103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1970

AN ACT

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to reorgaother purposes. nize the Department of Agriculture, and for
103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1970

AN ACT

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to reorganize 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

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

5 ‘‘Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994’’.
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Purpose.

Sec. 3. Definitions.

TITLE I—GENERAL AUTHORITIES OF THE SECRETARY

Sec. 101. Delegation of functions to the Secretary.

Sec. 102. Reorganization.

Sec. 103. Personnel reductions.

Sec. 104. Consolidation of headquarters offices.

Sec. 105. Reports by the Secretary.

TITLE II—NATIONAL APPEALS DIVISION

Sec. 201. Definitions.

Sec. 202. National Appeals Division and Director.

Sec. 203. Transfer of functions.

Sec. 204. Personnel of the Division.

Sec. 205. Notice and opportunity for hearing.

Sec. 206. Informal hearings.

Sec. 207. Rights of participants.

Sec. 208. Division hearings and Director review.

Sec. 209. Judicial review.

Sec. 210. Implementation of final determinations of Division.

Sec. 211. Decisions of State and county committees.

Sec. 212. Prohibition on adverse action while appeal is pending.

Sec. 213. Relationship to other laws.

Sec. 214. Evaluation of agency decisionmakers and other employees.

Sec. 215. Conforming amendments.

TITLE III—FARM AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE SERVICES

Sec. 301. Under Secretary for Farm and International Trade Services.

Sec. 302. Farm Service Agency.

Sec. 303. State and county committees.

Sec. 304. International Trade Service.

TITLE IV—RURAL ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Sec. 401. Under Secretary for Rural Economic and Community Development.

Sec. 402. Rural Utilities Service.

Sec. 403. Rural Housing and Community Development Service.

Sec. 404. Rural Business and Cooperative Development Service.

TITLE V—FOOD, NUTRITION, AND CONSUMER SERVICES

Sec. 501. Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer

Services.

Sec. 502. Food and Consumer Service.

Sec. 503. Nutrition Research and Education Service.

TITLE VI—NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT

Sec. 601. Natural Resources Conservation Service.
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Sec. 602. Reorganization of Forest Service.

TITLE VII—MARKETING AND INSPECTION SERVICES

Sec. 701. Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.

TITLE VIII—RESEARCH, ECONOMICS, AND EDUCATION

Sec. 801. Federal Research and Information Service.

Sec. 802. Cooperative State Research and Education Service.

Sec. 803. Agricultural Economics and Statistics Service.

Sec. 804. Program Policy and Coordination Staff.

TITLE IX—FOOD SAFETY

Sec. 901. Food Safety Service.

TITLE X—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 1001. Assistant Secretaries of Agriculture.

Sec. 1002. Removal of obsolete provisions.

Sec. 1003. Additional conforming amendments.

Sec. 1004. Termination of authority.

Sec. 1005. Elimination of duplicative inspection requirements.

1 SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

2 The purpose of this Act is to provide the Secretary

3 of Agriculture with the necessary authority to streamline

4 and reorganize the Department of Agriculture to achieve

5 greater efficiency, effectiveness, and economies in the or6 ganization and management of the programs and activities

7 carried out at the Department.

8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

9 As used in this Act (unless the context clearly re10 quires otherwise):

11 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT.—The term ‘‘admin12 istrative unit’’ includes—

13 (A) any office, administration, agency, in14 stitute, unit, or organizational entity, or compo-
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1 nent thereof, except that the term does not in2 clude a corporation; and

3 (B) any county, State, or area committee,

4 as established by the Secretary.

5 (2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’

6 means the United States Department of Agriculture.

7 (3) FUNCTION.—The term ‘‘function’’ means

8 an administrative, financial, or regulatory duty of an

9 administrative unit or employee of the Department,

10 including a transfer of funds made available to carry

11 out a function of an administrative unit.

12 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

13 the Secretary of Agriculture.

14 TITLE I—GENERAL AUTHORI15 TIES OF THE SECRETARY

16 SEC. 101. DELEGATION OF FUNCTIONS TO THE SECRETARY.

17 (a) DELEGATION OF FUNCTIONS.—Except as other18 wise provided in this Act and notwithstanding any other

19 provision of law, all functions and all activities, officers,

20 employees, and administrative units of the Department,

21 not vested in the Secretary on the date of enactment of

22 this Act, are delegated to the Secretary.

23 (b) EXCEPTIONS TO THE DELEGATION.—This sec24 tion shall not apply to the following functions and admin25 istrative units of the Department:
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1 (1) The functions vested in administrative law

2 judges by subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, Unit3 ed States Code.

4 (2) The functions vested in the Inspector Gen5 eral by the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C.

6 App. 3).

7 (3) The functions vested in the Chief Financial

8 Officer by chapter 9 of subtitle I of title 31, United

9 States Code.

10 (4) Corporations and the boards of directors

11 and officers of the corporations.

12 (5) The functions vested in the Alternative Ag13 ricultural Research and Commercialization Board by

14 the Alternative Agricultural Research and Commer15 cialization Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5901 et seq.).

16 SEC. 102. REORGANIZATION.

17 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.—

18 The Secretary may transfer any function or administrative

19 unit of the Department, including any function or admin20 istrative unit delegated to the Secretary by this Act, and

21 any officer or employee of the Department, as the Sec22 retary considers appropriate. The authority established in

23 the preceding sentence includes the authority to establish,

24 consolidate, alter, or discontinue any administrative unit

25 of the Department.
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1 (b) AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER RECORDS, PROPERTY,

2 AND FUNDS.—

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 1531 of

4 title 31, United States Code, the Secretary may

5 transfer any of the records, property, and unex6 pended balances (available or to be made available

7 for use in connection with any affected function or

8 administrative unit) of appropriations, allocations,

9 and other funds of the Department, as the Secretary

10 considers necessary to carry out this Act, except as

11 otherwise provided in this section.

12 (2) USE.—Absent prior approval by law, any

13 unexpended balances transferred pursuant to para14 graph (1) shall be used only for the purposes for

15 which the funds were originally made available.

16 (3) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

17 may make such additional incidental dispositions of

18 personnel, assets, liabilities, grants, contracts, prop19 erty, records, and unexpended balances of appropria20 tions, authorizations, allocations, and other funds

21 held, used, arising from, available to, or to be made

22 available in connection with the functions or admin23 istrative units, as the Secretary considers necessary

24 to carry out this Act.
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1 (c) PURPOSE OF THE AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

2 shall carry out subsections (a) and (b) with the goals of

3 simplifying and maximizing the efficiency of the national,

4 State, regional, and local levels of the Department, and

5 of improving the accessibility of farm and other programs

6 at all levels. To the extent practicable, the Secretary shall

7 adapt the administration of the programs to State, re8 gional, and local conditions.

9 (d) EXHAUSTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS.—

10 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person shall

11 exhaust all administrative appeal procedures established

12 by the Secretary before the person may bring an action

13 in a court of competent jurisdiction against—

14 (1) the Secretary;

15 (2) the Department;

16 (3) an administrative unit of the Department;

17 or

18 (4) an employee or agent of an administrative

19 unit of the Department.

20 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 9 of the

21 Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C.

22 714g) is amended—

23 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘(a)’’; and

24 (2) by striking subsection (b).
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1 SEC. 103. PERSONNEL REDUCTIONS.

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section:

3 (1) FIELD STRUCTURE.—The term ‘‘field struc4 ture’’ means the offices, functions, and employee po5 sitions of all administrative units of the Department,

6 other than the headquarters offices. The term in7 cludes the physical and geographic locations of the

8 units. The term shall not include State, county, or

9 area committees established under section 8(b) of

10 the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act

11 (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)).

12 (2) HEADQUARTERS OFFICES.—The term

13 ‘‘headquarters offices’’ means the offices, functions,

14 and employee positions of all administrative units of

15 the Department located or performed in Washing16 ton, District of Columbia, or elsewhere, as deter17 mined by the Secretary.

18 (b) EMPLOYEE REDUCTIONS.—Subject to subsection

19 (c), the Secretary shall achieve employee reductions of at

20 least 7,500 staff years within the Department by Septem21 ber 30, 1999.

22 (c) DISTRIBUTION.—The percentage of employee re23 ductions in the headquarters offices under subsection (b)

24 shall be substantially higher than the percentage of em25 ployee reductions in the field structure, as determined by

26 the Secretary.
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1 (d) SCHEDULE.—The personnel reductions under

2 subsections (b) and (c) should be accomplished concur3 rently in a manner determined by the Secretary.

4 SEC. 104. CONSOLIDATION OF HEADQUARTERS OFFICES.

5 The Secretary shall develop and carry out a plan to

6 consolidate offices of administrative units of the Depart7 ment located in Washington, District of Columbia, subject

8 to the availability of appropriations.

9 SEC. 105. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), not11 withstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary

12 may, but shall not be required to, prepare and submit any

13 report to Congress or any committee of Congress.

14 (b) LIMITATION.—For each fiscal year, the Secretary

15 may not prepare and submit more than 30 reports re16 ferred to in subsection (a).

17 (c) SELECTION OF REPORTS.—In consultation with

18 the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representa19 tives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and

20 Forestry of the Senate, the Secretary shall determine

21 which reports shall be prepared and submitted in accord22 ance with subsection (b).
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1 TITLE II—NATIONAL APPEALS

2 DIVISION

3 SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS.

4 As used in this title:

5 (1) ADVERSE DECISION.—The term ‘‘adverse

6 decision’’ means an administrative decision made by

7 a decisionmaker that is adverse to a participant, in8 cluding a denial of equitable relief, except that the

9 term shall not include a decision over which the

10 Board of Contract Appeals has jurisdiction. The

11 term shall include the failure of a decisionmaker to

12 issue a decision or otherwise act on the request or

13 right of the participant to participate in, or receive

14 payments, loans, or other benefits under, any of the

15 programs administered by an agency. Notwithstand16 ing section 701(a)(2) of title 5, United States Code,

17 a discretionary decision of the Secretary or the Divi18 sion shall be reviewable under section 706(2)(A) of

19 such title unless the decision is generally applicable

20 to all program participants and, as a matter of gen21 eral applicability, is committed to agency discretion

22 by law within the meaning of section 701(a)(2) of

23 such title.

24 (2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means any

25 agency of the Department designated by the Sec-
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1 retary or a successor agency of the Department, ex2 cept that the term shall include—

3 (A) ASCS;

4 (B) CCC, with respect to domestic pro5 grams;

6 (C) FmHA (including rural housing pro7 grams);

8 (D) FCIC;

9 (E) RDA (including rural housing pro10 grams);

11 (F) SCS; or

12 (G) a State or county committee estab13 lished under section 8(b) of the Soil Conserva14 tion and Domestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C.

15 590h(b)) or the Consolidated Farm and Rural

16 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1921 et seq.).

17 (3) APPELLANT.—The term ‘‘appellant’’ means

18 a participant who appeals an adverse decision in ac19 cordance with this title.

20 (4) ASCS.—The term ‘‘ASCS’’ means the Agri21 cultural Stabilization and Conservation Service or a

22 successor agency.

23 (5) CASE RECORD.—The term ‘‘case record’’

24 means all the materials maintained by the Secretary
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1 that concern the participant, including any materials

2 related to the adverse decision.

3 (6) CCC.—The term ‘‘CCC’’ means the Com4 modity Credit Corporation or a successor agency.

5 (7) DECISIONMAKER.—The term

6 ‘‘decisionmaker’’ means an officer, employee, or

7 committee of an agency who makes an adverse deci8 sion that is appealed by an appellant.

9 (8) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means

10 the Director of the Division.

11 (9) DIVISION.—The term ‘‘Division’’ means the

12 National Appeals Division established by this title.

13 (10) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ means

14 an individual employed by an agency, including an

15 individual who enters into a contract with an agency

16 to perform services for the agency.

17 (11) FINAL DETERMINATION.—The term ‘‘final

18 determination’’ means a determination of an appeal

19 by the Division that is administratively final, conclu20 sive, and binding.

21 (12) FCIC.—The term ‘‘FCIC’’ means the

22 Federal Crop Insurance Corporation or a successor

23 agency.
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1 (13) FMHA.—The term ‘‘FmHA’’ means the

2 Farmers Home Administration or a successor agen3 cy.

4 (14) HEARING OFFICER.—The term ‘‘hearing

5 officer’’ means an individual employed by the Divi6 sion who hears and determines appeals of adverse

7 decisions by any agency.

8 (15) HEARING RECORD.—The term ‘‘hearing

9 record’’ means the transcript of a hearing, any audio

10 tape or similar recording of a hearing, any informa11 tion from the case record that a hearing officer con12 siders relevant or that is raised by the appellant or

13 agency, and all documents and other evidence pre14 sented to a hearing officer.

15 (16) IMPLEMENT; IMPLEMENTATION.—The

16 terms ‘‘implement’’ and ‘‘implementation’’ refer to

17 those actions necessary to effectuate fully and

18 promptly a determination of the Division not later

19 than 30 calendar days after the effective date of the

20 determination.

21 (17) PARTICIPANT.—The term ‘‘participant’’

22 means any individual, group of individuals, partner23 ship, corporation, association, cooperative, or other

24 entity whose application for, or right to participate

25 in or receive, payments, loans, or other benefits in
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1 accordance with any of the programs administered

2 by an agency, is affected by an adverse decision

3 made by a decisionmaker.

4 (18) RDA.—The term ‘‘RDA’’ means the Rural

5 Development Administration or a successor agency.

6 (19) SCS.—The term ‘‘SCS’’ means the Soil

7 Conservation Service or a successor agency.

8 (20) STATE DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘State di9 rector’’ means the individual who is primarily re10 sponsible for carrying out the program of an agency

11 within a State.

12 SEC. 202. NATIONAL APPEALS DIVISION AND DIRECTOR.

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF DIVISION.—

14 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es15 tablish and maintain a National Appeals Division

16 within the Office of the Secretary to carry out this

17 title.

18 (2) APA APPLICATION.—The provisions of title

19 5, United States Code, shall apply to all appeals of

20 the Division, including chapters 5 and 7 of such

21 title.

22 (3) PROCEDURAL REGULATIONS AND POLI23 CIES.—The Secretary shall promulgate procedural

24 regulations and policies to govern the conduct of the

25 business of the Division. The Secretary shall ensure
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1 and enhance the independence, integrity, and effi2 ciency of the Division, the Director, hearing officers,

3 and other employees of the Division.

4 (b) DIRECTOR.—

5 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Division shall be

6 headed by a Director.

7 (2) POSITION CLASSIFICATION.—The position

8 of the Director shall be a Senior Executive Service

9 position that shall be filled by a career appointee (as

10 defined in section 3132(a)(4) of title 5, United

11 States Code), who shall not be subject to removal ex12 cept for cause in accordance with law.

13 (3) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Director shall be a

14 person who has substantial experience in practicing

15 administrative law. In considering applicants for the

16 position of Director, the Secretary shall consider

17 persons employed outside the Government as well as

18 Government employees.

19 (4) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5316

20 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding

21 at the end the following:

22 ‘‘Director, National Appeals Division, Depart23 ment of Agriculture.’’.

24 (c) DIRECTION, CONTROL, AND SUPPORT.—The Di25 rector shall be free from the direction and control of any
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1 person other than the Secretary. The Division shall not

2 receive administrative support (except on a reimbursable

3 basis) from any agency other than the Office of the Sec4 retary. The Secretary may not delegate to any other offi5 cer or employee of the Department, other than the Direc6 tor, the authority of the Secretary with respect to the Divi7 sion.

8 (d) COMMUNICATION WITH SECRETARY AND AGEN9 CIES.—The Director shall inform the Secretary and the

10 appropriate agency of problems regarding the functions of

11 the agency that are identified as a result of the activities

12 of the Division under this title. The information provided

13 by the Director may include proposals to resolve the prob14 lems identified or otherwise to improve the programs of

15 the agency.

16 (e) APPEALABLE DECISIONS.—Subject to section

17 204(b)(2), if a decisionmaker determines that a decision

18 is not appealable and a participant appeals the decision

19 to the Director, the Director shall determine whether the

20 decision is adverse or of general applicability, and thus

21 appealable. Except for a legal interpretation that may be

22 reversed or modified by the Secretary, the determination

23 of the Director as to whether a decision is appealable shall

24 be administratively final, conclusive, and binding.
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1 (f) OTHER POWERS OF THE DIRECTOR.—The Direc2 tor may enter into contracts and make other arrangements

3 for reporting and other services and make such payments

4 as may be necessary to carry out this title.

5 SEC. 203. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.

6 There are transferred to the Division all functions ex7 ercised and all administrative appeals pending before the

8 date of enactment of this Act (including all related func9 tions of any officer or employee) of or relating to—

10 (1) the National Appeals Division established

11 by section 426(c) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7

12 U.S.C. 1433e(c)) (as in effect before the amendment

13 made by section 215(a)(2));

14 (2) the National Appeals Division established

15 by subsections (d) through (g) of section 333B of

16 the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act

17 (7 U.S.C. 1983b) (as in effect before the amendment

18 made by section 215(b));

19 (3) appeals of decisions made by FCIC; and

20 (4) appeals of decisions made by SCS.

21 SEC. 204. PERSONNEL OF THE DIVISION.

22 (a) APPOINTMENT, DIRECTION, AND CONTROL.—

23 The Director shall appoint such hearing officers and other

24 employees as are necessary for the administration of the

25 Division. A hearing officer or other employee of the Divi-
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1 sion shall have no duties other than those that are nec2 essary to carry out this title. Hearing officers shall be su3 pervised by the Director. All other employees of the Divi4 sion shall report to the Director.

5 (b) LEGAL COUNSEL.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall employ

7 legal counsel to advise the Director with respect to

8 legal questions affecting the Division. The legal

9 counsel shall not serve as a counsel to any other

10 agency of the Department. This subsection is not in11 tended to affect the role of the Office of General

12 Counsel in representing the Department in civil or

13 criminal actions or as a liaison between the Depart14 ment and any other Federal agency.

15 (2) REVIEW BY THE SECRETARY.—If a hearing

16 officer or the Director disagrees with the General

17 Counsel on a matter of legal interpretation with re18 spect to a program or authority of the Department,

19 the Secretary shall have the authority to make a

20 final determination on the interpretation at the re21 quest of the General Counsel. The authority of the

22 Secretary under this paragraph may not be dele23 gated.

24 (c) PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS.—The Director

25 shall establish policies to provide for the evaluation of the
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1 Director, hearing officers, and other employees of the Di2 vision who are involved in the appeal process under section

3 208 or the supervision of other employees. The evaluation

4 process shall be designed to ensure and enhance the inde5 pendence, integrity, and efficiency of the Director and em6 ployees of the Division. The actual evaluations shall in7 clude evaluations by individuals outside of the Department

8 and may include peer review.

9 SEC. 205. NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR HEARING.

10 (a) NOTICE REQUIRED.—Not later than 10 working

11 days after an adverse decision is made that is adverse to

12 the participant, the Secretary shall provide the participant

13 with the written notice described in subsection (b).

14 (b) CONTENT OF NOTICE.—The notice required

15 under subsection (a) shall contain a description of the fol16 lowing:

17 (1) The decision, including all of the reasons,

18 facts, and conclusions underlying the decision.

19 (2) The appeal and implementation process

20 available to the participant, including the rights and

21 responsibilities of the participant provided by this

22 title.

23 (3) An opportunity to request a determination

24 by the Director pursuant to section 202(e) concern25 ing whether a decision is appealable, if the
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1 decisionmaker determines that the decision is not

2 appealable.

3 (c) MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS.—The Secretary and

4 the Director shall maintain the entire case record and

5 hearing record, respectively, and any additional informa6 tion from any further appeal proceeding, of the participant

7 at least until the expiration of the period during which

8 the participant may seek administrative or judicial review

9 of the determination.

10 (d) JOINDER.—

11 (1) GUARANTEED LOANS.—With regard to a

12 guaranteed loan under the Consolidated Farm and

13 Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1921 et seq.), a

14 borrower or applicant who is directly and adversely

15 affected by a decision of the Secretary may appeal

16 the decision pursuant to this title without the lender

17 joining in the appeal.

18 (2) RENTAL HOUSING.—A tenant in rental

19 housing of an agency who is individually, directly,

20 and adversely affected by a decision of the Secretary

21 may appeal the decision pursuant to this title with22 out the landlord joining in the appeal.

23 (3) THIRD PARTIES.—If the Director deter24 mines that the receipt of a payment, loan, or other

25 direct benefit by a participant may be directly, sub-
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1 stantially, and adversely affected by a determination

2 of the Division, a hearing officer may invite the par3 ticipant to participate in a hearing if the final deter4 mination resulting from the hearing would, as a

5 practical matter, foreclose the participant from re6 ceiving the payment, loan, or other direct benefit of

7 the participant. If the participant elects to partici8 pate in the hearing, the participant shall have the

9 same procedural rights as the appellant with regard

10 to the hearing and other procedures described in this

11 title.

12 (e) EFFECT OF REVERSAL OR MODIFICATION OF AD13 VERSE DECISION.—If an adverse decision is reversed or

14 modified by the Division, a decisionmaker may not base

15 any subsequent adverse decision with regard to that appel16 lant on the information that was available to the previous

17 decisionmaker (or could have been available with reason18 able diligence on the part of the previous decisionmaker).

19 SEC. 206. INFORMAL HEARINGS.

20 If a decisionmaker of an agency makes an adverse

21 decision, the decisionmaker shall hold, at the request of

22 the participant, an informal hearing on the decision.

23 SEC. 207. RIGHTS OF PARTICIPANTS.

24 Among other rights, a participant shall have the

25 right, in accordance with this title, to—
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1 (1) appeal any adverse decision;

2 (2) representation by an attorney or

3 nonattorney throughout the informal hearing and

4 appeals process under this title;

5 (3) access to, and a reasonable opportunity to

6 inspect and reproduce, the case record at an office

7 of the agency located in the area of the participant;

8 and

9 (4) an evidentiary hearing.

10 SEC. 208. DIVISION HEARINGS AND DIRECTOR REVIEW.

11 (a) POWERS OF DIRECTOR AND HEARING OFFI12 CERS.—To carry out their responsibilities under this sec13 tion, the Director and hearing officers—

14 (1) shall have access to all records, reports, au15 dits, reviews, documents, papers, recommendations,

16 or other material available that relate to programs

17 and operations with respect to which an appeal has

18 been taken;

19 (2) shall have the authorities that are provided

20 under section 202(a)(2);

21 (3) may request such information or assistance

22 as may be necessary for carrying out the duties and

23 responsibilities established under this title from any

24 Federal, State, or local governmental agency or unit

25 of the agency;
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1 (4) may, or shall at the request of an appellant

2 with good cause shown, require the attendance of

3 witnesses and the production of all information, doc4 uments, reports, answers, records, accounts, papers,

5 and other data and documentary evidence necessary

6 to the proper resolution of appeals;

7 (5) may require the attendance of witnesses,

8 and the production of evidence, by subpoena; and

9 (6) may administer oaths or affirmations.

10 (b) TIME FOR HEARING.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para12 graph (2), an appellant shall have the right to—

13 (A) request a hearing, not later than 30

14 days after the date an adverse decision is made;

15 and

16 (B) have a hearing by the Division on the

17 adverse decision, not later than 45 days after

18 receipt of the request for the hearing.

19 (2) REDUCTION OR EXTENSION.—The Director

20 may establish an earlier deadline for a hearing (or

21 request for a hearing) on an appeal relating to a

22 time sensitive decision, or delay a hearing (or re23 quest for a hearing), at the request of an appellant

24 for good cause shown.

25 (c) LOCATION AND ELEMENTS OF HEARING.—
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1 (1) LOCATION.—A hearing on an adverse deci2 sion shall be held in the State of residence of the ap3 pellant or at a location that is otherwise convenient

4 to the appellant and the Division.

5 (2) EVIDENTIARY HEARING.—The evidentiary

6 hearing before a hearing officer shall be in person,

7 unless the appellant agrees to a hearing by telephone

8 or by a review of the case record and hearing record.

9 The hearing officer shall conduct and resolve the

10 hearing (regardless of the hearing format) in a fair

11 and impartial manner and free of undue influence.

12 The hearing officer shall not be bound by previous

13 findings of fact by the agency in making a deter14 mination.

15 (3) INFORMATION AT HEARING.—The hearing

16 officer shall consider information, including new in17 formation, presented at the hearing without regard

18 to whether the evidence was known to the

19 decisionmaker at the time the adverse decision was

20 made. The hearing officer shall leave the record

21 open after the hearing for a reasonable period of

22 time to allow the submission of information by the

23 appellant or the decisionmaker after the hearing to

24 the extent necessary to prevent the appellant or the

25 decisionmaker from being prejudiced by new facts,
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1 information, arguments, or evidence presented or

2 raised by the decisionmaker or appellant. At the

3 hearing, the agency may not rely on or assert new

4 grounds for the adverse decision, if the grounds were

5 not described in the agency decision notice.

6 (4) BURDEN OF PROOF.—The appellant shall

7 bear the burden of proving that the adverse decision

8 of the agency was erroneous.

9 (5) PRODUCTION OF RECORD.—An official ver10 batim record shall be provided by the Division for

11 each hearing before a hearing officer. The appellant

12 or agency representative may record an unofficial

13 record of the hearing.

14 (6) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In any case pend15 ing before a hearing officer, the hearing officer may

16 determine that the adverse decision was in error only

17 if substantial evidence demonstrates that the adverse

18 decision was not correct. For purposes of this para19 graph, the evidentiary threshold for substantial evi20 dence is lower than the evidentiary threshold for pre21 ponderance of the evidence.

22 (7) DETERMINATION NOTICE.—The hearing of23 ficer shall issue a notice of the determination on the

24 appeal not later than 30 days after a hearing or

25 after receipt of the request of the appellant to waive
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1 a hearing, except that the Director may establish an

2 earlier or later deadline pursuant to subsection

3 (b)(2). The hearing officer may include rec4 ommendations in the determination notice. If the de5 termination is not appealed to the Director under

6 subsection (d), the notice provided by the hearing of7 ficer shall be considered to be a notice of final deter8 mination.

9 (d) REVIEW BY DIRECTOR.—

10 (1) REFERRAL.—At the request of the appel11 lant or the head of the agency affected by a deter12 mination of a hearing officer, the determination of

13 the hearing officer shall be referred to the Director

14 for review.

15 (2) APPEAL BY HEAD OF AGENCY TO DIREC16 TOR.—

17 (A) REVIEW OF DETERMINATION OF

18 HEARING OFFICER AT THE REQUEST OF AN

19 AGENCY HEAD.—In exceptional circumstances,

20 if the head of an agency believes that the deter21 mination of a hearing officer is contrary to a

22 statute or regulation, or a finding of fact of a

23 hearing officer is clearly erroneous, only the

24 head of the agency may make a written request,

25 not later than 10 business days after receipt of
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1 the determination, that the Director review the

2 determination.

3 (B) REQUESTS FOR REVIEW.—A request

4 for review shall—

5 (i) include a full description of—

6 (I) the exceptional circumstances

7 justifying the request for review; and

8 (II) the reasons that the head of

9 the relevant agency believes that the

10 determination is contrary to statute or

11 regulation, or the finding of fact of

12 the hearing officer is clearly erro13 neous; and

14 (ii) be provided to the appellant and

15 the hearing officer at the same time the re16 quest is provided to the Director.

17 (C) DETERMINATION OF DIRECTOR.—Not

18 later than 10 business days after receipt of the

19 request for review, the Director shall—

20 (i) conduct a review of the determina21 tion based on the case record and hearing

22 record, the request for review under sub23 section (b), and any additional arguments

24 or information submitted by the appellant

25 or the hearing officer; and
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1 (ii)(I) issue a final determination no2 tice that upholds, reverses, or modifies the

3 determination of the hearing officer; or

4 (II) if the Director determines that

5 the hearing record is inadequate, remand

6 the determination for further proceedings

7 to complete the hearing record, or, at the

8 option of the Director, to hold a new hear9 ing, and notify the appellant, agency, and

10 hearing officer of the remand.

11 (D) NEW HEARING.—If the Director re12 mands a determination for a new hearing on

13 the adverse decision under subparagraph (C),

14 the hearing officer shall make a new determina15 tion with respect to the adverse decision based

16 on the case record and the hearing record.

17 (E) FINALITY.—The head of the relevant

18 agency may not request a second review as to

19 the determination of the hearing officer or the

20 Director on the same issue.

21 (3) APPEAL BY HEAD OF AGENCY OR APPEL22 LANT TO DIRECTOR.—

23 (A) USE OF RECORD.—If the determina24 tion of a hearing officer is appealed under para25 graph (1), the hearing officer shall certify the
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1 hearing record and provide the record to the

2 Director.

3 (B) NEW INFORMATION.—The Director

4 may consider, under extraordinary cir5 cumstances, new information in reviewing a de6 termination under this section. The appellant,

7 decisionmaker, and hearing officer shall receive

8 and have the opportunity to comment on the

9 new information.

10 (C) ACTIONS.—Not later than 30 days

11 after the referral to the Director, the Director

12 shall—

13 (i) review the hearing record and the

14 determination;

15 (ii) uphold the determination, issue a

16 new determination, require that a new

17 hearing be held on 1 or more of the issues

18 considered at the original hearing, or take

19 any combination of the actions described in

20 this clause; and

21 (iii) issue a notice of—

22 (I) a new evidentiary hearing;

23 (II) a final determination; or
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1 (III) a remand on certain issues

2 and a final determination on remain3 ing issues.

4 (D) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Director

5 may include recommendations in a final deter6 mination notice.

7 (E) RELIEF.—The Director shall have the

8 same authority as the Secretary to grant equi9 table relief. Notwithstanding the administrative

10 finality of a final determination, the Secretary

11 shall have the authority to grant equitable or

12 other types of relief to the appellant after a

13 final determination is issued by the Division.

14 (e) BASIS FOR DETERMINATION.—The determination

15 of the hearing officer and the Director shall be based on

16 information from the hearing record, laws applicable to

17 the matter at issue, and applicable regulations published

18 in the Federal Register and in effect on the date of the

19 adverse decision or the date on which the acts that gave

20 rise to the adverse decision occurred, whichever date is ap21 propriate. The Director shall not reverse the determina22 tion of a hearing officer with regard to a finding of fact

23 that is based on oral testimony or inspection of evidence

24 unless the finding of fact is clearly erroneous or the Direc-
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1 tor is considering new information under subsection (d)(3)

2 with respect to the finding of fact.

3 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The final determination shall

4 be effective as of the date of filing of an application, the

5 date of the transaction or event in question, or the date

6 of the original adverse decision, whichever is applicable.

7 SEC. 209. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

8 A final determination of the Division under section

9 208 shall be reviewable and enforceable by any United

10 States district court of competent jurisdiction in accord11 ance with chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code. Not12 withstanding section 701(a)(2) of such title, a discre13 tionary decision of the Secretary or the Division shall be

14 reviewable under section 706(2)(A) of such title unless the

15 decision is generally applicable to all program participants

16 and, as a matter of general applicability, is committed to

17 agency discretion by law within the meaning of section

18 701(a)(2) of such title.

19 SEC. 210. IMPLEMENTATION OF FINAL DETERMINATIONS

20 OF DIVISION.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—On the return of a case to an

22 agency pursuant to the final determination of a hearing

23 officer or the Director under section 208, the agency shall

24 implement the final determination of the Division not later
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1 than 30 days after the effective date of the notice of the

2 final determination.

3 (b) ADDITIONAL AND UPDATED INFORMATION.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para5 graph (2), after notice of a final determination is re6 ceived by the agency—

7 (A) the agency may not require that addi8 tional and updated information be provided by

9 the appellant or considered by the

10 decisionmaker in implementing the final deter11 mination of the hearing officer or the Director;

12 and

13 (B) additional and updated information

14 from any other source may not be used in im15 plementing the final determination.

16 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—

17 (A) INTRODUCTION BY APPELLANT.—If

18 additional information is introduced by the ap19 pellant during the appeal process and accepted

20 by the hearing officer or the Director, the agen21 cy shall consider the additional information in

22 implementing the final determination.

23 (B) DETERMINATION LETTER.—If the

24 final determination notice specifically states

25 that additional and updated information will be
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1 considered in implementing the final determina2 tion, the agency shall consider any additional

3 and updated information in implementing the

4 final determination.

5 (C) SUBSEQUENT ADVERSE DECISION.—

6 Additional and updated information considered

7 under this paragraph may not be used as a

8 ground for a subsequent adverse decision.

9 (c) IMPLEMENTATION RESPONSIBILITIES.—

10 (1) STATE DIRECTOR.—Each State director

11 shall be—

12 (A) required to implement final determina13 tions of a hearing officer or the Director that

14 affect appellants in the State; and

15 (B) responsible for monitoring and ensur16 ing the implementation of final determinations

17 that reverse and modify adverse decisions.

18 (2) AGENCY HEADS.—Relevant agency heads

19 shall be responsible for—

20 (A) the performance of State directors

21 under paragraph (1); and

22 (B) the implementation of all final deter23 minations of the Division that reverse or modify

24 adverse decisions of the agency.

25 (d) PROTECTION OF APPELLANTS’ RIGHTS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—No officer or employee of

2 the Federal Government shall make or engage in

3 threats or intimidation, or solicit action, to prevent

4 any potential appellant from exercising a right of the

5 appellant under this title or make, solicit, or engage

6 in retaliation or retribution for the exercise of a

7 right of an appellant under this title.

8 (2) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If an officer or em9 ployee of the Federal Government violates paragraph

10 (1), the Secretary shall take corrective action (in11 cluding the imposition of sanctions, when necessary)

12 in conformance with civil service laws.

13 (e) IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS.—

14 (1) ACTIONS BY RELEVANT AGENCY HEAD.—

15 The relevant agency head shall promptly correct any

16 problems that may arise in the implementation of a

17 final determination.

18 (2) OVERSIGHT.—The Secretary shall assign

19 employees within the Office of the Inspector General

20 whom appellants may contact concerning problems

21 with the implementation of final determinations of

22 the Division. The employees shall investigate and, to

23 the extent practicable, resolve the implementation

24 problems.
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1 (3) IDENTITY AND ACTIVITIES OF OVERSIGHT

2 AGENCY.—The Secretary shall notify the Director of

3 the business address and telephone number of em4 ployees assigned under paragraph (2). The Director

5 shall include this information in the final determina6 tion notice of the Division to an appellant.

7 SEC. 211. DECISIONS OF STATE AND COUNTY COMMITTEES.

8 (a) FINALITY.—Each decision of a State or county

9 committee (or an employee of the committee) that admin10 isters functions of CCC, or functions assigned to ASCS

11 on the date of enactment of this Act, made in good faith

12 in the absence of misrepresentation, false statement,

13 fraud, or willful misconduct shall be final not later than

14 90 days after the date of filing of the application for bene15 fits, unless the decision is—

16 (1) appealed under this title; or

17 (2) modified by the Administrator of ASCS or

18 the Executive Vice President of CCC.

19 (b) RECOVERY OF AMOUNTS.—No action shall be

20 taken by the CCC, ASCS, or a State or county committee

21 to recover amounts found to have been disbursed as a re22 sult of a decision in error if the decision of the State or

23 county committee has become final under subsection (a),

24 unless the participant had reason to believe that the deci25 sion was erroneous.
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1 SEC. 212. PROHIBITION ON ADVERSE ACTION WHILE AP2 PEAL IS PENDING.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not take any

4 adverse action against an appellant relating to an appeal

5 while any proceeding authorized or required under this

6 title is pending, including any action that would prevent

7 the implementation of a decision that is favorable to the

8 appellant.

9 (b) WITHHOLDING.—This section shall not preclude

10 the Secretary from withholding a payment if the eligibility

11 for, or amount of, the payment is an issue on appeal, ex12 cept that ongoing assistance to then current borrowers

13 and grantees shall not be discontinued pending the out14 come of an appeal.

15 SEC. 213. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.

16 (a) OTHER RIGHTS.—This title is not intended to su17 persede or deprive a recipient of assistance from an agency

18 of any rights that the recipient may have under any other

19 law, including section 510(g) of the Housing Act of 1949

20 (42 U.S.C. 1480(g)).

21 (b) EQUITABLE RELIEF.—This title is not intended

22 to affect the authority of an agency head to grant equi23 table relief.

24 (c) EMPLOYEE RIGHTS.—This title shall neither su25 persede nor interfere with rights granted to employees or
37

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1 their exclusive representatives by applicable civil service

2 laws.

3 SEC. 214. EVALUATION OF AGENCY DECISIONMAKERS AND

4 OTHER EMPLOYEES.

5 (a) EVALUATION IN ANNUAL REVIEW.—The Sec6 retary shall promulgate regulations to require the evalua7 tion described in subsection (b) as part of the annual re8 view of the performance of decisionmakers, State direc9 tors, and agency heads.

10 (b) PERFORMANCE.—In the review, a decisionmaker,

11 a State director, or an agency head shall be considered

12 to have performed poorly if the decisionmaker, State direc13 tor, or agency head—

14 (1) takes action that leads to numerous appeals

15 that result in adverse decisions that are reversed or

16 modified;

17 (2) fails to properly implement final determina18 tions of the Division;

19 (3) fails to satisfactorily perform the reviewing

20 and monitoring responsibilities required under sub21 section (c) or (e)(1) of section 210, whichever ap22 plies; or

23 (4) threatens or intimidates, or engages in re24 taliation or retribution against, an appellant in viola25 tion of section 210(d).
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1 (c) SANCTIONS.—If a decisionmaker, State director,

2 or relevant agency head has performed poorly (as deter3 mined under subsection (b)), the Secretary shall issue

4 sanctions against the decisionmaker, State director, or rel5 evant agency head, as the case may be, which may include

6 a formal reprimand or dismissal consistent with civil serv7 ice laws.

8 SEC. 215. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

9 (a) ASCS.—

10 (1) FINALITY OF FARMERS PAYMENTS AND

11 LOANS.—Section 385 of the Agricultural Adjustment

12 Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1385) is amended—

13 (A) by striking the first sentence and in14 serting the following new sentence: ‘‘As used in

15 this section, the term ‘payment’ means any pay16 ment under the Soil Conservation and Domestic

17 Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590a et seq.), any

18 payment under the wheat, feed grain, upland

19 cotton, extra long staple cotton, and rice pro20 grams authorized by the Agricultural Act of

21 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1421 et seq.) and this Act, or

22 any loan or price support operation, or the

23 amount of the payment, loan, or price sup24 port.’’; and
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1 (B) in the second sentence, by striking

2 ‘‘any such payment’’ and inserting ‘‘a pay3 ment’’.

4 (2) DETERMINATIONS BY SECRETARY; AP5 PEALS.—Sections 412 and 426 of the Agricultural

6 Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1429 and 1433e) are re7 pealed.

8 (b) FMHA.—Section 333B of the Consolidated Farm

9 and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1983b) is repealed.

10 (c) FCIC.—The last sentence of section 508(f) of the

11 Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(f)) is amend12 ed by inserting before the period at the end the following:

13 ‘‘or within 1 year after the claimant receives a final deter14 mination notice from an administrative appeal made in ac15 cordance with title II of the Department of Agriculture

16 Reorganization Act of 1994, whichever is later’’.

17 TITLE III—FARM AND INTER18 NATIONAL TRADE SERVICES

19 SEC. 301. UNDER SECRETARY FOR FARM AND INTER20 NATIONAL TRADE SERVICES.

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the

22 Department the position of Under Secretary of Agri23 culture for Farm and International Trade Services (re24 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Under Secretary’’), to be
40

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1 appointed by the President, by and with the advice and

2 consent of the Senate.

3 (b) DUTIES.—The Under Secretary shall exercise

4 such functions and perform such duties related to farm

5 and international trade services, and shall perform such

6 other duties, as may be required by law or prescribed by

7 the Secretary.

8 (c) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any official

9 serving as Under Secretary for International Affairs and

10 Commodity Programs on the date of enactment of this

11 Act, who has been appointed by the President and con12 firmed by the Senate, shall be considered on and after the

13 date of enactment of this Act to be serving in the successor

14 position established by subsection (a), and shall not be re15 quired to be reconfirmed by reason of the enactment of

16 this Act.

17 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 (1) Section 5314 of title 5, United States Code,

19 is amended by striking ‘‘Under Secretary of Agri20 culture for International Affairs and Commodity

21 Programs.’’ and inserting ‘‘Under Secretary of Agri22 culture for Farm and International Trade Serv23 ices.’’.

24 (2) Section 501 of the Agricultural Trade Act

25 of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5691) is repealed.
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1 SEC. 302. FARM SERVICE AGENCY.

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

3 to establish and maintain a Farm Service Agency (re4 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Agency’’) and assign to

5 the Agency such functions as the Secretary may consider

6 appropriate.

7 (b) HEAD.—

8 (1) AGENCY.—If the Secretary establishes the

9 Agency, the Agency or any successor administrative

10 unit shall be headed by an Administrator who shall

11 be appointed by the President, by and with the ad12 vice and consent of the Senate.

13 (2) FCIC.—The Secretary may appoint the Ad14 ministrator of the Agency, or any other person, to

15 serve as head of the Federal Crop Insurance Cor16 poration.

17 (c) FUNCTIONS.—Except as provided in subsection

18 (d), the Secretary is authorized to carry out through the

19 Agency—

20 (1) price and income support, production ad21 justment, and other related functions;

22 (2) functions of the Federal Crop Insurance

23 Corporation;

24 (3) notwithstanding section 331 of the Consoli25 dated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C.

26 1981), agricultural credit functions assigned prior to
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1 the date of enactment of this Act to the Farmers

2 Home Administration, including farm ownership, op3 erating, emergency, and disaster loan functions, and

4 other lending programs for producers of agricultural

5 commodities; and

6 (4) any other function or administrative unit

7 that the Secretary considers appropriate.

8 (d) FUNCTIONS NOT ASSIGNABLE TO THE AGEN9 CY.—Except as otherwise determined by the Secretary,

10 functions relating to conservation programs authorized to

11 be assigned to the Natural Resources Conservation Service

12 established under section 601 may not be assigned to the

13 Agency.

14 (e) USE OF EMPLOYEES.—Notwithstanding any

15 other provision of law, in carrying out in any county or

16 area any functions assigned to the Agency or any succes17 sor administrative area, the Secretary is authorized to—

18 (1) use interchangeably, in the implementation

19 of functions, Federal employees, and employees of

20 county and State committees established under sec21 tion 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Al22 lotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)); and

23 (2) provide interchangeably for supervision by

24 the employees of the performance of functions as25 signed to the Agency.
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1 (f) COLLOCATION.—The Secretary, to the maximum

2 extent practicable, shall collocate county offices of the

3 Agency with county offices of the Natural Resources Con4 servation Service in order to—

5 (1) maximize savings from shared equipment,

6 office space, and administrative support;

7 (2) simplify paperwork and regulatory require8 ments;

9 (3) provide improved services to producers and

10 landowners affected by programs administered by

11 the Agency and the Service; and

12 (4) achieve computer compatibility between the

13 Agency and the Service to maximize efficiency and

14 savings.

15 (g) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any official

16 serving on the date of enactment of this Act, who has been

17 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,

18 shall not be required to be reconfirmed by reason of the

19 enactment of this Act.

20 (h) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

21 (1) The second sentence of section 505(a) of

22 the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1505(a))

23 is amended by striking ‘‘the Under Secretary or As24 sistant Secretary of Agriculture responsible for the

25 farm credit programs of the Department of Agri-
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1 culture,’’ and inserting ‘‘one additional Under or As2 sistant Secretary of Agriculture, as designated by

3 the Secretary,’’.

4 (2) Section 507(d) of the Federal Crop Insur5 ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1507(d)) is amended by striking

6 ‘‘section 516 of this Act,’’ and all that follows

7 through the period at the end of the subsection and

8 inserting ‘‘section 516.’’.

9 (3) Section 331(a) of the Consolidated Farm

10 and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1981(a)) is

11 amended by striking ‘‘assets to the Farmers Home

12 Administration’’ and all that follows through the pe13 riod at the end of the subsection and inserting ‘‘as14 sets to such officers or administrative units of the

15 Department of Agriculture as the Secretary may

16 consider appropriate.’’.

17 SEC. 303. STATE AND COUNTY COMMITTEES.

18 Section 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic

19 Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)) is amended—

20 (1) by designating the first through eighth un21 designated paragraphs as paragraphs (1) through

22 (8), respectively; and

23 (2) in paragraph (5) (as so designated) by add24 ing at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Sec25 retary is authorized, after consultation with the
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1 State committee of the State in which the affected

2 counties are located, to terminate, combine, and con3 solidate two or more county committees established

4 under this subsection.’’.

5 SEC. 304. INTERNATIONAL TRADE SERVICE.

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

7 to establish and maintain an International Trade Service

8 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign

9 to the Service such functions or administrative units as

10 the Secretary may consider appropriate and consistent

11 with this Act.

12 (b) HEAD.—If the Secretary establishes the Service,

13 the Service or any successor administrative unit shall be

14 headed by an Administrator who shall be appointed by the

15 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen16 ate.

17 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

18 carry out, through the Service or through such other offi19 cers or administrative units as the Secretary may consider

20 appropriate, programs and activities involving—

21 (1) the acquisition of information pertaining to

22 agricultural trade;

23 (2) market promotion and development;

24 (3) promotion of exports of United States agri25 cultural commodities;
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1 (4) administration of international food assist2 ance; and

3 (5) international development, technical assist4 ance, and training.

5 (d) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any official

6 serving on the date of enactment of this Act, who has been

7 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,

8 shall not be required to be reconfirmed by reason of the

9 enactment of this Act.

10 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sections 502 and

11 503 of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5692

12 and 5693) are repealed.

13 TITLE IV—RURAL ECONOMIC

14 AND COMMUNITY DEVELOP15 MENT

16 SEC. 401. UNDER SECRETARY FOR RURAL ECONOMIC AND

17 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subsection (a) of section 3 of

19 the Rural Development Policy Act of 1980 (7 U.S.C.

20 2211b) is amended to read as follows:

21 ‘‘(a)(1) There is established in the Department of Ag22 riculture the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture

23 for Rural Economic and Community Development to be

24 appointed by the President, by and with the advice and

25 consent of the Senate.
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1 ‘‘(2) The Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural

2 Economic and Community Development shall exercise

3 such functions and perform such duties related to rural

4 economic and community development, and shall perform

5 such other duties, as may be required by law or prescribed

6 by the Secretary of Agriculture.’’.

7 (b) CONTINUITY OF POSITION.—Any official serving

8 as Under Secretary of Agriculture for Small Community

9 and Rural Development on the date of enactment of this

10 Act, after appointment by the President, by and with the

11 advice and consent of the Senate, shall be considered after

12 the date of enactment of this Act to be serving in the suc13 cessor position established by the amendment made by

14 subsection (a), and shall not be required to be reconfirmed

15 by reason of the enactment of this Act.

16 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5314 of

17 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking

18 ‘‘Under Secretary of Agriculture for Small Community

19 and Rural Development.’’ and inserting ‘‘Under Secretary

20 of Agriculture for Rural Economic and Community Devel21 opment.’’.

22 SEC. 402. RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE.

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

24 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

25 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec-
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1 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

2 Department the Rural Utilities Service (referred to in this

3 section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such

4 functions and administrative units as the Secretary may

5 consider appropriate.

6 (b) HEAD.—If the Secretary establishes the Service,

7 the Service or any successor administrative unit shall be

8 headed by an Administrator who shall be appointed by the

9 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen10 ate.

11 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary may carry out

12 through the Service, or through any other officer or ad13 ministrative unit as the Secretary may consider appro14 priate—

15 (1) electric and telephone loan programs and

16 water and waste facility activities authorized by law,

17 including—

18 (A) the Rural Electrification Act of 1936

19 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.); and

20 (B) section 2322 of the Food, Agriculture,

21 Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C.

22 1926–1); and

23 (2) water and waste facility programs and ac24 tivities authorized by law, including—
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1 (A) sections 306, 306A, 306B, and 306C,

2 the provisions of sections 309 and 309A relat3 ing to assets, terms, and conditions of water

4 and sewer programs, section 310B(b)(2), and

5 the amendment made by section 342 of the

6 Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act

7 (7 U.S.C. 1926, 1926a, 1926b, 1926c, 1929,

8 1929a, 1932(b)(2), and 1013a); and

9 (B) section 2324 of the Food, Agriculture,

10 Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C.

11 1926 note).

12 (d) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any official

13 serving on the date of enactment of this Act, who has been

14 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,

15 shall not be required to be reconfirmed by reason of the

16 enactment of this Act.

17 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE RURAL

18 ELECTRIFICATION ACT.—

19 (1) The first section of the Rural Electrification

20 Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901) is amended by striking

21 ‘‘there is’’ and all that follows through ‘‘This Act’’

22 and inserting ‘‘this Act’’.

23 (2) Section 2 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 902) is

24 amended by striking ‘‘Administrator’’ and inserting

25 ‘‘Secretary of Agriculture’’.
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1 (3) Section 3(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C 903(a))

2 is amended—

3 (A) by striking ‘‘Administrator, upon the

4 request and approval of the Secretary of Agri5 culture,’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary,’’; and

6 (B) by striking ‘‘Administrator appointed

7 pursuant to the provisions of this Act or from

8 the Administrator of the Rural Electrification

9 Administration established by Executive Order

10 Numbered 7037’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

11 (4) Section 8 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 908) is

12 amended—

13 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘Ad14 ministrator authorized to be appointed by this

15 Act’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’; and

16 (B) in the second sentence, by striking

17 ‘‘Rural Electrification Administration created

18 by this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

19 (5) Section 11A of such Act (7 U.S.C. 911a) is

20 repealed.

21 (6) Section 13 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 913) is

22 amended by inserting before the period the follow23 ing: ‘‘; and the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary

24 of Agriculture’’.
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1 (7) Sections 206(b)(2), 306A(b), 311, and

2 405(b)(1)(A) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 927(b)(2),

3 936a(b), 940a, and 945(b)(1)(A)) are amended by

4 striking ‘‘Rural Electrification Administration’’ each

5 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

6 (8) Section 403(b) of such Act (7 U.S.C.

7 943(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘Rural Electrifica8 tion Administration or of any other agency of the

9 Department of Agriculture,’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec10 retary’’.

11 (9) Section 404 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 944) is

12 amended by striking ‘‘the Administrator of the

13 Rural Electrification Administration’’ and inserting

14 ‘‘the Secretary of Agriculture shall designate an offi15 cial of the Department of Agriculture who’’.

16 (10) Sections 406(c) and 410(a)(1) of such Act

17 (7 U.S.C. 946(c) and 950) are amended by striking

18 ‘‘Administrator of the Rural Electrification Adminis19 tration’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Sec20 retary’’.

21 (11) Such Act (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amend22 ed by striking ‘‘Administrator’’ each place it appears

23 and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

24 (f) MISCELLANEOUS CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
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1 (1) Section 236(a) of the Disaster Relief Act of

2 1970 (7 U.S.C. 912a) is amended by striking ‘‘Rural

3 Electrification Administration’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec4 retary pursuant to the Rural Electrification Act of

5 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.)’’.

6 (2) The second undesignated paragraph of sec7 tion 401 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1938

8 (52 Stat. 818; 7 U.S.C. 903 note) is amended by

9 striking ‘‘Administrator of the Rural Electrification

10 Administration’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Agri11 culture’’.

12 (3) Section 15 of the Department of Agri13 culture Organic Act of 1944 (7 U.S.C. 915) is

14 amended by striking ‘‘Rural Electrification Adminis15 tration’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

16 (4)(A) Section 2333 of the Food, Agriculture,

17 Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C.

18 950aaa–2) is amended—

19 (i) by striking paragraph (1); and

20 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2)

21 through (11) as paragraphs (1) through (10),

22 respectively.

23 (B) Chapter 1 of subtitle D of title XXIII of

24 such Act (7 U.S.C. 950aaa et seq.) is amended by
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1 striking ‘‘Administrator’’ each place it appears and

2 inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

3 SEC. 403. RURAL HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOP4 MENT SERVICE.

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

6 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

7 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec8 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

9 Department the Rural Housing and Community Develop10 ment Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’)

11 and to assign to the Service such functions as the Sec12 retary may consider appropriate.

13 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

14 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

15 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap16 propriate—

17 (1) programs and activities under title V of the

18 Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.);

19 (2) programs and activities authorized under

20 section 310B(i) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural

21 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(i)) and related

22 provisions of law; and

23 (3) programs and activities that relate to rural

24 community lending programs, including programs

25 authorized by sections 365 through 369 of the Con-
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1 solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

2 U.S.C. 2008 through 2008d).

3 SEC. 404. RURAL BUSINESS AND COOPERATIVE DEVELOP4 MENT SERVICE.

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

6 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

7 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec8 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

9 Department the Rural Business and Cooperative Develop10 ment Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’),

11 and to assign to the Service such functions as the Sec12 retary may consider appropriate.

13 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

14 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

15 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap16 propriate, programs and activities, including—

17 (1) section 313 and title V of the Rural Elec18 trification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 940c and 950aa et

19 seq.);

20 (2) subtitle G of title XVI of the Food, Agri21 culture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7

22 U.S.C. 5901 et seq.);

23 (3) sections 306(a)(1) and 310B of the Consoli24 dated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C.

25 1926(a)(1) and 1932);
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1 (4) section 1323 of the Food Security Act of

2 1985 (Public Law 99–198; 7 U.S.C. 1932 note); and

3 (5) the Act of July 2, 1926 (44 Stat. 802,

4 chapter 725; 7 U.S.C. 451 et seq.).

5 TITLE V—FOOD, NUTRITION,

6 AND CONSUMER SERVICES

7 SEC. 501. UNDER SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR FOOD,

8 NUTRITION, AND CONSUMER SERVICES.

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the

10 Department the position of Under Secretary of Agri11 culture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services to be

12 appointed by the President, by and with the advice and

13 consent of the Senate.

14 (b) DUTIES.—The Under Secretary of Agriculture

15 for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services shall exercise

16 such functions and perform such duties related to food,

17 nutrition, and consumer services, and shall perform such

18 other duties, as may be required by law or prescribed by

19 the Secretary.

20 (c) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any official

21 serving as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Food and

22 Consumer Services on the date of enactment of this Act,

23 after appointment by the President, by and with the advice

24 and consent of the Senate, shall be considered to be serv25 ing in the successor position established by subsection (a),
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1 and shall not be required to be reconfirmed by reason of

2 the enactment of this Act.

3 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5314 of

4 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the

5 end the following:

6 ‘‘Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nu7 trition, and Consumer Services.’’.

8 SEC. 502. FOOD AND CONSUMER SERVICE.

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

10 to establish and maintain within the Department the Food

11 and Consumer Service (referred to in this section as the

12 ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such functions as

13 the Secretary may consider appropriate.

14 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

15 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

16 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap17 propriate, programs and activities, including—

18 (1) the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C.

19 2011 et seq.);

20 (2) the National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.

21 1751 et seq.); and

22 (3) the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C.

23 1771 et seq).
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1 SEC. 503. NUTRITION RESEARCH AND EDUCATION SERV2 ICE.

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

4 to establish and maintain within the Department the Nu5 trition Research and Education Service (referred to in this

6 section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such

7 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

8 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

9 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

10 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap11 propriate, programs and activities relating to human nu12 trition research and education.

13 TITLE VI—NATURAL RESOURCES

14 AND ENVIRONMENT

15 SEC. 601. NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE.

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

17 to establish and maintain within the Department the Nat18 ural Resources Conservation Service (referred to in this

19 section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such

20 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

21 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

22 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

23 or administrative unit of the Department as the Secretary

24 may consider appropriate, programs and activities, includ25 ing—
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1 (1) title X of the Agricultural Act of 1970 (16

2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.);

3 (2) the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allot4 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 590a et seq.);

5 (3) the Water Bank Act (16 U.S.C. 1301 et

6 seq.);

7 (4) section 4 of the Cooperative Forestry As8 sistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2103);

9 (5) title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985

10 (16 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.);

11 (6) title IV of the Agricultural Credit Act of

12 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.);

13 (7) section 202(c) of the Colorado River Basin

14 Salinity Control Act (43 U.S.C. 1592(c)); and

15 (8) the Farms for the Future Act of 1990 (7

16 U.S.C. 4201 note).

17 (c) USE OF EMPLOYEES.—Notwithstanding any

18 other provision of law, in carrying out in any county or

19 area any functions assigned to the Service or any succes20 sor administrative unit, the Secretary is authorized to—

21 (1) use interchangeably, in the implementation

22 of functions, Federal employees, and employees of

23 county and area committees established under sec24 tion 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Al25 lotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)); and
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1 (2) provide interchangeably for supervision by

2 the employees of the performance of functions as3 signed to the Service.

4 (d) AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION PROGRAM.—In

5 carrying out the Agricultural Conservation Program, the

6 Secretary shall—

7 (1) acting on the recommendations of the Serv8 ice, with the concurrence of the Farm Service Agen9 cy, issue regulations to carry out the program; and

10 (2) use a county committee established under

11 section 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic

12 Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)) to make the final

13 decision on which applicants are eligible to receive

14 cost share assistance under the program based on

15 priorities and guidelines established at the national

16 and State levels by the Service.

17 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 (1) Section 5 of the Soil Conservation and Do19 mestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590e) is repealed.

20 (2)(A) Section 2(2) of the Soil and Water Re21 sources Conservation Act of 1977 (16 U.S.C.

22 2001(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘the Soil Conserva23 tion Service of’’.
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1 (B) Section 3(2) of such Act (16 U.S.C.

2 2002(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘through the Soil

3 Conservation Service’’.

4 (C) The first sentence of section 6(a) of such

5 Act (16 U.S.C. 2005(a)) is amended by striking

6 ‘‘Soil Conservation Service’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec7 retary’’.

8 SEC. 602. REORGANIZATION OF FOREST SERVICE.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Reorganization proposals that are

10 developed by the Secretary to carry out the designation

11 by the President of the Forest Service as a Reinvention

12 Lab pursuant to the National Performance Review (Sep13 tember 1993) shall include proposals for—

14 (1) reorganizing the Service in a manner that

15 is consistent with the principles of interdisciplinary

16 planning;

17 (2) redefining and consolidating the mission

18 and roles of, and research conducted by, employees

19 of the Service in connection with the National For20 est System and State and private forestry to facili21 tate interdisciplinary planning and to eliminate func22 tionalism;

23 (3) reforming the budget structure of the Serv24 ice to support interdisciplinary planning, including

25 reducing the number of budget line items;
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1 (4) defining new measures of accountability so

2 that Congress may meet the constitutional obligation

3 of Congress to oversee the Service;

4 (5) achieving structural and organizational con5 solidations;

6 (6) to the extent practicable, sharing office

7 space, equipment, vehicles, and electronic systems

8 with other administrative units of the Department

9 and other Federal field offices, including proposals

10 for using an on-line system by all administrative

11 units of the Department to maximize administrative

12 efficiency; and

13 (7) reorganizing the Service in a manner that

14 will result in a larger percentage of employees of the

15 Service being retained at organizational levels below

16 regional offices, research stations, and the area of17 fice of the Service.

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than March 31, 1995, the

19 Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Agri20 culture of the House of Representatives and the Commit21 tee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate

22 that describes actions taken to carry out subsection (a)

23 and identifies any disparities in regional funding patterns

24 and the rationale behind the disparities.
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1 TITLE VII—MARKETING AND

2 INSPECTION SERVICES

3 SEC. 701. GRAIN INSPECTION, PACKERS AND STOCKYARDS

4 ADMINISTRATION.

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

6 to establish and maintain within the Department the

7 Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

8 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Administration’’) and

9 to assign to the Administration such functions as the Sec10 retary may consider appropriate.

11 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

12 carry out through the Administration, or through any

13 other officer or administrative unit as the Secretary may

14 consider appropriate, programs and activities authorized

15 under—

16 (1) the United States Grain Standards Act (7

17 U.S.C. 71 et seq.); and

18 (2) the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 (7

19 U.S.C. 181 et seq.).

20 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

21 (1)(A) Section 3 of the United States Grain

22 Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 75) is amended—

23 (i) by striking subsections (z) and (aa);

24 and
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1 (ii) by redesignating subsection (bb) as

2 subsection (z).

3 (B) Section 3A of such Act (7 U.S.C. 75a) is

4 repealed.

5 (C) Section 5(b) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 77(b))

6 is amended by striking ‘‘Service employees’’ and in7 serting ‘‘employees of the Secretary’’.

8 (D) The first sentences of each of sections

9 7(j)(2) and 7A(l)(2) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 79(j)(2)

10 and 79a(l)(2), respectively) are amended by striking

11 ‘‘supervision by Service personnel of its field office

12 personnel’’ and inserting ‘‘supervision by the Sec13 retary of the field office personnel of the Secretary’’.

14 (E) Section 12 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 87a) is

15 amended—

16 (i) in the first sentence of subsection (c),

17 by striking ‘‘or Administrator’’; and

18 (ii) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘or the

19 Administrator’’.

20 (F) Such Act (7 U.S.C. 71 et seq.) is amended

21 by striking ‘‘Administrator’’ and ‘‘Service’’ each

22 place either term appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

23 (2) Section 407 of the Packers and Stockyards

24 Act, 1921 (7 U.S.C. 228) is amended—

25 (A) by striking subsection (b);
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1 (B) by redesignating subsections (c)

2 through (f) as subsections (b) through (e), re3 spectively; and

4 (C) in subsection (e) (as so designated), by

5 striking ‘‘subsection (e)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub6 section (d)’’.

7 TITLE VIII—RESEARCH,

8 ECONOMICS, AND EDUCATION

9 SEC. 801. FEDERAL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION SERV10 ICE.

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

12 to establish and maintain within the Department the Fed13 eral Research and Information Service (referred to in this

14 section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such

15 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

16 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

17 carry out through the Service, or through any other officer

18 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap19 propriate, programs and activities, including—

20 (1) agricultural research; and

21 (2) agricultural information and library serv22 ices.
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1 SEC. 802. COOPERATIVE STATE RESEARCH AND EDU2 CATION SERVICE.

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

4 to establish and maintain within the Department the Co5 operative State Research and Education Service (referred

6 to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the

7 Service such functions as the Secretary may consider ap8 propriate.

9 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

10 carry out through the Service programs and activities, in11 cluding—

12 (1) cooperative research programs; and

13 (2) agricultural extension and education pro14 grams.

15 SEC. 803. AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS

16 SERVICE.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary may establish

18 and maintain within the Department the Agricultural Eco19 nomics and Statistics Service (referred to in this section

20 as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such func21 tions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

22 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary may carry out

23 through the Service, or through any other officer or ad24 ministrative unit as the Secretary may consider appro25 priate, programs and activities, including—

26 (1) economic analysis and research;
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1 (2) energy-related programs;

2 (3) crop and livestock estimates; and

3 (4) agricultural statistics.

4 (c) STATE AND LOCAL STATISTICAL OFFICES AND

5 PERSONNEL.—The authority provided by subsections (a)

6 and (b) shall not authorize a substantial change in the

7 functions or structures of State and local statistical offices

8 and employees of the offices.

9 SEC. 804. PROGRAM POLICY AND COORDINATION STAFF.

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

11 to establish and maintain within the Department the Pro12 gram Policy and Coordination Staff (referred to in this

13 section as the ‘‘Staff’’) and to assign to the Staff such

14 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

15 (b) FUNCTIONS.—If the Staff is established and

16 maintained, the Staff shall provide common program pol17 icy development for the Federal Research and Information

18 Service, the Cooperative State Research and Education

19 Service, and the Agricultural Economics and Statistics

20 Service.

21 (c) COMPOSITION.—Not less than 50 percent of the

22 employees of the Staff shall be former employees of the

23 Cooperative State Research Service and the Extension

24 Service, as in existence on the date of enactment of this

25 Act.
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1 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO FUNCTIONS CURRENTLY PER2 FORMED BY NASS.—The Staff may not—

3 (1) interfere with statistic collection and report4 ing; or

5 (2) compromise the independence or integrity of

6 statistic collection and reporting functions of the

7 National Agricultural Statistics Service as in effect

8 on the date of enactment of this Act.

9 TITLE IX—FOOD SAFETY

10 SEC. 901. FOOD SAFETY SERVICE.

11 (a) MEAT INSPECTION.—The Federal Meat Inspec12 tion Act (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding

13 at the end the following new title:

14 ‘‘TITLE V—FOOD SAFETY

15 SERVICE

16 ‘‘SEC. 501. FOOD SAFETY SERVICE.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

18 and maintain within the United States Department of Ag19 riculture the Food Safety Service (referred to in this sec20 tion as the ‘Service’) and to assign to the Service such

21 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

22 ‘‘(b) ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR FOOD SAFETY.—

23 ‘‘(1) APPOINTMENT.—There shall be in the

24 Service the position of Assistant Secretary for Food

25 Safety (referred to in this section as the ‘Assistant
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1 Secretary’), who shall be appointed by the President,

2 by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

3 ‘‘(2) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any offi4 cial serving on the date of enactment of this section,

5 who has been appointed by the President and con6 firmed by the Senate, shall not be required to be re7 confirmed by reason of the enactment of this Act.

8 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO THE SECRETARY.—The

9 Assistant Secretary shall report directly to the Sec10 retary.

11 ‘‘(4) GENERAL POWERS.—The Secretary is au12 thorized to carry out, through the Service or through

13 such other officers or administrative units as the

14 Secretary may consider appropriate, programs and

15 activities involving food safety under this Act and

16 the Poultry Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 451

17 et seq.), including—

18 ‘‘(A) providing overall direction to the

19 Service and establishing and implementing gen20 eral policies concerning the management and

21 operation of programs and inspection activities

22 of the Service;

23 ‘‘(B) coordinating and overseeing the oper24 ation of all administrative entities within the

25 Service;
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1 ‘‘(C) research and inspection relating to

2 meat, meat food products, poultry, and poultry

3 products in carrying out this Act and the Poul4 try Products Inspection Act;

5 ‘‘(D) conducting educational and public in6 formation programs relating to the responsibil7 ities of the Service; and

8 ‘‘(E) performing such other functions re9 lated to food safety as the Secretary may pre10 scribe, except that only programs and activities

11 related to food safety, as determined by the

12 Secretary, shall be administered through the

13 Service.

14 ‘‘(c) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC REVIEW

15 GROUPS.—The Secretary, acting through the Assistant

16 Secretary, may, without regard to the provisions of title

17 5, United States Code, governing appointment in the com18 petitive service, and without regard to the provisions of

19 chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5,

20 United States Code, relating to classification and General

21 Schedule pay rates—

22 ‘‘(1) establish such technical and scientific re23 view groups as are needed to carry out the functions

24 of the Service, including functions under this Act
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1 and under the Poultry Products Inspection Act (21

2 U.S.C. 451 et seq.); and

3 ‘‘(2) appoint and pay the members of the

4 groups, except that officers and employees of the

5 United States shall not receive additional compensa6 tion for service as a member of a group.’’.

7 (b) POULTRY PRODUCTS INSPECTION.—The Poultry

8 Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.) is amend9 ed—

10 (1) by redesignating section 29 as section 30;

11 and

12 (2) by inserting after section 28 the following

13 new section:

14 ‘‘SEC. 29. ADMINISTRATION.

15 ‘‘The Secretary shall administer this Act through the

16 Assistant Secretary for Food Safety of the Food Safety

17 Service established under section 501 of the Federal Meat

18 Inspection Act.’’.

19 TITLE X—MISCELLANEOUS

20 SEC. 1001. ASSISTANT SECRETARIES OF AGRICULTURE.

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There are established in the

22 Department six positions of Assistant Secretary of Agri23 culture, each to be appointed by the President, by and

24 with the advice and consent of the Senate.
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1 (b) FUNCTIONS.—Each Assistant Secretary of Agri2 culture shall exercise such functions and perform such du3 ties as may be required by law or prescribed by the Sec4 retary, and shall receive compensation at the rate pre5 scribed by law for an Assistant Secretary of Agriculture.

6 The compensation of any person serving as an Adminis7 trator shall not be raised by this Act.

8 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

9 (1) Section 2 of the Act of February 9, 1889

10 (25 Stat. 659, chapter 122; 7 U.S.C. 2212), is re11 pealed.

12 (2) Section 604 of the Rural Development Act

13 of 1972 (7 U.S.C. 2212a) is amended by striking

14 subsection (a).

15 (3) Section 2 of Public Law No. 94–561 (7

16 U.S.C. 2212b) is repealed.

17 (4) Section 1413 of the National Agricultural

18 Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of

19 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3128) is amended by striking sub20 section (d).

21 (5) Section 8 of the International Carriage of

22 Perishable Foodstuffs Act (7 U.S.C 2212c) is

23 amended by striking subsection (a).

24 (d) CONTINUITY OF POSITIONS.—Notwithstanding

25 subsections (a) and (b) and the amendments made by sub-
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1 section (c), any official serving in any of the positions re2 ferred to in this section on the date of enactment of this

3 Act, after appointment by the President, by and with the

4 advice and consent of the Senate, shall be considered after

5 the date of enactment of this Act to be serving in the suc6 cessor positions established by subsection (a) and shall not

7 be required to be reappointed by reason of the enactment

8 of this Act.

9 (e) ADDITIONAL CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sec10 tion 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended—

11 (1) by striking ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of Agri12 culture (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of

13 Agriculture (six)’’; and

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

15 ‘‘Administrator, Farm Service Agency, Depart16 ment of Agriculture.

17 ‘‘Administrator, International Trade Service,

18 Department of Agriculture.

19 ‘‘Administrator, Rural Utilities Service, Depart20 ment of Agriculture.’’.

21 SEC. 1002. REMOVAL OF OBSOLETE PROVISIONS.

22 Section 5316 of title 5, United States Code, is

23 amended—

24 (1) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural

25 Marketing Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;
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1 (2) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural Re2 search Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

3 (3) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural

4 Stabilization and Conservation Service, Department

5 of Agriculture.’’;

6 (4) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Farmers Home

7 Administration.’’;

8 (5) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Foreign Agri9 cultural Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

10 (6) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Rural Elec11 trification Administration, Department of Agri12 culture.’’;

13 (7) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Soil Conserva14 tion Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

15 (8) by striking ‘‘Chief Forester of the Forest

16 Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

17 (9) by striking ‘‘Director of Science and Edu18 cation, Department of Agriculture.’’;

19 (10) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Animal and

20 Plant Health Inspection Service, Department of Ag21 riculture.’’; and

22 (11) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Federal Grain

23 Inspection Service, Department of Agriculture.’’.
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1 SEC. 1003. ADDITIONAL CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

2 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment

3 of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Con4 gress recommended legislation containing additional tech5 nical and conforming amendments to Federal law that are

6 necessary as a result of the enactment of this Act.

7 SEC. 1004. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the au9 thority delegated to the Secretary by this Act to reorganize

10 the Department shall terminate on the date that is 2 years

11 after the date of enactment of this Act.

12 (b) FUNCTIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not affect—

13 (1) the authority of the Secretary to continue to

14 carry out a function that the Secretary performs on

15 the date that is 2 years after the date of enactment

16 of this Act; or

17 (2) the authority delegated to the Secretary

18 under Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1953 (5 U.S.C.

19 App. 1).

20 SEC. 1005. ELIMINATION OF DUPLICATIVE INSPECTION RE21 QUIREMENTS.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture

23 shall—

24 (1) eliminate inspections of pilots and aircraft

25 by the Department of Agriculture;
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1 (2) develop with the Administrator of the Fed2 eral Aviation Administration inspection specifica3 tions and procedures by which aircraft and pilots

4 contracted by the United States Department of Ag5 riculture will be inspected. The Administrator will

6 ensure that the inspection specifications and proce7 dures are met; and

8 (3) permit the utilization by the Department of

9 Agriculture of inspections and certifications of pilots

10 and aircraft conducted by the Federal Aviation Ad11 ministration.

12 (b) APPLICABILITY.—An inspection requirement

13 shall be eliminated pursuant to subsection (a)(1) only if

14 the pilots and aircraft are inspected by the Federal Avia15 tion Administration for compliance with the safety regula16 tions of the Federal Aviation Regulations.

Passed the Senate April 13 (legislative day, April

11), 1994.

Attest:

Secretary.
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