount for purchases described in paragraphs (8) 

7 and (9) of subsection (c). 

8 (4) RESERVATION.—Of the amount made avail9 able for grants under this section, 10 percent shall 

10 be reserved for grants provided to beginning, vet11 eran, or socially disadvantaged farmers, fishers, 

12 ranchers, or businesses. 

13 (5) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a 

14 grant under this subsection shall be not more than 

15 $2,500,000. 

16 (e) RAPID RESPONSE DIRECT LOANS.— 

17 (1) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible entity desiring 

18 to receive a direct loan under this subsection shall 

19 submit to the Secretary an application in accordance 

20 with an application process established by the Sec21 retary in accordance with this subsection. 

22 (2) PROVISION OF AMOUNTS.—Subject to para23 graph (3), not later than 3 business days after the 

24 date on which the Secretary receives an application 

25 in accordance with paragraph (1), the Secretary 


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1 shall provide the amount under the applicable direct 

2 loan to the applicable eligible entity. 

3 (3) VERIFICATION; REQUIREMENTS.— 

4 (A) VERIFICATION.—Before providing 

5 amounts under paragraph (2), the Secretary 

6 shall verify that the applicant is an eligible enti7 ty by accepting a self-certification from the ap8 plicant under penalty of perjury pursuant to 

9 section 1746 of title 28, United States Code. 

10 (B) BASIS OF APPROVAL.—The Secretary 

11 may approve an applicant for a direct loan 

12 under this subsection based solely on— 

13 (i) the credit score of the applicant; or 

14 (ii) the verification under subpara15 graph (A). 

16 (C) UNDERWRITING REQUIREMENTS.—The 

17 Secretary shall not require an applicant for a 

18 direct loan under this subsection— 

19 (i) to submit a tax return or a tax re20 turn transcript for approval; or 

21 (ii) to provide collateral or a personal 

22 guarantee. 

23 (D) INTEREST RATE.—The interest rate 

24 for a direct loan under this subsection shall be 

25 2.375 percent. 


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1 (E) FEE WAIVER.—Any otherwise applica2 ble fees shall not be required for a direct loan 

3 under this subsection. 

4 (4) CERTAIN APPLICANTS.—To the extent prac5 ticable, notwithstanding paragraph (3)(B)(i), the 

6 Secretary shall accept applicants with lower credit 

7 scores, as necessary to ensure that eligible entities 

8 that are socially disadvantaged, small businesses, or 

9 located in underserved communities that have a high 

10 poverty rate have an opportunity to receive a direct 

11 loan under this subsection. 

12 (5) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a di13 rect loan under this subsection shall be not more 

14 than $50,000. 

15 (f) GUARANTEED LOANS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may guar17 antee a loan under subsections (a)(2)(A) and (g) of 

18 section 310B of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 

19 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932) to an eligible enti20 ty that verifies that the amounts under the loan will 

21 be used for— 

22 (A) the purpose described in subsection 

23 (c); and 

24 (B) any of the uses described in para25 graphs (1) through (10) of that subsection. 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—Notwithstanding any 

2 otherwise applicable requirements under subsections 

3 (a)(2)(A) and (g) of section 310B of the Consoli4 dated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 

5 1932), the following provisions shall apply to guar6 anteed loans under this subsection: 

7 (A) NONAPPLICABILITY OF RURAL RE8 QUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall guarantee 

9 loans under this subsection without regard to 

10 any requirement under any other provision of 

11 law that an eligible entity be located in, or 

12 serve, a rural area. 

13 (B) 1-TIME FEE.—Notwithstanding section 

14 310B(g)(5) of the Consolidated Farm and 

15 Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(g)(5)), 

16 the Secretary may assess a 1-time fee for a 

17 guaranteed loan under this subsection in an 

18 amount that does not exceed 1 percent of the 

19 guaranteed principal portion of the loan. 

20 (C) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a 

21 loan guarantee under this subsection shall be 

22 not more than— 

23 (i) 100 percent of the amount of a 

24 loan that is not more than $5,000,000; 

25 and 


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1 (ii) 90 percent of the amount of a 

2 loan that is more than $5,000,000 and not 

3 more than $25,000,000. 

4 (D) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not 

5 guarantee a loan under this subsection that is 

6 more than $25,000,000. 

7 (E) INTEREST RATE.—The interest rate 

8 for a loan guaranteed under this subsection 

9 shall be not more than 4 percent. 

10 (F) OTHER FEES.—Except as provided in 

11 subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall waive 

12 any otherwise applicable fees for a loan guaran13 teed under this subsection, including— 

14 (i) an initial guarantee fee (other than 

15 the fee described in subparagraph (B)) 

16 that is paid at the time the loan note guar17 antee is issued; 

18 (ii) an annual renewal fee on the out19 standing balance of a loan guarantee; and 

20 (iii) any customary borrower or lender 

21 fees. 

22 (G) WORKING CAPITAL LOANS.—In the 

23 case of a guaranteed loan under this subsection 

24 for the financing of working capital— 


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1 (i) the Secretary shall waive any oth2 erwise applicable collateral requirements; 

3 and 

4 (ii) the maximum term of the loan 

5 shall be 10 years. 

6 (H) UNDERWRITING REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 The Secretary shall waive the following under8 writing requirements for loans guaranteed 

9 under this subsection: 

10 (i) Any required feasibility studies by 

11 independent consultants. 

12 (ii) Any requirements for applicants 

13 to provide a tangible balance sheet equity 

14 position of 10 percent or more for existing 

15 businesses at loan closing or project com16 pletion. 

17 (g) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—The Sec18 retary shall award competitive grants to land-grant col19 leges and universities, local offices of the Cooperative Ex20 tension System, State departments of agriculture, and 

21 other technical service providers to provide to eligible enti22 ties technical assistance, rapid training, and outreach to 

23 develop new food products or adjust business models to 

24 respond to the COVID–19 emergency. 


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1 (h) EXPIRATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority of 

2 the Secretary to provide a grant, direct loan, or guaran3 teed loan under this section shall remain available until 

4 the date on which the COVID–19 emergency is lifted. 

5 (i) FUNDING.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Of the funds of the Com7 modity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use 

8 $5,500,000,000 to carry out this section. 

9 (2) GRANTS.—Of the amount made available 

10 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall use 

11 $2,000,000,000 to provide grants under subsection 

12 (d). 

13 (3) RAPID RESPONSE DIRECT LOANS.—Of the 

14 amount made available under paragraph (1), the 

15 Secretary shall use $1,000,000,000 to provide direct 

16 loans under subsection (e). 

17 (4) GUARANTEED LOANS.—Of the amount 

18 made available under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

19 shall use $2,500,000,000 to guarantee loans under 

20 subsection (f). 

21 (5) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—Of the 

22 amount made available under paragraph (2), the 

23 Secretary shall use 5 percent to carry out subsection 

24 (g). 


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1 SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The administration of this Act, 

3 including the promulgation of regulations to carry out this 

4 Act, shall be without regard to— 

5 (1) the notice and comment provisions of sec6 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code; and 

7 (2) chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code. 

8 (b) AUTHORITIES.—The authorities in this Act are 

9 in addition to other authorities of, and amounts adminis10 tered by, the Secretary. 

Æ 


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