I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8754 

To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to encourage practices that benefit 

both soil and wildlife habitat by increasing payments to producers for 

such practices under the environmental quality incentives program and 

the conservation stewardship program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 14, 2024 

Ms. BROWNLEY (for herself and Mr. CARBAJAL) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to encourage 

practices that benefit both soil and wildlife habitat by 

increasing payments to producers for such practices 

under the environmental quality incentives program and 

the conservation stewardship program, 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 ‘‘Saving Our Inter5 connected Lives Act’’ or the ‘‘SOIL Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY INCENTIVES PROGRAM. 

2 (a) INCREASED PAYMENTS FOR CERTAIN PRACTICES

3 RELATING TO SOIL AND WILDLIFE HABITAT.— 

4 Section 1240B(d) of the Food Security Act of 

5 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2(d) is amended by adding 

6 at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(8) INCREASED PAYMENTS FOR PRACTICES

8 THAT BENEFIT BOTH SOIL AND WILDLIFE HABI9 TAT.—Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the Secretary 

10 shall provide payment to producers at 90 percent of 

11 the cost associated with planning, design, materials, 

12 equipment, installation, labor, management, mainte13 nance, or training for performing a practice that si14 multaneously benefits both soil and wildlife habitat 

15 for projects identified by the Secretary as addressing 

16 both soil and wildlife habitat resource concerns, in17 cluding practices that— 

18 ‘‘(A) achieve alley cropping; 

19 ‘‘(B) apply conservation cover; 

20 ‘‘(C) apply contour buffer strips; 

21 ‘‘(D) enhance or restore wetlands; 

22 ‘‘(E) establish filter strips; 

23 ‘‘(F) establish permanent vegetation to 

24 stabilize critical areas; 

25 ‘‘(G) establish riparian herbaceous cover; 

26 ‘‘(H) establish trees and shrubs; 


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1 ‘‘(I) establish wildlife habitat plantings; 

2 ‘‘(J) establish windbreaks; 

3 ‘‘(K) implement field borders; 

4 ‘‘(L) implement hedgerow planting; 

5 ‘‘(M) implement riparian forest buffers; 

6 ‘‘(N) improve forest stands; 

7 ‘‘(O) manage forage harvest; 

8 ‘‘(P) manage harvest of vegetation with 

9 grazing; 

10 ‘‘(Q) manage or establish stands of trees 

11 or shrubs in coordination with the management 

12 of understory plants or nontimber forest prod13 ucts; 

14 ‘‘(R) manage pest and environmental im15 pacts; 

16 ‘‘(S) manage residue and tillage manage17 ment through no-till or reduced till; 

18 ‘‘(T) manage seasonal water for wildlife; 

19 ‘‘(U) manage upland and wetland habitat; 

20 ‘‘(V) plant cover crops; 

21 ‘‘(W) plant grassed waterways; 

22 ‘‘(X) plant stripcrops; 

23 ‘‘(Y) restore rare or declining natural com24 munities; and 

25 ‘‘(Z) rotate crops.’’. 


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1 (b) EVALUATION AND PRIORITIZATION OF APPLICA2 TIONS.—Section 1240C(b) of the Food Security Act of 

3 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–3(b)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

5 end; 

6 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at 

7 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

8 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(5) that are developed for the purpose of ad10 dressing both a soil and wildlife habitat resource 

11 concern.’’. 

12 SEC. 3. CONSERVATION STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM. 

13 (a) EVALUATION AND RANKING OF STEWARDSHIP

14 CONTRACT OFFERS.—Section 1240K(b)(1)(A) of the 

15 Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa– 

16 23(b)(1)(A)) is amended— 

17 (1) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

18 (2) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); 

19 and 

20 (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following: 

21 ‘‘(iii) the degree to which the project 

22 addresses both soil and wildlife habitat re23 source concerns; and’’. 

24 (b) SUPPLEMENTAL PAYMENTS FOR RESOURCE25 CONSERVING CROP ROTATIONS, ADVANCED GRAZING


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1 MANAGEMENT, AND CO-BENEFIT ACTIVITIES FOR SOIL

2 AND WILDLIFE.—Section 1240L(d) of the Food Security 

3 Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–24(d)) is amended— 

4 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘AND

5 ADVANCED GRAZING MANAGEMENT’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘, ADVANCED GRAZING MANAGEMENT, AND CO7 BENEFIT ACTIVITIES FOR SOIL AND WILDLIFE’’; 

8 (2) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(D) CO-BENEFIT ACTIVITY.—The term 

11 ‘co-benefit activity’ means a conservation activ12 ity that— 

13 ‘‘(i) addresses both soil and wildlife 

14 habitat resource concerns; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) if implemented— 

16 ‘‘(I) improves habitat for wildlife; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(II) increases carbon sequestra19 tion in the soil and reduces green20 house gas emissions.’’; 

21 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

23 at the end; 

24 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 

25 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 


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1 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(C) co-benefit activities.’’; and 

3 (4) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘or advanced 

4 grazing management’’ and inserting ‘‘, advanced 

5 grazing management, or co-benefit activities’’. 

Æ 


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