I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2195

To establish limits on Commodity Credit Corporation farm and export expenditures for the 1996 through 2002 crop years, to authorize the use

of market transition contracts to support farming certainty and flexibility

and ensure continued compliance with farm conservation compliance

plans and wetland protection, to make marketing assistance loans available for certain crops, to establish a commission to examine the future

of production agriculture, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

AUGUST 4, 1995

Mr. ROBERTS (for himself, Mr. BARRETT of Nebraska, Mr. BOEHNER, Mr.

HOSTETTLER, and Mr. SMITH of Michigan) introduced the following bill;

which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

A BILL

To establish limits on Commodity Credit Corporation farm

and export expenditures for the 1996 through 2002 crop

years, to authorize the use of market transition contracts

to support farming certainty and flexibility and ensure

continued compliance with farm conservation compliance

plans and wetland protection, to make marketing assistance loans available for certain crops, to establish a

commission to examine the future of production agriculture, 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 ‘‘Freedom to Farm Act of 1995’’.

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

5 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

TITLE I—COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION FARM

EXPENDITURES

Sec. 101. Total and annual limits on Commodity Credit Corporation farm and

export expenditures for 1996 through 2002 crop years.

TITLE II—ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF FARMING UNDER

AGRICULTURAL ACT OF 1949

Sec. 201. Seven-year contracts to improve farming certainty and flexibility.

Sec. 202. Availability of nonrecourse marketing assistance loans for wheat, feed

grains, cotton, rice, and oilseeds.

Sec. 203. Reform of payment limitation provisions of Food Security Act of

1985.

TITLE III—COMMISSION ON 21ST CENTURY PRODUCTION

AGRICULTURE

Sec. 301. Establishment.

Sec. 302. Composition.

Sec. 303. Comprehensive review of past and future of production agriculture.

Sec. 304. Reports.

Sec. 305. Powers.

Sec. 306. Commission procedures.

Sec. 307. Personnel matters.

Sec. 308. Termination of Commission.

TITLE IV—SUSPENSION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS

REGARDING PROGRAM CROPS

Sec. 401. Wheat.

Sec. 402. Feed grains.

Sec. 403. Cotton.
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1 TITLE I—COMMODITY CREDIT

2 CORPORATION FARM EX3 PENDITURES

4 SEC. 101. TOTAL AND ANNUAL LIMITS ON COMMODITY

5 CREDIT CORPORATION FARM AND EXPORT

6 EXPENDITURES FOR 1996 THROUGH 2002

7 CROP YEARS.

8 Section 102 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C.

9 1443), which is obsolete, is amended to read as follows:

10 ‘‘SEC. 102. TOTAL AND ANNUAL LIMITS ON COMMODITY

11 CREDIT CORPORATION FARM AND EXPORT

12 EXPENDITURES FOR 1996 THROUGH 2002

13 CROP YEARS.

14 ‘‘(a) FARM PROGRAMS DEFINED.—For purposes of

15 this section, the term ‘farm programs’ means the following

16 programs and activities funded through the Commodity

17 Credit Corporation:

18 ‘‘(1) Market transition contracts under section

19 102A.

20 ‘‘(2) Marketing assistance loans for wheat, feed

21 grains, upland cotton, extra long staple cotton, rice,

22 and oilseeds under section 102B.

23 ‘‘(3) Price support activities conducted under

24 this Act for milk, peanuts, sugar, and other agricul25 tural commodities.
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1 ‘‘(b) TOTAL EXPENDITURES.—Total Commodity

2 Credit Corporation expenditures in support of farm pro3 grams and export programs for the 1996 through 2002

4 crop years may not exceed $43,200,000,000.

5 ‘‘(c) TOTAL EXPENDITURES PER CROP YEAR.—Be6 ginning in fiscal year 1996, the Secretary shall expend,

7 to the maximum extent practicable, on a fiscal year basis

8 the following amounts in support of farm programs and

9 export programs:

10 ‘‘(1) For the 1996 crop year, $7,600,000,000.

11 ‘‘(2) For the 1997 crop year, $6,670,000,000.

12 ‘‘(3) For the 1998 crop year, $6,520,000,000.

13 ‘‘(4) For the 1999 crop year, $6,300,000,000.

14 ‘‘(5) For the 2000 crop year, $6,070,000,000.

15 ‘‘(6) For the 2001 crop year, $5,060,000,000.

16 ‘‘(7) For the 2002 crop year, $4,960,000,000.’’.

17 TITLE II—ACTIVITIES IN SUP18 PORT OF FARMING UNDER

19 AGRICULTURAL ACT OF 1949

20 SEC. 201. SEVEN-YEAR CONTRACTS TO IMPROVE FARMING

21 CERTAINTY AND FLEXIBILITY.

22 (a) CONTRACTS AUTHORIZED.—The Agricultural Act

23 of 1949 is amended by inserting after section 102 (7

24 U.S.C. 1443), as amended by section 101 of this Act, the

25 following new section:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 102A. SEVEN-YEAR MARKET TRANSITION CON2 TRACTS.

3 ‘‘(a) CONTRACTS AUTHORIZED.—

4 ‘‘(1) OFFER AND MAIN TERMS.—Beginning as

5 soon as possible after the date of the enactment of

6 this section, the Secretary shall offer to enter into

7 a market transition contract with willing producers

8 on a farm containing eligible farmland. Under the

9 terms of a market transition contract, the producers

10 shall agree, in exchange for annual payments under

11 the contract, to comply with the conservation compli12 ance plan for the farm prepared in accordance with

13 section 1212 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16

14 U.S.C. 3812) and wetland protection requirements

15 applicable to the farm under subtitle C of title XII

16 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3821 et seq.).

17 ‘‘(2) TIME FOR CONTRACTING.—

18 ‘‘(A) DEADLINE.—Except as provided in

19 subparagraph (B), the Secretary may not enter

20 into a market transition contract after April 15,

21 1996.

22 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR CONSERVATION

23 RESERVE LANDS.—The producers on a farm

24 covered by a conservation reserve contract

25 under section 1231 of the Food Security Act of

26 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831) expiring after April 15,
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1 1996, may enter into or expand a market tran2 sition contract, within 90 days after the expira3 tion of the conservation reserve contract, to

4 cover the eligible farmland that was subject to

5 the conservation reserve contract.

6 ‘‘(3) DURATION OF CONTRACT.—The term of

7 each market transition contract shall—

8 ‘‘(A) begin with the 1996 crop year, or the

9 crop year in which the contract is entered into

10 in the case of a contract entered into after

11 April 15, 1996; and

12 ‘‘(B) extend through the 2002 crop year.

13 ‘‘(4) ESTIMATION OF PAYMENTS.—At the time

14 the Secretary enters into a market transition con15 tract, the Secretary shall provide an estimate of the

16 minimum payments anticipated to be made under

17 the contract for at least the first crop year covered

18 by the contract. If the actual payment under the

19 contract for the first year is more than five percent

20 less than the estimated payment, the producer may

21 terminate the contract without penalty.

22 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE FARMLAND DESCRIBED.—Land shall

23 be considered to be farmland eligible for coverage under

24 a market transition contract only if the land has crop acre25 age base attributable to the land and—
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1 ‘‘(1) for at least three of the 1991 through

2 1995 crop years, served as the basis for deficiency

3 payments for rice, upland cotton, feed grains, or

4 wheat under section 101B, 103B, 105B, or 107B or

5 was included in the cropland affected by the 15 per6 cent reduction in payment acres required under

7 these sections;

8 ‘‘(2) was subject to a conservation reserve con9 tract under section 1231 of the Food Security Act

10 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831) whose term expired on or

11 after January 1, 1995; or

12 ‘‘(3) is released from coverage under a con13 servation reserve contract, either through buy out of

14 the contract or at the discretion of the Secretary,

15 during the period beginning on January 1, 1995,

16 and ending on April 15, 1996.

17 ‘‘(c) TIME FOR PAYMENT.—Payments under a mar18 ket transition contract shall be made not later than Octo19 ber 15 of each year covered by the contract, except that,

20 in the case of payments for crop years 1997 through 2002,

21 half of the annual payment may be provided in advance

22 not later than March 15 of the same year at the option

23 of the producer.

24 ‘‘(d) DETERMINATION OF TOTAL AMOUNTS AVAIL25 ABLE FOR PAYMENTS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) CONTRACT COMMODITY DEFINED.—For

2 purposes of this subsection and subsection (e), the

3 term ‘contract commodity’ means rice, upland cot4 ton, feed grains, or wheat.

5 ‘‘(2) HISTORIC EXPENDITURE LEVELS.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each contract

7 commodity, the Secretary shall calculate the

8 total expenditures that were made for the 1991

9 through 1995 crops of that contract commodity

10 under section 101B, 103B, 105B, or 107B, in11 cluding expenditures in the form of deficiency

12 payments, loan deficiency payments and gains

13 realized from repaying loans at a level less than

14 the original level, and marketing certificates.

15 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR 1996.—For pur16 poses of applying paragraph (1) for the 1996

17 crop year, the Secretary may use an estimate of

18 expenditures under section 101B, 103B, 105B,

19 or 107B for the 1995 crop of each contract

20 commodity. The Secretary shall base such esti21 mate on information contained in the Presi22 dent’s budget for fiscal year 1997 submitted to

23 the Congress under section 1105 of title 31,

24 United States Code.
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1 ‘‘(3) AMOUNTS AVAILABLE FOR 1996 THROUGH

2 2002 CROP YEARS.—The amount available for a crop

3 year for payments with respect to crop acreage base

4 of a contract commodity included in market transi5 tion contracts shall be equal to the product of—

6 ‘‘(A) the ratio of the amount calculated

7 under paragraph (2) for that contract commod8 ity to the total amount calculated for all con9 tract commodities under such paragraph; and

10 ‘‘(B) the portion of the amount specified in

11 section 102(c) that is available for expenditure

12 for that crop year in support of market transi13 tion contracts in effect for that crop year.

14 ‘‘(e) DETERMINATION OF PAYMENTS UNDER PAR15 TICULAR CONTRACT.—

16 ‘‘(1) INDIVIDUAL PRODUCTION OF CONTRACT

17 COMMODITIES.—For each market transition con18 tract, the amount of production of a contract com19 modity covered by the contract shall be equal to the

20 product of—

21 ‘‘(A) the crop acreage base of that contract

22 commodity attributable to the eligible farmland

23 subject to the contract; and

24 ‘‘(B) the farm program payment yield in

25 effect for the 1995 crop of that contract com-
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1 modity for the farm containing that eligible

2 farmland.

3 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL TOTAL PRODUCTION OF CON4 TRACT COMMODITIES.—For each of the 1996

5 through 2002 crop years, the total production of

6 each contract commodity covered by all market tran7 sition contracts shall be equal to the sum of the

8 amounts calculated under paragraph (1) for each in9 dividual market transition contract in effect for that

10 crop year.

11 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL PAYMENT RATE.—The payment

12 rate for a contract commodity for a crop year shall

13 be equal to—

14 ‘‘(A) the amount made available under

15 subsection (d)(3) for that contract commodity

16 for that crop year; divided by

17 ‘‘(B) the amount determined under para18 graph (2) for that crop year.

19 ‘‘(4) ANNUAL PAYMENT AMOUNT.—For each of

20 the 1996 through 2002 crop years, the amount to be

21 paid under a particular market transition contract

22 for a crop year with respect to a contract commodity

23 shall be equal to the product of—
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1 ‘‘(A) the amount determined under para2 graph (1) for that contract for that contract

3 commodity; and

4 ‘‘(B) the payment rate in effect under

5 paragraph (3) for that crop year for that con6 tract commodity.

7 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF PAY8 MENT.—The total amount of payments made to a person

9 under a market transition contract for any year may not

10 exceed $50,000. The Secretary shall issue regulations de11 fining the term ‘person’ as used in this subsection, which

12 shall conform, to the extent practicable, to the regulations

13 defining the term ‘person’ issued under section 1001 of

14 the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308). In the

15 case of payments under a market transition contract pro16 vided to corporations and other persons described in para17 graph (5)(B)(i)(II) of such section, the Secretary shall

18 comply with the attribution requirements specified in

19 paragraph (5)(C) of such section.

20 ‘‘(g) EFFECT OF VIOLATION.—

21 ‘‘(1) TERMINATION OF CONTRACT.—If the Sec22 retary determines that a producer on a farm con23 taining eligible farmland subject to a market transi24 tion contract is in violation, or has violated, the con25 servation compliance plan for the farm containing
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1 the eligible farmland or wetland protection require2 ments applicable to the farm, the Secretary may ter3 minate the market transition contract with respect

4 to that producer. Upon such termination, the pro5 ducer shall forfeit all rights to receive future pay6 ments under the contract and shall refund to the

7 Secretary all payments under the contract received

8 by the producer during the period of the violation,

9 together with interest thereon as determined by the

10 Secretary.

11 ‘‘(2) REFUND OR ADJUSTMENT.—If the Sec12 retary determines that a violation of a market tran13 sition contract does not warrant termination of the

14 contract under paragraph (1), the Secretary may re15 quire the producer—

16 ‘‘(A) to refund to the Secretary that part

17 of the payments received by the producer dur18 ing the period of the violation, together with in19 terest thereon as determined by the Secretary;

20 or

21 ‘‘(B) to accept an adjustment in the

22 amount of future payments otherwise required

23 under the contract.

24 ‘‘(3) FORECLOSURE.—A producer who is a

25 party to a market transition contract may not be re-
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1 quired to make repayments to the Secretary of

2 amounts received under the contract if the eligible

3 farm land that is subject to the contract has been

4 foreclosed upon and the Secretary determines that

5 forgiving such repayments is appropriate in order to

6 provide fair and equitable treatment. This paragraph

7 shall not void the responsibilities of such a producer

8 under the contract if the producer continues or re9 sumes operations or to exercise control over the

10 property that is subject to the contract within the

11 period specified in the contract. Upon the resump12 tion of operation or control over the property by the

13 producer, the provisions of the contract in effect on

14 the date of the foreclosure shall apply.

15 ‘‘(4) REVIEW.—A determination of the Sec16 retary under this subsection shall be considered to

17 be an adverse decision for purposes of the availabil18 ity of review of the determination by the National

19 Appeals Division under subtitle H of title II of the

20 Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of

21 Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C.

22 6991 et seq.).

23 ‘‘(h) TRANSFER OF INTEREST IN LANDS SUBJECT

24 TO CONTRACT.—
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1 ‘‘(1) EFFECT OF TRANSFER.—Except as pro2 vided in paragraph (2), the transfer of the right and

3 interest of a producer in eligible farmland subject to

4 a market transition contract shall result in the ter5 mination of the contract with respect to that farm6 land, effective on the date of the transfer, unless the

7 transferee of the land agrees with the Secretary to

8 assume all obligations of the contract. At the request

9 of the transferee, the Secretary may modify the con10 tract if the modifications are consistent with the ob11 jectives of this section as determined by the Sec12 retary.

13 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—If a producer who is entitled

14 to a payment under a market transition contract

15 dies, becomes incompetent, or is otherwise unable to

16 receive such payment, the Secretary shall make such

17 payment, in accordance with regulations prescribed

18 by the Secretary and without regard to any other

19 provision of law, in such manner as the Secretary

20 determines is fair and reasonable in light of all of

21 the circumstances.

22 ‘‘(i) PLANTING FLEXIBILITY.—

23 ‘‘(1) PERMITTED CROPS.—In the case of acre24 age on a farm that serves as the basis for payments
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1 under a market transition contract, producers on the

2 farm may plant for harvest on the acreage—

3 ‘‘(A) rice, upland cotton, feed grains, and

4 wheat;

5 ‘‘(B) any oilseed;

6 ‘‘(C) any industrial or experimental crop

7 designated by the Secretary;

8 ‘‘(D) any other crop, except any fruit or

9 vegetable crop (including potatoes and dry edi10 ble beans) unless such fruit or vegetable crop is

11 designated by the Secretary as—

12 ‘‘(i) an industrial or experimental

13 crop; or

14 ‘‘(ii) a crop for which no substantial

15 domestic production or market exists; and

16 ‘‘(E) mung beans.

17 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION.—With regard to commod18 ities that may be planted pursuant to this sub19 section, the Secretary shall make a determination in

20 each crop year of the commodities that may not be

21 planted pursuant to this subsection and shall make

22 available a list of the commodities.

23 ‘‘(3) CONSERVATION USES.—In lieu of planting

24 any crop specified in paragraph (1), the producers

25 on a farm may devote to conservation uses all or
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1 part of the eligible farmland subject to a market

2 transition contract, in accordance with regulations

3 issued by the Secretary.’’.

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

5 (1) WHEAT 0/85 PROGRAM.—Section

6 107B(c)(1)(E) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7

7 U.S.C. 1445b–3a(c)(1)(E)) is amended by striking

8 ‘‘through 1997’’ in clauses (i) and (vii) each place

9 it appears and inserting ‘‘and 1995’’.

10 (2) FEED GRAINS 0/85 PROGRAM.—Section

11 105B(c)(1)(E) of such Act (7 U.S.C.

12 1444f(c)(1)(E)) is amended by striking ‘‘through

13 1997’’ in clauses (i) and (vii) each place it appears

14 and inserting ‘‘and 1995’’.

15 (3) COTTON PROGRAM.—Section 103B of such

16 Act (7 U.S.C. 1444–2) is amended—

17 (A) in the section heading, by striking

18 ‘‘1997’’ and inserting ‘‘1995’’;

19 (B) in subsections (a)(1), (b)(1), (c)(1)(A),

20 (c)(1)(B)(ii), and (o), by striking ‘‘1997’’ each

21 place it appears and inserting ‘‘1995’’;

22 (C) in subsections (c)(1)(D)(i) and

23 (c)(1)(D)(v)(II) by striking ‘‘through 1997’’

24 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘and 1995’’;
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1 (D) in the heading of subsection

2 (c)(1)(D)(v)(II), by striking ‘‘THROUGH 1997

3 CROPS’’ and inserting ‘‘AND 1995 CROPS’’;

4 (E) in subsection (e)(1)(D), by striking

‘‘291 5 ⁄2 percent for each of the 1995 and 1996

6 crops, and 29 percent for the 1997 crop’’ and

inserting ‘‘and 291 7 ⁄2 percent for the 1995

8 crop’’; and

9 (F) in subparagraphs (B)(i), (D)(i), (E)(i),

10 and (F)(i) of subsection (a)(5), by striking

11 ‘‘1998’’ each place it appears and inserting

12 ‘‘1996’’.

13 (4) RICE 50/85 PROGRAM.—Section 101B of

14 such Act (7 U.S.C. 1441–2) is amended—

15 (A) in subsections (c)(1)(D)(i) and

16 (c)(1)(D)(v)(II), by striking ‘‘through 1997’’

17 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘and 1995’’;

18 and

19 (B) in the heading of subsection

20 (c)(1)(D)(v)(II), by striking ‘‘THROUGH 1997

21 CROPS’’ and inserting ‘‘AND 1995 CROPS’’.

22 (5) CROP ACREAGE BASE.—Section 509 of such

23 Act (7 U.S.C. 1469) is amended by striking ‘‘effec24 tive only for the 1991 through 1997 program crops’’

25 and inserting ‘‘effective only until January 1, 1996’’.
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1 SEC. 202. AVAILABILITY OF NONRECOURSE MARKETING AS2 SISTANCE LOANS FOR WHEAT, FEED GRAINS,

3 COTTON, RICE, AND OILSEEDS.

4 (a) NONRECOURSE LOANS AVAILABLE.—The Agri5 cultural Act of 1949 is amended by inserting after section

6 102A, as added by section 201 of this Act, the following

7 new section:

8 ‘‘SEC. 102B. NONRECOURSE MARKETING ASSISTANCE

9 LOANS FOR CERTAIN CROPS.

10 ‘‘(a) NONRECOURSE LOANS AVAILABLE.—For each

11 of the 1996 through 2002 crops of wheat, feed grains, up12 land cotton, extra long staple cotton, rice, and oilseeds,

13 the Secretary shall make available to eligible producers on

14 a farm nonrecourse marketing assistance loans under

15 terms and conditions that are prescribed by the Secretary

16 and at a loan rate calculated under subsection (b). A mar17 keting assistance loan shall have a term of nine months

18 beginning on the first day of the first month after the

19 month in which the loan is made. The Secretary may not

20 extend the term of a marketing assistance loan.

21 ‘‘(b) ANNOUNCEMENT OF LOAN RATE.—The Sec22 retary shall announce the loan rate for each commodity

23 specified in subsection (a) not later than the start of the

24 marketing year of the commodity for which the loan rate

25 is to be in effect.

26 ‘‘(c) CALCULATION OF LOAN RATE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) CALCULATION.—Subject to adjustment

2 under paragraph (2), the loan rate for marketing as3 sistance loans under subsection (a) for a particular

4 commodity specified in such subsection shall be

5 equal to 70 percent of the simple average price re6 ceived by producers of that commodity during the

7 marketing years for the immediately preceding five

8 crops of that commodity.

9 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED BUDGETARY ADJUSTMENTS.—

10 If the Secretary estimates for one of the marketing

11 years for the 1996 through 2002 crops of a particu12 lar commodity specified in subsection (a) that the

13 average price to be received by producers of that

14 commodity is likely to be less that the loan rate cal15 culated under paragraph (1) for that marketing

16 year, the Secretary shall reduce the loan rate for

17 that commodity for that marketing year by an

18 amount sufficient to enable the Secretary to provide

19 marketing assistance loans at no net cost to the

20 Federal Government by preventing the accumulation

21 of that commodity by the Commodity Credit Cor22 poration through loan forfeitures.

23 ‘‘(3) SIMPLE AVERAGE PRICE.—The Secretary

24 shall be responsible for determining the simple aver25 age price received by producers of a commodity spec-
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1 ified in subsection (a). In determining the simple av2 erage price a commodity for a five-year period, the

3 Secretary shall exclude the year in which the average

4 price was the highest and the year in which the av5 erage price was the lowest during the period.

6 ‘‘(d) ADJUSTMENTS FOR GRADE, TYPE, QUALITY,

7 LOCATION, AND OTHER FACTORS.—The Secretary may

8 make such adjustments in the announced loan rate for a

9 commodity specified in subsection (a) as the Secretary

10 considers appropriate to reflect differences in grade, type,

11 quality, location, and other factors.

12 ‘‘(e) PRODUCERS ELIGIBLE FOR LOANS.—Only the

13 following producers shall be eligible for a marketing assist14 ance loan under this section:

15 ‘‘(1) In the case of a marketing assistance loan

16 for a crop of wheat, feed grains (other than rye), up17 land cotton, extra long staple cotton, or rice, a pro18 ducer whose land on which the crop is raised is sub19 ject to a market transition contract under section

20 102A.

21 ‘‘(2) In the case of a marketing assistance loan

22 for a crop of rye or oilseeds, any producer.

23 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:

24 ‘‘(1) The term ‘feed grains’ means corn, grain

25 sorghums, barley, oats, and rye.
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1 ‘‘(2) The term ‘oilseeds’ means soybeans, sun2 flower seed, rapeseed, canola, safflower, flaxseed,

3 mustard seed, and, if designated by the Secretary,

4 other oilseeds.’’.

5 (b) REPEAL OF FARMER OWNED RESERVE PRO6 GRAM.—Section 110 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7

7 U.S.C. 1445e) is repealed. The repeal of such section shall

8 not affect the validity or terms and conditions of any ex9 tended price support loan provided under such section be10 fore the date of the enactment of this Act.

11 (c) REPEAL OF CURRENT ADJUSTMENT AUTHOR12 ITY.—Section 403 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7

13 U.S.C. 1423) is repealed.

14 SEC. 203. REFORM OF PAYMENT LIMITATION PROVISIONS

15 OF FOOD SECURITY ACT OF 1985.

16 (a) ATTRIBUTION OF PAYMENTS MADE TO CORPORA17 TIONS AND OTHER ENTITIES.—Section 1001(5)(C) of the

18 Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308(5)(C)) is

19 amended to read as follows:

20 ‘‘(C)(i) In the case of payments to corporations and

21 other entities described in subparagraph (B)(i)(II), the

22 Secretary shall attribute payments to individuals in pro23 portion to their ownership interests in the corporation or

24 entity receiving the payment or in any other corporation

25 or entity that has a substantial beneficial interest in the
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1 corporation or entity actually receiving the payment. This

2 subparagraph shall apply to individuals who hold or ac3 quire, directly or through another corporation or entity,

4 a substantial beneficial interest in the corporation or en5 tity actually receiving the payment.’’.

6 ‘‘(ii) In the case of payments to corporations and

7 other entities described in subparagraph (B)(i)(II), the

8 Secretary shall also attribute payments to any State (or

9 political subdivision or agency thereof) or other corpora10 tion or entity that has a substantial beneficial interest in

11 the corporation or entity actually receiving the payment

12 in proportion to their ownership interests in the corpora13 tion or entity receiving the payment. This subparagraph

14 shall apply even if the payments are also attributable to

15 individuals under clause (i).

16 ‘‘(iii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the term

17 ‘substantial beneficial interest’ means not less than five

18 percent of all beneficial interests in the corporation or en19 tity actually receiving the payment, except that the Sec20 retary may set a lower percentage in order to ensure that

21 the provisions of this section and the scheme or device pro22 visions in section 1001B are not circumvented.’’.

23 (b) TRACKING PAYMENTS USING SOCIAL SECURITY

24 AND EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS.—Section
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1 1001(5)(A) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C.

2 1308(5)(A)) is amended—

3 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara4 graph (i);

5 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (ii) as sub6 paragraph (iv); and

7 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (i) the fol8 lowing new subparagraphs:

9 ‘‘(ii) providing for the tracking of payments

10 made or attributed to an individual on the basis of

11 the social security account number of the individual;

12 ‘‘(iii) providing for the tracking of payments

13 made or attributed to a corporation or other entity

14 described in subclause (II) or (III) of subparagraph

15 (B)(i) on the basis of the employer identification

16 number of the corporation or other entity; and’’.

17 TITLE III—COMMISSION ON 21ST

18 CENTURY PRODUCTION AGRI19 CULTURE

20 SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT.

21 There is hereby established a commission to be known

22 as the ‘‘Commission on 21st Century Production Agri23 culture’’ (hereinafter in this title referred to as the ‘‘Com24 mission’’).
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1 SEC. 302. COMPOSITION.

2 (a) APPOINTMENT.—The Commission shall be com3 posed of 11 members, appointed as follows:

4 (1) Three members shall be appointed by the

5 President.

6 (2) Four members shall be appointed by the

7 Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture of the

8 House of Representatives in consultation with the

9 ranking minority member of the Committee.

10 (3) Four members shall be appointed by the

11 Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri12 tion, and Forestry of the Senate in consultation with

13 the ranking minority member of the Committee.

14 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—The members of the Commis15 sion shall be appointed from among persons having knowl16 edge and experience in agricultural production, marketing,

17 finance, or trade.

18 (c) TERM OF MEMBERS; VACANCIES.—Members of

19 the Commission shall be appointed for the life of the Com20 mission. A vacancy on the Commission shall not affect its

21 powers, but shall be filled in the same manner as the origi22 nal appointment was made.

23 (d) TIME FOR APPOINTMENT; FIRST MEETING.—

24 The members of the Commission shall be appointed not

25 later than October 1, 1997. The Commission shall convene

26 its first meeting to carry out its duties under this title
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1 30 days after six members of the Commission have been

2 appointed.

3 (e) CHAIRMAN.—The chairman of the Commission

4 shall be designated jointly by the Chairman of the Com5 mittee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and

6 the Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition,

7 and Forestry of the Senate from among the members of

8 the Commission.

9 SEC. 303. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF PAST AND FUTURE

10 OF PRODUCTION AGRICULTURE.

11 (a) INITIAL REVIEW.—The Commission shall conduct

12 a comprehensive review of changes in the condition of pro13 duction agriculture in the United States since the date of

14 the enactment of this Act and the extent to which such

15 changes are the result of the amendments made by this

16 Act. The review shall include the following:

17 (1) An assessment of the initial success of mar18 ket transition contracts under section 102A of the

19 Agricultural Act of 1949 in supporting the economic

20 viability of farming in the United States.

21 (2) An assessment of the food security situation

22 in the United States in the areas of trade, consumer

23 prices, international competitiveness of United

24 States production agriculture, food supplies, and hu25 manitarian relief.
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1 (3) An assessment of the changes in farm land

2 values and agricultural producer incomes since the

3 date of the enactment of this Act.

4 (4) An assessment of the extent to which regu5 latory relief for agricultural producers has been en6 acted and implemented, including the application of

7 cost/benefit principles in the issuance of agricultural

8 regulations.

9 (5) An assessment of the extent to which tax

10 relief for agricultural producers has been enacted in

11 the form of capital gains tax reductions, estate tax

12 exemptions, and mechanisms to average tax loads

13 over high and low income years.

14 (6) An assessment of the effect of any Govern15 ment interference in agricultural export markets,

16 such as the imposition of trade embargoes, and the

17 degree of implementation and success of inter18 national trade agreements.

19 (b) SUBSEQUENT REVIEW.—The Commission shall

20 conduct a comprehensive review of the future of produc21 tion agriculture in the United States and the appropriate

22 role of the Federal Government in support of production

23 agriculture. The review shall include the following:
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1 (1) An assessment of changes in the condition

2 of production agriculture in the United States since

3 the initial review conducted under subsection (a).

4 (2) Identification of the appropriate future rela5 tionship of the Federal Government with production

6 agriculture after 2002.

7 (3) An assessment of the manpower and infra8 structure requirements of the Department of Agri9 culture necessary to support the future relationship

10 of the Federal Government with production agri11 culture.

12 (c) RECOMMENDATIONS.—In carrying out the subse13 quent review under subsection (b), the Commission shall

14 develop specific recommendations for legislation to achieve

15 the appropriate future relationship of the Federal Govern16 ment with production agriculture identified under sub17 section (a)(2).

18 SEC. 304. REPORTS.

19 (a) REPORT ON INITIAL REVIEW.—Not later than

20 January 1, 1999, the Commission shall submit to the

21 President, the Committee on Agriculture of the House of

22 Representatives, and the Committee on Agriculture, Nu23 trition, and Forestry of the Senate a report containing the

24 results of the initial review conducted under section

25 303(a).
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1 (a) REPORT ON SUBSEQUENT REVIEW.—Not later

2 than January 1, 2001, the Commission shall submit to

3 the President and the congressional committees specified

4 in subsection (a) a report containing the results of the

5 subsequent review conducted under section 303(b).

6 SEC. 305. POWERS.

7 (a) HEARINGS.—The Commission may, for the pur8 pose of carrying out this title, conduct such hearings, sit

9 and act at such times, take such testimony, and receive

10 such evidence, as the Commission considers appropriate.

11 (b) ASSISTANCE FROM OTHER AGENCIES.—The

12 Commission may secure directly from any department or

13 agency of the Federal Government such information, rel14 evant to its duties under this title, as may be necessary

15 to carry out such duties. Upon request of the chairman

16 of the Commission, the head of the department or agency

17 shall, to the extent permitted by law, furnish such infor18 mation to the Commission.

19 (c) MAIL.—The Commission may use the United

20 States mails in the same manner and under the same con21 ditions as the departments and agencies of the Federal

22 Government.

23 (d) ASSISTANCE FROM SECRETARY.—The Secretary

24 of Agriculture shall provide to the Commission appropriate
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1 office space and such reasonable administrative and sup2 port services as the Commission may request.

3 SEC. 306. COMMISSION PROCEDURES.

4 (a) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet on a

5 regular basis (as determined by the chairman) and at the

6 call of the chairman or a majority of its members.

7 (b) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the

8 Commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction

9 of business.

10 SEC. 307. PERSONNEL MATTERS.

11 (a) COMPENSATION.—Each member of the Commis12 sion shall serve without compensation, but shall be allowed

13 travel expenses including per diem in lieu of subsistence,

14 as authorized by section 5703 of title 5, United States

15 Code, when engaged in the performance of Commission

16 duties.

17 (b) STAFF.—The Commission shall appoint a staff

18 director, who shall be paid at a rate not to exceed the

19 maximum rate of basic pay under section 5376 of title

20 5, United States Code, and such professional and clerical

21 personnel as may be reasonable and necessary to enable

22 the Commission to carry out its duties under this title

23 without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States

24 Code, governing appointments in the competitive service,

25 and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and
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1 subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title, or any other

2 provision of law, relating to the number, classification, and

3 General Schedule rates. No employee appointed under this

4 subsection (other than the staff director) may be com5 pensated at a rate to exceed the maximum rate applicable

6 to level 15 of the General Schedule.

7 (c) DETAILED PERSONNEL.—Upon request of the

8 chairman of the Commission, the head of any department

9 or agency of the Federal Government is authorized to de10 tail, without reimbursement, any personnel of such depart11 ment or agency to the Commission to assist the Commis12 sion in carrying out its duties under this section. The de13 tail of any such personnel may not result in the interrup14 tion or loss of civil service status or privilege of such per15 sonnel.

16 SEC. 308. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.

17 The Commission shall terminate upon submission of

18 the final report required by section 304.

19 TITLE IV—SUSPENSION OF CER20 TAIN PROVISIONS REGARD21 ING PROGRAM CROPS

22 SEC. 401. WHEAT.

23 (a) NONAPPLICABILITY OF CERTIFICATE REQUIRE24 MENTS.—Sections 379d through 379j of the Agricultural

25 Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1379d–1379j) (relating
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1 to marketing certificate requirements for processors and

2 exporters) shall not be applicable to wheat processors or

3 exporters during the period June 1, 1996, through May

4 31, 2003.

5 (b) SUSPENSION OF LAND USE, WHEAT MARKETING

6 ALLOCATION, AND PRODUCER CERTIFICATE PROVI7 SIONS.—Sections 331 through 339, 379b, and 379c of the

8 Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1331

9 through 1339, 1379b, and 1379c) shall not be applicable

10 to the 1996 through 2002 crops of wheat.

11 (c) SUSPENSION OF CERTAIN QUOTA PROVISIONS.—

12 The joint resolution entitled ‘‘A joint resolution relating

13 to corn and wheat marketing quotas under the Agricul14 tural Adjustment Act of 1938, as amended’’, approved

15 May 26, 1941 (7 U.S.C. 1330 and 1340) shall not be ap16 plicable to the crops of wheat planted for harvest in the

17 calendar years 1996 through 2002.

18 (d) NONAPPLICABILITY OF SECTION 107 PRO19 GRAM.—Section 107 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7

20 U.S.C. 1445a) shall not be applicable to the 1996 through

21 2002 crops of wheat.

22 SEC. 402. FEED GRAINS.

23 Section 105 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C.

24 1444b) shall not be applicable to the 1996 through 2002

25 crops of feed grains.
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1 SEC. 403. COTTON.

2 (a) SUSPENSION OF BASE ACREAGE ALLOTMENTS,

3 MARKETING QUOTAS, AND RELATED PROVISIONS.—Sec4 tions 342, 343, 344, 345, 346, and 377 of the Agricultural

5 Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1342–1346 and 1377)

6 shall not be applicable to any of the 1996 through 2002

7 crops of upland cotton.

8 (b) NONAPPLICABILITY OF SECTION 103 PRO9 GRAM.—Section 103(a) of the Agricultural Act of 1949

10 (7 U.S.C. 1444(a)) shall not be applicable to the 1996

11 through 2002 crops of upland cotton.

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