II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2009 

To provide assistance to agricultural producers whose operations were severely 

damaged by the hurricanes of 2005. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 15, 2005 

Mr. MARTINEZ (for himself and Mr. NELSON of Florida) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To provide assistance to agricultural producers whose 

operations were severely damaged by the hurricanes of 2005. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Agriculture Hurricane Recovery Act of 2005’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—CROP ASSISTANCE 

Sec. 101. Crop disaster assistance. 

Sec. 102. Nursery crops and tropical fruit producers. 
2 

•S 2009 IS

Sec. 103. Citrus and vegetable assistance. 

Sec. 104. Sugar producers. 

TITLE II—LIVESTOCK ASSISTANCE 

Sec. 201. Livestock assistance program. 

TITLE III—FORESTRY 

Sec. 301. Tree assistance program. 

TITLE IV—CONSERVATION 

Sec. 401. Emergency conservation program. 

TITLE V—LOW-INCOME MIGRANT AND SEASONAL FARMWORKERS 

Sec. 501. Emergency grants for low-income migrant and seasonal farmworkers. 

TITLE VI—FISHERIES 

Sec. 601. Fisheries assistance. 

TITLE VII—TIMBER TAX RELIEF 

Sec. 701. Timber tax relief for businesses affected by certain natural disasters. 

TITLE VIII—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 801. Infrastructure losses. 

Sec. 802. Commodity Credit Corporation. 

Sec. 803. Emergency designation. 

Sec. 804. Regulations. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, in this Act: 

3 (1) ADDITIONAL COVERAGE.—The term ‘‘addi4 tional coverage’’ has the meaning given the term in 

5 section 502(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 

6 U.S.C. 1502(b)). 

7 (2) CATASTROPHIC RISK PROTECTION.—The 

8 term ‘‘catastrophic risk protection’’ means the level 

9 of insurance coverage provided under section 508(b) 

10 of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 

11 1508(b)). 
3 

•S 2009 IS

1 (3) DISASTER COUNTY.—The term ‘‘disaster 

2 county’’ means a county included in the geographic 

3 area covered by a natural disaster declaration due to 

4 hurricanes in calendar year 2005— 

5 (A) made by the Secretary under section 

6 321(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 

7 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1961(a)) due to 

8 hurricanes in calendar year 2005; or 

9 (B) made by the President under the Rob10 ert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

11 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 

12 (4) INSURABLE COMMODITY.—The term ‘‘insur13 able commodity’’ means an agricultural commodity 

14 for which producers are eligible to obtain a policy or 

15 plan of insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance 

16 Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.). 

17 (5) NONINSURABLE COMMODITY.—The term 

18 ‘‘noninsurable commodity’’ means an eligible crop 

19 for which producers are eligible to obtain assistance 

20 under section 196 of the Federal Agriculture Im21 provement and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 

22 7333). 

23 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

24 the Secretary of Agriculture. 
4 

•S 2009 IS

1 TITLE I—CROP ASSISTANCE 

2 SEC. 101. CROP DISASTER ASSISTANCE. 

3 (a) EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use such 

5 sums as are necessary of funds of the Commodity 

6 Credit Corporation to make emergency assistance 

7 under this section to producers on a farm or aqua8 culture operation (other than producers of sugar9 cane) that meet the eligibility criteria of paragraph 

10 (2) in the same manner as provided under section 

11 815 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food 

12 and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Ap13 propriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–387; 114 

14 Stat. 1549A–55), including using the same loss 

15 thresholds for quantity and quality losses as were 

16 used in administering that section. 

17 (2) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—For producers de18 scribed in paragraph (1) to be eligible for emergency 

19 assistance under this section— 

20 (A) the farm or aquaculture operation 

21 must be located in a disaster county; and 

22 (B) the producers must have incurred 

23 qualifying crop or quality losses with respect to 

24 the 2004, 2005, or 2006 crop (as elected by a 

25 producer), but limited to only 1 such crop, due 
5 

•S 2009 IS

1 to damaging weather or related condition, as 

2 determined by the Secretary. 

3 (3) LIMITATION.—Qualifying crop losses for the 

4 2006 crop are limited to only those losses caused by 

5 a hurricane or tropical storm occurring during the 

6 2005 hurricane season in disaster counties. 

7 (b) INELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE.—Except as pro8 vided in subsection (c), the producers on a farm shall not 

9 be eligible for assistance under this section with respect 

10 to losses to an insurable commodity or noninsurable com11 modity if the producers on the farm— 

12 (1) in the case of an insurable commodity, did 

13 not obtain a policy or plan of insurance for the in14 surable commodity under the Federal Crop Insur15 ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) for the crop incur16 ring the losses; 

17 (2) in the case of a noninsurable commodity, 

18 did not file the required paperwork, and pay the ad19 ministrative fee by the applicable State filing dead20 line, for the noninsurable commodity under section 

21 196 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and 

22 Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333) for the crop 

23 incurring the losses; 

24 (3) had an average adjusted gross income (as 

25 defined in section 1001D of the Food Security Act 
6 

•S 2009 IS

1 of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308–3a)) of greater than 

2 $2,500,000; or 

3 (4) were not in compliance with highly erodible 

4 land conservation and wetland conservation provi5 sions under subtitles B and C of title XII of the 

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

7 (c) CONTRACT WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive 

8 subsection (b) with respect to the producers on a farm 

9 if the producers enter into a contract with the Secretary 

10 under which the producers agree— 

11 (1) in the case of all insurable commodities pro12 duced on the farm for each of the next 2 crop 

13 years— 

14 (A) to obtain additional coverage for those 

15 commodities under the Federal Crop Insurance 

16 Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.); and 

17 (B) in the event of violation of the con18 tract, to repay to the Secretary any payment re19 ceived under this section; and 

20 (2) in the case of all noninsurable commodities 

21 produced on the farm for each of the next 2 crop or 

22 calendar years, as applicable— 

23 (A) to file the required paperwork, and pay 

24 the administrative fee by the applicable State 

25 filing deadline, for those commodities under sec-
7 

•S 2009 IS

1 tion 196 of the Federal Agriculture Improve2 ment and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333); 

3 and 

4 (B) in the event of violation of the con5 tract, to repay to the Secretary any payment re6 ceived under this section. 

7 (d) PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.— 

8 (1) LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—As9 sistance provided under this section to the producers 

10 on a farm for losses to a crop, together with the 

11 amounts specified in paragraph (2) applicable to the 

12 same crop, may not exceed 95 percent of what the 

13 value of the crop would have been in the absence of 

14 the losses, as estimated by the Secretary. 

15 (2) OTHER PAYMENTS.—In applying the limita16 tion in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall include the 

17 following: 

18 (A) Any crop insurance payment made 

19 under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 

20 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) or payment under section 

21 196 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement 

22 and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333) that 

23 the producers on the farm receive for losses to 

24 the same crop. 
8 

•S 2009 IS

1 (B) The value of the crop that was not lost 

2 (if any), as estimated by the Secretary. 

3 (e) CROP INSURANCE DEDUCTIBLES.—For the pur4 pose of determining crop insurance payments under this 

5 section, the Secretary shall consider Hurricane Wilma as 

6 having occurred during the 2005 crop year. 

7 SEC. 102. NURSERY CROPS AND TROPICAL FRUIT PRO8 DUCERS. 

9 (a) EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—Notwith10 standing section 508(b)(7) of the Federal Crop Insurance 

11 Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(b)(7)), the Secretary shall use such 

12 sums as are necessary of funds of the Commodity Credit 

13 Corporation to make emergency financial assistance avail14 able to— 

15 (1) commercial ornamental nursery and fernery 

16 producers in a disaster county for eligible inventory 

17 losses due to hurricanes in calendar year 2005; and 

18 (2) tropical fruit producers in a disaster county 

19 who have suffered a loss of 35 percent or more rel20 ative to their expected production (as defined in sec21 tion 1480.3 of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations 

22 (or a successor regulation)) due to hurricanes in cal23 endar year 2005. 

24 (b) ADMINISTRATION.— 
9 

•S 2009 IS

1 (1) DETERMINATION OF COMMERCIAL OPER2 ATIONS.—For a nursery or fernery producer to be 

3 considered a commercial operation for purposes of 

4 subsection (a)(1) or (d)(1), the producer must be 

5 registered as a nursery or fernery producer in the 

6 State in which the producer conducts business. 

7 (2) DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBLE INVEN8 TORY.—For purposes of subsection (a)(1), eligible 

9 nursery and fernery inventory includes foliage, flori10 culture, and woody ornamental crops, including— 

11 (A) stock used for propagation; and 

12 (B) fruit or nut seedlings grown for sale as 

13 seed stock for commercial orchard operations 

14 growing fruit or nuts. 

15 (c) CALCULATION OF LOSSES AND PAYMENTS.— 

16 (1) NURSERY AND FERNERY PRODUCERS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of sub18 section (a)(1)— 

19 (i) inventory losses for a nursery or 

20 fernery producer shall be determined on an 

21 individual-nursery or -fernery basis; and 

22 (ii) the Secretary shall not offset in23 ventory losses at 1 nursery or fernery loca24 tion by salvaged inventory at another nurs-
10 

•S 2009 IS

1 ery or fernery operated by the same pro2 ducer. 

3 (B) AMOUNT.—The amount of payment to 

4 a nursery or fernery producer under subsection 

5 (a)(1) shall be equal to the product obtained by 

6 multiplying (as determined by the Secretary)— 

7 (i) the difference between the pre-dis8 aster and post-disaster inventory value, as 

9 determined by the Secretary using the 

10 wholesale price list of the producer, less 

11 the maximum customer discount provided 

12 by the producer, and not to exceed the 

13 prices in the Department of Agriculture 

14 publication entitled ‘‘Eligible Plant List 

15 and Price Schedule’’; 

16 (ii) 25 percent; and 

17 (iii) the producer’s share of the loss. 

18 (2) TROPICAL FRUIT PRODUCERS.—The 

19 amount of a payment to a tropical fruit producer 

20 under subsection (a)(2) shall be equal to the product 

21 obtained by multiplying (as determined by the Sec22 retary)— 

23 (A) the number of acres affected; 

24 (B) the payment rate; and 

25 (C) the producer’s share of the crop. 
11 

•S 2009 IS

1 (3) PAYMENT LIMITATION.—The Secretary 

2 shall not impose any payment limitation on an as3 sistance payment made to a nursery, fernery, or 

4 tropical fruit producer under paragraph (1) or (2) of 

5 subsection (a). 

6 (d) DEBRIS-REMOVAL ASSISTANCE.— 

7 (1) AVAILABILITY OF ASSISTANCE.—The Sec8 retary shall use such sums as are necessary of funds 

9 of the Commodity Credit Corporation to make emer10 gency financial assistance available to commercial 

11 ornamental nursery and fernery producers in a dis12 aster county to help cover costs incurred for debris 

13 removal and associated cleanup due to hurricanes in 

14 calendar year 2005. 

15 (2) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Assistance under this 

17 subsection may not exceed the actual costs in18 curred by the producer for debris removal and 

19 cleanup or $250 per acre, whichever is less. 

20 (B) NO ADDITIONAL PAYMENT LIMITA21 TIONS.—Except as provided in subparagraph 

22 (A), the Secretary shall not impose any limita23 tion on the maximum amount of payments that 

24 a producer may receive under this subsection. 

25 (e) NONDISCRIMINATION.— 
12 

•S 2009 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), in carrying out this section, the Secretary 

3 shall not discriminate against or penalize producers 

4 that did not purchase crop insurance under the Fed5 eral Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) 

6 with respect to an insurable commodity or did not 

7 file the required paperwork, and pay the administra8 tive fee by the applicable State filing deadline, for 

9 assistance under section 196 of the Federal Agri10 culture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (7 

11 U.S.C. 7333) with respect to a noninsurable com12 modity. 

13 (2) PENALTY.—In the case of a producer de14 scribed in paragraph (1)— 

15 (A) payment rates under this section shall 

16 be reduced by 5 percent; and 

17 (B) the producer shall comply with sub18 section (f). 

19 (f) CONTRACT TO PROCURE CROP INSURANCE OR

20 NAP.—In the case of a producer described in subsection 

21 (e)(1) who receives any assistance under this section, the 

22 producer shall be required to enter into a contract with 

23 the Secretary under which the producer agrees— 
13 

•S 2009 IS

1 (1) in the case of all insurable commodities 

2 grown by the producer during the next available cov3 erage period— 

4 (A) to obtain at least catastrophic risk pro5 tection for those commodities under the Federal 

6 Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.); 

7 and 

8 (B) in the event of violation of the con9 tract, to repay to the Secretary any payment re10 ceived under this section; and 

11 (2) in the case of all noninsurable commodities 

12 grown by the producer during the next available cov13 erage period— 

14 (A) to file the required paperwork, and pay 

15 the administrative fee by the applicable State 

16 filing deadline, for those commodities under sec17 tion 196 of the Federal Agriculture Improve18 ment and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333); 

19 and 

20 (B) in the event of violation of the con21 tract, to repay to the Secretary any payment re22 ceived under this section. 

23 (g) RELATION TO OTHER ASSISTANCE.— 

24 (1) LINK TO ACTUAL LOSSES.—Assistance pro25 vided under subsection (a) to a producer for losses 
14 

•S 2009 IS

1 to a crop, together with the amounts specified in 

2 paragraph (2) applicable to the same crop, may not 

3 exceed 100 percent of what the value of the crop 

4 would have been in the absence of the losses, as esti5 mated by the Secretary. 

6 (2) OTHER PAYMENTS.—In applying the limita7 tion in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall include the 

8 following: 

9 (A) Any crop insurance payment made 

10 under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 

11 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) or payment under section 

12 196 of the Federal Agricultural Improvement 

13 and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333) that 

14 the producer receives for losses to the same 

15 crop. 

16 (B) Assistance received under any other 

17 emergency crop loss authority. 

18 (C) The value of the crop that was not lost 

19 (if any), as estimated by the Secretary. 

20 (h) ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME LIMITATION.—The 

21 average adjusted gross income limitation specified in sec22 tion 1001D of the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 

23 1308–3a), shall apply to assistance provided under this 

24 section. 
15 

•S 2009 IS

1 SEC. 103. CITRUS AND VEGETABLE ASSISTANCE. 

2 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act or 

3 any other law, the Secretary shall use such sums as are 

4 necessary of funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation 

5 to make emergency financial assistance authorized under 

6 this section available to both citrus and vegetable pro7 ducers to carry out an assistance program similar to the 

8 program entitled the ‘‘Florida Citrus Disaster Program’’, 

9 described at 69 Fed. Reg. 63134, October 29, 2004, Docu10 ment No. 04–24290 (relating to Florida citrus, fruit, vege11 table, and nursery crop disaster programs), except that 

12 qualifying crop losses shall be limited to those losses 

13 caused by a hurricane or tropical storm occurring during 

14 the 2005 hurricane season in a disaster county. 

15 SEC. 104. SUGAR PRODUCERS. 

16 The Secretary shall use $395,000,000 of the funds 

17 of the Commodity Credit Corporation to make payments 

18 to processors in Florida and Louisiana that are eligible 

19 to obtain a loan under section 156(a) of the Federal Agri20 culture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 

21 7272(a)) to compensate first processors and producers for 

22 crop and other losses that are related to hurricanes, trop23 ical storms, excessive rains, and floods occurring during 

24 calendar year 2005, to be calculated and paid on the basis 

25 of losses on 40-acre harvesting units, in disaster counties, 

26 on the same terms and conditions, to the maximum extent 
16 

•S 2009 IS

1 practicable, as payments made under section 102 of the 

2 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Hurricane 

3 Disasters Assistance Act, 2005 (Public Law 108–324; 118 

4 Stat. 1235). 

5 TITLE II—LIVESTOCK 

6 ASSISTANCE 

7 SEC. 201. LIVESTOCK ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

8 (a) EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use such 

10 sums as are necessary of funds of the Commodity 

11 Credit Corporation to make payments for livestock 

12 losses to producers for 2005 or 2006 losses (as elect13 ed by a producer), but not both, in a county that 

14 has received an emergency disaster designation by 

15 the President after January 1, 2004. 

16 (2) RESTRICTION.—In determining eligibility 

17 for assistance under this section, the Secretary shall 

18 not use the end date of the normal grazing period 

19 to determine the threshold of a 90-day loss of car20 rying capacity. 

21 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—Except as provided in sub22 section (a), the Secretary shall make assistance available 

23 under this subsection in the same manner as provided 

24 under section 806 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, 

25 Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Ap-
17 

•S 2009 IS

1 propriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–387; 114 Stat. 

2 1549A–51). 

3 (c) MITIGATION.—In determining the eligibility for or 

4 amount of payments for which a producer is eligible under 

5 this section, the Secretary shall not penalize a producer 

6 that takes actions (including recognizing disaster condi7 tions) that reduce the average number of livestock the pro8 ducer owned for grazing during the production year for 

9 which assistance is being provided. 

10 (d) INCLUSION OF POULTRY.—In providing assist11 ance under this section, the Secretary shall include poultry 

12 within the definition of ‘‘livestock’’. 

13 TITLE III—FORESTRY 

14 SEC. 301. TREE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

15 (a) SPECIFIC INCLUSION OF NURSERY TREES, 

16 CHRISTMAS TREES, TIMBER AND FOREST PRODUCTS.— 

17 Section 10201 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment 

18 Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8201) is amended by striking para19 graph (1) and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ORCHARDIST.—The term ‘eligi21 ble orchardist’ means— 

22 ‘‘(A) a person that produces annual crops 

23 from trees for commercial purposes; 

24 ‘‘(B) a nursery grower that produces field25 grown trees, container-grown trees, or both, 
18 

•S 2009 IS

1 whether or not the trees produce an annual 

2 crop, intended for replanting after commercial 

3 sale; or 

4 ‘‘(C) a forest landowner who produces peri5 odic crops of timber, Christmas trees, or pecan 

6 trees for commercial purposes.’’. 

7 (b) APPLICATION OF AMENDMENT.—The Secretary 

8 shall apply the amendment made by subsection (a) begin9 ning in disaster counties. 

10 (c) COST-SHARING WAIVERS.— 

11 (1) TREE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—The cost12 sharing requirements of section 10203(1) of the 

13 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 

14 U.S.C. 8203(1)) shall not apply to the operation of 

15 the tree assistance program in disaster counties in 

16 response to the hurricanes of calendar year 2005. 

17 (2) COOPERATIVE FORESTRY ASSISTANCE

18 ACT.—The cost-sharing requirements of the Cooper19 ative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 

20 2101 et seq.) shall not apply in disaster counties 

21 during the 2-year period beginning on the date of 

22 enactment of this Act. 

23 (3) REFORESTATION.—In carrying out the tree 

24 assistance program under subtitle C of title X of the 

25 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 
19 

•S 2009 IS

1 U.S.C. 8201 et seq.), the Secretary shall provide 

2 such funds as are necessary to compensate forest 

3 owners that— 

4 (A) produce periodic crops of timber or 

5 Christmas trees for commercial purposes; and 

6 (B) have suffered tree losses in disaster 

7 counties. 

8 TITLE IV—CONSERVATION 

9 SEC. 401. EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM. 

10 (a) SPECIFIC INCLUSION OF NURSERY AND FERN11 ERY PRODUCERS AND INTERIOR FENCES.—Section 401 

12 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201) 

13 is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘SEC. 401. The Secretary’’ and 

15 inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 401. PAYMENTS TO AGRICULTURAL PRODUCERS FOR 

17 WIND EROSION CONTROL OR REHABILITA18 TION MEASURES. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(b) INCLUSIONS.—In this title: 

22 ‘‘(1) AGRICULTURAL PRODUCER.—The term 

23 ‘agricultural producer’ includes a producer of nurs24 ery or fernery crops. 
20 

•S 2009 IS

1 ‘‘(2) INTERIOR FENCES.—The term ‘fences’ in2 cludes both perimeter pasture and interior corral 

3 fences.’’. 

4 (b) APPLICATION OF AMENDMENT.—The Secretary 

5 shall apply the amendment made by subsection (a)(2) be6 ginning in disaster counties. 

7 (c) COMPENSATION.—The Secretary shall use funds 

8 of the Commodity Credit Corporation to compensate pro9 ducers on a farm operating in a disaster county for costs 

10 associated with repairing structures, barns, storage facili11 ties, poultry houses, beehives, greenhouses, and shade 

12 houses due to hurricane damage in calendar year 2005. 

13 TITLE V—LOW-INCOME MI14 GRANT AND SEASONAL FARM15 WORKERS 

16 SEC. 501. EMERGENCY GRANTS FOR LOW-INCOME MIGRANT 

17 AND SEASONAL FARMWORKERS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use 

19 $40,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora20 tion, to remain available until December 31, 2007, to pro21 vide emergency grants to assist low-income migrant and 

22 seasonal farmworkers under section 2281 of the Food, Ag23 riculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

24 5177a). 
21 

•S 2009 IS

1 (b) USE OF GRANTS.—Grants provided under this 

2 section may be used to provide such emergency services 

3 as the Secretary determines to be necessary, including— 

4 (1) the repair of existing farmworker housing 

5 and construction of new farmworker housing units 

6 to replace housing damaged as a result of hurricanes 

7 during 2005; and 

8 (2) the reimbursement of public agencies and 

9 private organizations for emergency services pro10 vided to low-income migrant or seasonal farm11 workers after October 31, 2005. 

12 TITLE VI—FISHERIES 

13 SEC. 601. FISHERIES ASSISTANCE. 

14 (a) FUNDS FOR OYSTER RESTORATION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

16 the date of enactment of this Act, out of any funds 

17 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Sec18 retary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Sec19 retary of Commerce $10,000,000 to provide assist20 ance for reseeding, rehabilitation, and restoration of 

21 oyster reefs located in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, 

22 or Mississippi. 

23 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—The funds 

24 transferred under paragraph (1) shall remain avail25 able until September 30, 2007. 
22 

•S 2009 IS

1 (3) RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE.—The Sec2 retary of Commerce shall be entitled to receive, shall 

3 accept, and shall use as described in this section the 

4 funds transferred under paragraph (1) without fur5 ther appropriation. 

6 (b) FUNDS FOR FISHERIES DISASTER ASSIST7 ANCE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to amounts ap9 propriated or otherwise made available, not later 

10 than 30 days after the date of enactment of this 

11 Act, out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise 

12 appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

13 transfer to the Secretary of Commerce $60,000,000 

14 to provide fisheries disaster assistance. 

15 (2) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Of the 

16 funds transferred under paragraph (1)— 

17 (A) not more than 5 percent of such funds 

18 may be used for administrative expenses; and 

19 (B) none of such funds may be used for 

20 lobbying activities or representational expenses. 

21 (3) RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE.—The Sec22 retary of Commerce shall be entitled to receive, shall 

23 accept, and shall use as described in this section the 

24 funds transferred under paragraph (1) without fur25 ther appropriation. 
23 

•S 2009 IS

1 (c) PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE.— 

2 (1) LUMP SUM PAYMENTS TO STATES.—The 

3 Secretary of Commerce shall use the funds trans4 ferred under this section to provide direct lump sum 

5 payments to the States of Louisiana, Mississippi, 

6 Alabama, and Florida to provide assistance to per7 sons located in a disaster county who have experi8 enced significant economic hardship due to the loss 

9 of fisheries, oysters, lobsters, stone crabs, or clams, 

10 destroyed or damaged processing facilities, or clo11 sures due to red tide or other water quality issues. 

12 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds transferred to the 

13 Secretary of Commerce under this section shall be 

14 used to provide assistance— 

15 (A) to individuals, with priority given to 

16 food, energy needs, housing assistance, trans17 portation fuel, and other urgent needs; 

18 (B) to small businesses, including fisher19 men, fish processors, and related businesses 

20 serving the fishing industry; 

21 (C) to carry out activities related to do22 mestic product marketing and seafood pro23 motion; and 

24 (D) to carry out seafood testing programs 

25 operated by a State. 
24 

•S 2009 IS

1 TITLE VII—TIMBER TAX RELIEF 

2 SEC. 701. TIMBER TAX RELIEF FOR BUSINESSES AFFECTED 

3 BY CERTAIN NATURAL DISASTERS. 

4 (a) CASUALTY LOSSES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1211 of the Internal 

6 Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to limitation of cap7 ital losses) shall not apply to any qualified timber 

8 loss. 

9 (2) QUALIFIED TIMBER LOSS.—For purposes of 

10 this subsection, the term ‘‘qualified timber loss’’ 

11 means a loss with respect to timber which is attrib12 utable to— 

13 (A) Hurricane Dennis, 

14 (B) Hurricane Katrina, 

15 (C) Hurricane Rita, or 

16 (D) Hurricane Wilma. 

17 (b) INCREASED EXPENSING FOR REFORESTATION

18 EXPENDITURES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—In applying section 194(b) 

20 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to any speci21 fied qualified timber property for the first taxable 

22 year beginning after the date of the enactment of 

23 this section, subparagraph (B) of section 194(b)(1) 

24 shall be applied— 
25 

•S 2009 IS

1 (A) by substituting ‘‘$20,000’’ for 

2 ‘‘$10,000’’, and 

3 (B) by substituting ‘‘$10,000’’ for 

4 ‘‘$5,000’’. 

5 (2) SPECIFIED QUALIFIED TIMBER PROP6 ERTY.—The term ‘‘specified qualified timber prop7 erty’’ means qualified timber property (within the 

8 meaning of section 194(c)(1) of the Internal Rev9 enue Code of 1986) which is located in an area with 

10 respect to which a natural disaster has been declared 

11 by the President under section 401 of the Robert T. 

12 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 

13 Act as a result of— 

14 (A) Hurricane Dennis, 

15 (B) Hurricane Katrina, 

16 (C) Hurricane Rita, or 

17 (D) Hurricane Wilma. 

18 TITLE VIII—MISCELLANEOUS 

19 SEC. 801. INFRASTRUCTURE LOSSES. 

20 (a) INFRASTRUCTURE LOSSES.—The Secretary shall 

21 compensate producers on a farm in a disaster county for 

22 costs incurred to repair or replace barns, greenhouses, 

23 shade houses, poultry houses, beehives, and other struc24 tures, equipment, and fencing that— 
26 

•S 2009 IS

1 (1) was used to produce or store any agricul2 tural commodity; and 

3 (2) was damaged or destroyed by the hurri4 canes of calendar year 2005. 

5 (b) TIMING OF ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may 

6 provide assistance authorized under this section in the 

7 form of— 

8 (1) reimbursement for eligible repair or replace9 ment costs previously incurred by producers; or 

10 (2) cash or in-kind assistance in advance of the 

11 producer undertaking the needed repair or replace12 ment work. 

13 (c) PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.—Assistance provided 

14 under this section to a producer for a repair or replace15 ment project, together with amounts received for the same 

16 project from insurance proceeds or other sources, may not 

17 exceed 95 percent of the costs incurred to repair or replace 

18 the damaged or destroyed structures, equipment, or fenc19 ing, as estimated by the Secretary. 

20 (d) LOAN ELIGIBILITY.—After approval of the coun21 ty committee established under section 8 of the Soil Con22 servation and Domestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h) 

23 for the county or other area in which the farming oper24 ation is located, the producers on a farm in a disaster 

25 county shall be eligible to receive an emergency loan under 
27 

•S 2009 IS

1 subtitle C of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Develop2 ment Act (7 U.S.C. 1961 et seq.) regardless of whether 

3 the producers satisfy the requirements of the first proviso 

4 of section 321(a) of that Act (7 U.S.C. 1961(a)). 

5 SEC. 802. COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION. 

6 Except as otherwise provided in this Act— 

7 (1) the Secretary shall use the funds, facilities, 

8 and authorities of the Commodity Credit Corpora9 tion to carry out this Act; and 

10 (2) funds made available under this Act shall 

11 remain available until expended. 

12 SEC. 803. EMERGENCY DESIGNATION. 

13 The amounts provided under this Act or under 

14 amendments made by this Act to respond to the hurri15 canes of calendar year 2005 are designated as an emer16 gency requirement pursuant to section 402 of H. Con. 

17 Res. 95 (109th Congress). 

18 SEC. 804. REGULATIONS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may promulgate 

20 such regulations as are necessary to implement this Act 

21 and the amendments made by this Act. 

22 (b) PROCEDURE.—The promulgation of the regula23 tions and administration of this Act and the amendments 

24 made by this Act shall be made without regard to— 
28 

•S 2009 IS

1 (1) the notice and comment provisions of sec2 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code; 

3 (2) the Statement of Policy of the Secretary of 

4 Agriculture effective July 24, 1971 (36 Fed. Reg. 

5 13804), relating to notices of proposed rulemaking 

6 and public participation in rulemaking; and 

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

8 (commonly known as the ‘‘Paperwork Reduction 

9 Act’’). 

10 (c) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF AGENCY RULE11 MAKING.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall 

12 use the authority provided under section 808 of title 5, 

13 United States Code. 

Æ