I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6527 

To enhance civil rights accountability and enforcement in the Department 

of Agriculture, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 30, 2023 

Mr. JACKSON of Illinois (for himself, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. THANEDAR, Mr. COHEN, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. TRONE, 

and Mr. FROST) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To enhance civil rights accountability and enforcement in 

the Department of 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Just USDA Standards 

5 and Transparency Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘JUST Act of 

6 2023’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. CIVIL RIGHTS ACCOUNTABILITY FOR USDA EM2 PLOYEES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall 

4 ensure that appropriate corrective action is taken with re5 spect to any official or employee of the Department of Ag6 riculture who has been found to have engaged in any of 

7 the actions, violations, or misconduct referred to in sub8 section (b) while in the course of such official’s or employ9 ee’s employment or in administering a Department of Ag10 riculture program or service— 

11 (1) in any administrative finding by the Depart12 ment of Agriculture, including any final agency deci13 sion issued by the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture 

14 for Civil Rights and any civil rights compliance re15 view or misconduct investigation conducted by the 

16 Department of Agriculture; 

17 (2) in any Federal administrative or judicial 

18 proceeding; 

19 (3) in any settlement with respect to civil 

20 rights; 

21 (4) in any audit or investigation conducted by 

22 the Office of the Inspector General of the Depart23 ment of Agriculture; or 

24 (5) in any investigation conducted by the Office 

25 of the Special Counsel. 


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1 (b) COVERED ACTIONS, VIOLATIONS, OR MIS2 CONDUCT.—The actions, violations, or misconduct re3 ferred to in this subsection are discriminatory actions, re4 taliatory actions, harassment, civil rights violations, or re5 lated misconduct, including the following: 

6 (1) Failure to provide a receipt for service in 

7 accordance with section 2501A(e) of the Food, Agri8 culture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 

9 U.S.C. 2279–1(e)) to any current or prospective ap10 plicants of, or participants in, Department of Agri11 culture programs. 

12 (2) Providing an inaccurate receipt for service 

13 under such section 2501A(e) to any such current or 

14 prospective applicants or participants. 

15 (3) Failure to provide appropriate information 

16 regarding relevant programs and services at the De17 partment of Agriculture, when requested by any 

18 such current or prospective applicants or partici19 pants. 

20 (4) Failure to timely process applications or 

21 otherwise delaying program services to any such cur22 rent or prospective applicants or participants. 

23 (c) CORRECTIVE ACTION DEFINED.—In this section, 

24 the term ‘‘corrective action’’ means any action taken to 


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1 respond to any of the actions, violations, or misconduct 

2 referred to in subsection (b) that— 

3 (1) would enhance civil rights at the Depart4 ment of Agriculture, including any policy or pro5 grammatic changes to prevent similar misconduct 

6 from occurring in the future; and 

7 (2) may include disciplinary actions, includ8 ing— 

9 (A) removal from Federal service; 

10 (B) suspension without pay; 

11 (C) any reduction in grade or pay; and 

12 (D) a letter of reprimand. 

13 SEC. 3. IMPROVEMENTS TO THE OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT 

14 SECRETARY FOR CIVIL RIGHTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Department of Agriculture 

16 Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6912 et seq.) is 

17 amended by inserting after section 218 (7 U.S.C. 6918) 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 218A. ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR 

20 CIVIL RIGHTS. 

21 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab22 lish in the Department the position of Assistant Secretary 

23 of Agriculture for Civil Rights (referred to in this section 

24 as the ‘Assistant Secretary’). 


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1 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT.—The Assistant Secretary shall 

2 be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and 

3 consent of the Senate. 

4 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall dele6 gate to the Assistant Secretary responsibility for— 

7 ‘‘(A) ensuring compliance with all civil 

8 rights and related laws by all agencies and 

9 under all programs of the Department; 

10 ‘‘(B) coordinating administration of civil 

11 rights laws (including regulations) within the 

12 Department for employees of, and participants 

13 in, programs of the Department; and 

14 ‘‘(C) ensuring that necessary and appro15 priate civil rights components are properly in16 corporated into all strategic planning initiatives 

17 of the Department and agencies of the Depart18 ment. 

19 ‘‘(2) OFFICE OF LEGAL ADVISOR FOR CIVIL

20 RIGHTS.—Not later than 120 days after the date of 

21 enactment of this section, the Secretary shall estab22 lish an Office of Legal Advisor for Civil Rights that 

23 shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) be the sole office within the Depart2 ment responsible for providing legal advice to 

3 the Assistant Secretary to— 

4 ‘‘(i) ensure compliance with all civil 

5 rights and related laws and regulations by 

6 all agencies and under all programs of the 

7 Department; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) carry out fair and impartial in9 vestigations of civil rights complaints; 

10 ‘‘(B) report directly to the Assistant Sec11 retary; and 

12 ‘‘(C) not represent or defend the Depart13 ment or any of its agencies with respect to any 

14 claims of program or employment discrimina15 tion.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

17 (1) ASSISTANT SECRETARIES OF AGRI18 CULTURE.—Section 218 of the Department of Agri19 culture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6918) 

20 is amended— 

21 (A) in subsection (a)— 

22 (i) in paragraph (1), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

23 at the end; 


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1 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘; 

2 and’’ at the end and inserting a period; 

3 and 

4 (iii) by striking paragraph (3); 

5 (B) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘any po6 sition of Assistant Secretary authorized under 

7 paragraph (1) or (3) of subsection (a)’’ and in8 serting ‘‘the position of Assistant Secretary of 

9 Agriculture for Congressional Relations and 

10 Intergovernmental Affairs under subsection 

11 (a)(1)’’; and 

12 (C) by striking subsection (c). 

13 (2) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 

14 296(b)(5) of the Department of Agriculture Reorga15 nization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7014(b)(5)) is 

16 amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(5) The authority of the Secretary to carry out 

18 section 218A.’’. 

19 SEC. 4. EQUITABLE RELIEF. 

20 (a) EQUITABLE RELIEF FROM INELIGIBILITY FOR

21 LOANS, PAYMENTS, OR OTHER BENEFITS.—Section 1613 

22 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 

23 (7 U.S.C. 7996) is amended— 

24 (1) by redesignating subsections (f) through (j) 

25 as subsections (g) through (k), respectively; 


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1 (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(f) EQUITABLE RELIEF BY THE ASSISTANT SEC4 RETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Secretary of 

6 Agriculture for Civil Rights (or a designee of the 

7 Secretary in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for 

8 Civil Rights, if no Assistant Secretary of Agriculture 

9 for Civil Rights is appointed and confirmed in ac10 cordance with section 218A(b) of the Department of 

11 Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994) may grant 

12 relief in accordance with subsections (b) through (d) 

13 to a participant who files a civil rights program com14 plaint. 

15 ‘‘(2) DECISIONS.—The decision by the Assist16 ant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil Rights (or the 

17 designee of the Secretary) to grant relief under this 

18 subsection— 

19 ‘‘(A) shall not require prior approval by 

20 any officer or employee of the Department of 

21 Agriculture; and 

22 ‘‘(B) is subject to reversal only by the Sec23 retary (who may not delegate the reversal au24 thority). 


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1 ‘‘(3) OTHER AUTHORITY.—The authority pro2 vided to the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for 

3 Civil Rights (or the designee of the Secretary) under 

4 this subsection is in addition to any other applicable 

5 authority and does not limit other authority provided 

6 by law or the Secretary.’’; 

7 (3) in subsection (g), as so redesignated, by 

8 striking ‘‘or the State Conservationist’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘the State Conservationist, or the Assistant Sec10 retary of Agriculture for Civil Rights (or the des11 ignee of the Secretary)’’; and 

12 (4) in paragraph (1) of subsection (h), as so re13 designated, by striking ‘‘and (e)’’ and inserting ‘‘, 

14 (e), and (f)’’. 

15 (b) EQUITABLE RELIEF FOR ACTIONS TAKEN IN

16 GOOD FAITH.—Section 366 of the Consolidated Farm and 

17 Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2008a) is amended— 

18 (1) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol19 lows: 

20 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The Secretary may only provide 

21 relief to a farmer or rancher under subsection (a) if the 

22 Secretary determines that the farmer or rancher— 

23 ‘‘(1) acted in good faith and relied on an action 

24 of, or the advice of, the Secretary (including any au25 thorized representative of the Secretary) to the detVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:22 Dec 07, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6527.IH H6527

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1 riment of the farming or ranching operation of the 

2 farmer or rancher; or 

3 ‘‘(2) failed to comply fully with the require4 ments to receive a loan described in subsection 

5 (a)(1), but made a good faith effort to comply with 

6 the requirements.’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub8 section (f); 

9 (3) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(e) EQUITABLE RELIEF BY THE ASSISTANT SEC12 RETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Secretary of 

14 Agriculture for Civil Rights (or a designee of the 

15 Secretary in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for 

16 Civil Rights, if no Assistant Secretary of Agriculture 

17 for Civil Rights is appointed and confirmed in ac18 cordance with section 218A(b) of the Department of 

19 Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994) may grant 

20 relief in accordance with subsections (a) through (d) 

21 to an individual who files a complaint with respect 

22 to civil rights regarding a direct farm ownership, op23 erating, or emergency loan under this title. 

24 ‘‘(2) DECISIONS.—The decision by the Assist25 ant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil Rights (or the 


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1 designee of the Secretary) to grant relief under this 

2 subsection— 

3 ‘‘(A) shall not require prior approval by 

4 any officer or employee of the Department of 

5 Agriculture; and 

6 ‘‘(B) is subject to reversal only by the Sec7 retary (who may not delegate the reversal au8 thority). 

9 ‘‘(3) OTHER AUTHORITY.—The authority pro10 vided to the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for 

11 Civil Rights (or the designee of the Secretary) under 

12 this subsection is in addition to any other applicable 

13 authority and does not limit other authority provided 

14 by law or the Secretary.’’; and 

15 (4) in subsection (f), as so redesignated, by 

16 striking ‘‘Secretary’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary, or 

17 the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil 

18 Rights (or the designee of the Secretary),’’. 

19 SEC. 5. OFFICE OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS OMBUDSPERSON. 

20 Title III of the Federal Crop Insurance Reform and 

21 Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 

22 U.S.C. 2231b et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

23 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 310. OFFICE OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS OMBUDSPERSON. 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after 

3 the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 

4 establish an Office of the Civil Rights Ombudsperson (in 

5 this section referred to as the ‘Office’) within the Depart6 ment. The Office shall be independent of Department 

7 agencies and offices. 

8 ‘‘(b) OMBUDSPERSON DESIGNATION.—The Secretary 

9 shall designate a Civil Rights Ombudsperson (in this sec10 tion referred to as the ‘Ombudsperson’) for the Office. The 

11 Ombudsperson shall be considered a senior official of the 

12 Department and have a background in civil rights enforce13 ment. 

14 ‘‘(c) OFFICE PERSONNEL.—The Ombudsperson shall 

15 appoint such employees as are necessary to perform the 

16 functions of the Office and for the administration of the 

17 Office. 

18 ‘‘(d) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Office shall 

19 be— 

20 ‘‘(1) to assist producers and other customers of 

21 Department programs in navigating the civil rights 

22 review process; 

23 ‘‘(2) to ensure that participants (as defined in 

24 section 271) are aware of the appeals process under 

25 subtitle H of title II, including informal hearings 

26 under section 275; 


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1 ‘‘(3) to promote awareness of the Office and its 

2 responsibilities among producers and other cus3 tomers of Department programs; and 

4 ‘‘(4) to raise issues and concerns with respect 

5 to, and make recommendations to the Secretary 

6 about, equitable access or implementation of Depart7 ment programs. 

8 ‘‘(e) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

10 the Secretary shall establish procedures to provide 

11 the Office access to all departmental records nec12 essary to execute the functions of the Office under 

13 subsection (d). 

14 ‘‘(2) TIMELINES.—The procedures described in 

15 paragraph (1) shall include a requirement that re16 quests from the Office for departmental records 

17 shall be fulfilled not later than 60 days after the re18 quest is made. 

19 ‘‘(f) ANNUAL REPORT.—Beginning not later than 1 

20 year after the date of the enactment of this section, and 

21 annually thereafter, the Ombudsperson shall prepare and 

22 submit to the House Committee on Agriculture and the 

23 Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

24 a report on— 

25 ‘‘(1) the activities carried out by the Office; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the findings and recommendations of the 

2 Office with respect to equitable access or implemen3 tation of Department programs. 

4 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 is authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec6 essary to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 

7 2024 through 2026.’’. 

8 SEC. 6. BURDEN OF PROOF FOR NATIONAL APPEALS DIVI9 SION HEARINGS. 

10 Section 277(c)(4) of the Department of Agriculture 

11 Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6997(c)(4)) is 

12 amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(4) BURDEN OF PROOF.—The agency shall 

14 bear the burden of proving by substantial evidence 

15 that the adverse decision of the agency was valid.’’. 

Æ 


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