I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4153

To amend the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 to expand the types of

agricultural issues covered by State mediation programs.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 24, 1994

Mr. POMEROY (for himself, Mr. BAESLER, Mr. HOLDEN, Ms. LONG, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr. SARPALIUS, Mr. SLATTERY, and Mr. TEJEDA)

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on

Agriculture

A BILL

To amend the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 to expand

the types of agricultural issues covered by State

mediation programs.

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 ‘‘Agricultural Mediation

5 Improvement Act of 1994’’.
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1 SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF AGRICULTURAL ISSUES COVERED

2 BY STATE MEDIATION PROGRAMS.

3 (a) EXPANSION OF MEDIATION PROGRAMS.—Section

4 501 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 (7 U.S.C.

5 5101) is amended—

6 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘an agricul7 tural loan mediation program’’ and inserting ‘‘a me8 diation program’’; and

9 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘agricultural

10 loan’’; and

11 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the

12 following new subsection:

13 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS OF STATE MEDIATION PRO14 GRAMS.—

15 ‘‘(1) AGRICULTURAL ISSUES COVERED.—To be

16 certified as a qualifying State, the mediation pro17 gram of the State must provide mediation services to

18 producers, their creditors (if applicable), other per19 sons directly affected by actions of the Department

20 of Agriculture, and the Department of Agriculture,

21 involved in one or more of the following agricultural

22 issues:

23 ‘‘(A) Agricultural loans.

24 ‘‘(B) Wetlands determinations under the

25 jurisdiction of the Department.
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1 ‘‘(C) Compliance with farm programs, in2 cluding conservation programs of the Depart3 ment.

4 ‘‘(D) Agricultural credit.

5 ‘‘(E) Rural water loan programs.

6 ‘‘(F) Grazing on National Forest System

7 lands.

8 ‘‘(G) Pesticides.

9 ‘‘(H) Such other agricultural issues under

10 the jurisdiction of the Department as the Sec11 retary considers appropriate.

12 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATION CONDITIONS.—The Sec13 retary shall certify a State as a qualifying State with

14 respect to the agricultural issues proposed to be cov15 ered by the mediation program of the State if the

16 mediation program—

17 ‘‘(A) provides for mediation services that,

18 if decisions are reached, result in mediated, mu19 tually agreeable decisions between the parties to

20 the mediation;

21 ‘‘(B) is authorized or administered by an

22 agency of the State government or by the Gov23 ernor of the State;

24 ‘‘(C) provides for the training of medi25 ators;
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1 ‘‘(D) provides that the mediation sessions

2 shall be confidential;

3 ‘‘(E) ensures, in the case of agricultural

4 loans, that all lenders and borrowers of agricul5 tural loans receive adequate notification of the

6 mediation program; and

7 ‘‘(F) ensures, in the case of other agricul8 tural issues covered by the mediation program,

9 that persons directly affected by actions of the

10 Department of Agriculture receive adequate no11 tification of the mediation program.

12 ‘‘(3) TIME FOR CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary

13 shall make a determination whether to certify a

14 State as a qualifying State not later than 15 days

15 after the Secretary receives a description of the pro16 posed mediation program of the State.’’.

17 (b) PARTICIPATION OF DEPARTMENT.—Section 503

18 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 5103) is amended—

19 (1) by striking ‘‘agricultural loan’’ each place it

20 appears;

21 (2) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)

22 of subsection (a)(1)—

23 (A) by inserting ‘‘or agency’’ after ‘‘pro24 gram’’; and
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘that makes, guarantees,

2 or insures agricultural loans’’;

3 (3) in subsection (a)(1)(A)—

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘or agency’’ after ‘‘such

5 program’’; and

6 (B) by inserting ‘‘certified under section

7 501’’ after ‘‘mediation program’’;

8 (4) in subsection (a)(1)(B)—

9 (A) by striking ‘‘, effective beginning on

10 the date of the enactment of this Act,’’; and

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘certified under section

12 501’’ after ‘‘mediation programs’’; and

13 (5) in subsection (a)(1)(C)—

14 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘described in’’

15 and inserting ‘‘certified under’’; and

16 (B) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘if applica17 ble,’’ before ‘‘present’’.

18 (c) REGULATIONS.—Section 504 of such Act (7

19 U.S.C. 5104) is amended—

20 (1) by striking ‘‘Within 150 days after the date

21 of the enactment of this Act, the ’’ and inserting

22 ‘‘The’’; and

23 (2) by adding at the end the following new sen24 tence: ‘‘The regulations prescribed by the Secretary

25 shall require qualifying States to adequately train
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1 mediators to address all of the agricultural issues

2 covered by the mediation program of the State.’’.

3 (d) REPORT.—Section 505 of such Act (7 U.S.C.

4 5105) is amended by striking ‘‘1990’’ and inserting

5 ‘‘1998’’.

6 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section

7 506 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 5106) is amended by striking

8 ‘‘1995’’ and inserting ‘‘2000’’.

9 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

10 (1) REFERENCES TO AGRICULTURAL LOANS.—

11 Subtitle A of title V of such Act is amended—

12 (A) in sections 502 and 505(1) (7 U.S.C.

13 5102, 5105(1)), by striking ‘‘agricultural loan’’

14 each place it appears; and

15 (B) in section 505(3) (7 U.S.C. 5105(3)),

16 by striking ‘‘an agricultural loan mediation’’

17 and inserting ‘‘a mediation’’.

18 (2) WAIVER OF FARM CREDIT MEDIATION

19 RIGHTS BY BORROWERS.—Section 4.14E of the

20 Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2202e) is

21 amended by striking ‘‘agricultural loan’’.

22 (3) WAIVER OF FMHA MEDIATION RIGHTS BY

23 BORROWERS.—Section 358 of the Consolidated

24 Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2006)

25 is amended by striking ‘‘agricultural loan’’.
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Æ