Calendar No. 395

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1970

[Report No. 103–241]

A BILL

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

MARCH 24 (legislative day, FEBRUARY 22), 1994

Placed on the calendar
II

Calendar No. 395

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1970

[Report No. 103–241]

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to reorganize the Department

of Agriculture, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 24 (legislative day, FEBRUARY 22), 1994

Mr. LEAHY, from the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, reported the following original bill; which was read twice and placed on the

calendar

A BILL

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’’.

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

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
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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.

Sec. 602. Reorganization of Forest Service.

TITLE VII—MARKETING AND INSPECTION SERVICES

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

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 compo15 nent thereof, except that the term does not in16 clude a corporation; and

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

18 as established by the Secretary.
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1 (2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’

2 means the United States Department of Agriculture.

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

4 an administrative, financial, or regulatory duty of an

5 administrative unit or employee of the Department,

6 including a transfer of funds made available to carry

7 out a function of an administrative unit.

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

9 the Secretary of Agriculture.

10 TITLE I—GENERAL AUTHORI11 TIES OF THE SECRETARY

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

13 (a) DELEGATION OF FUNCTIONS.—Except as other14 wise provided in this Act and notwithstanding any other

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

16 employees, and administrative units of the Department,

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

18 this Act, are delegated to the Secretary.

19 (b) EXCEPTIONS TO THE DELEGATION.—This sec20 tion shall not apply to the following functions and admin21 istrative units of the Department:

22 (1) The functions vested in administrative law

23 judges by subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, Unit24 ed States Code.
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1 (2) The functions vested in the Inspector Gen2 eral by the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C.

3 App. 3).

4 (3) The functions vested in the Chief Financial

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

6 States Code.

7 (4) Corporations and the boards of directors

8 and officers of the corporations.

9 (5) The functions vested in the Alternative Ag10 ricultural Research and Commercialization Board by

11 the Alternative Agricultural Research and Commer12 cialization Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5901 et seq.).

13 SEC. 102. REORGANIZATION.

14 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.—

15 The Secretary may transfer any function or administrative

16 unit of the Department, including any function or admin17 istrative unit delegated to the Secretary by this Act, and

18 any officer or employee of the Department, as the Sec19 retary considers appropriate. The authority established in

20 the preceding sentence includes the authority to establish,

21 consolidate, alter, or discontinue any function or adminis22 trative unit of the Department.

23 (b) AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER RECORDS, PROPERTY,

24 AND FUNDS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 1531 of

2 title 31, United States Code, the Secretary may

3 transfer any of the records, property, and unex4 pended balances (available or to be made available

5 for use in connection with any affected function or

6 administrative unit) of appropriations, allocations,

7 and other funds of the Department, as the Secretary

8 considers necessary to carry out this Act, except as

9 otherwise provided in this section.

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

11 unexpended balances transferred pursuant to para12 graph (1) shall be used only for the purposes for

13 which the funds were originally made available.

14 (3) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

15 may make such additional incidental dispositions of

16 personnel, assets, liabilities, grants, contracts, prop17 erty, records, and unexpended balances of appropria18 tions, authorizations, allocations, and other funds

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

20 available in connection with the functions or admin21 istrative units, as the Secretary considers necessary

22 to carry out this Act.

23 (c) PURPOSE OF THE AUTHORITY.—The Secretary

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

25 simplifying and maximizing the efficiency of the national,
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1 State, regional, and local levels of the Department, and

2 of improving the accessibility of farm and other programs

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

4 adapt the administration of the programs to State, re5 gional, and local conditions.

6 (d) EXHAUSTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS.—

7 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person shall

8 exhaust all administrative appeal procedures established

9 by the Secretary before the person may bring an action

10 in a court of competent jurisdiction against—

11 (1) the Secretary;

12 (2) the Department;

13 (3) an administrative unit of the Department;

14 or

15 (4) an employee or agent of an administrative

16 unit of the Department.

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

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

19 714g) is amended—

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

21 (2) by striking subsection (b).

22 SEC. 103. PERSONNEL REDUCTIONS.

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

24 (1) FIELD STRUCTURE.—The term ‘‘field struc25 ture’’ means the offices, functions, and employee po-
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1 sitions of all administrative units of the Department,

2 other than the headquarters offices. The term in3 cludes the physical and geographic locations of the

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

5 area committees established under section 8(b) of

6 the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act

7 (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)).

8 (2) HEADQUARTERS OFFICES.—The term

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

10 and employee positions of all administrative units of

11 the Department located or performed in Washing12 ton, District of Columbia, or elsewhere, as deter13 mined by the Secretary.

14 (b) EMPLOYEE REDUCTIONS.—Subject to subsection

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

16 least 7,500 staff years within the Department by Septem17 ber 30, 1999.

18 (c) DISTRIBUTION.—The percentage of employee re19 ductions in the headquarters offices under subsection (b)

20 shall be substantially higher than the percentage of em21 ployee reductions in the field structure, as determined by

22 the Secretary.

23 (d) SCHEDULE.—The personnel reductions under

24 subsections (b) and (c) should be accomplished concur25 rently in a manner determined by the Secretary.
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1 SEC. 104. CONSOLIDATION OF HEADQUARTERS OFFICES.

2 The Secretary shall develop and carry out a plan to

3 consolidate offices of administrative units of the Depart4 ment located in Washington, District of Columbia, subject

5 to the availability of appropriations.

6 SEC. 105. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), not8 withstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary

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

10 report to Congress or any committee of Congress.

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

12 may not prepare and submit more than 30 reports re13 ferred to in subsection (a).

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

15 the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representa16 tives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and

17 Forestry of the Senate, the Secretary shall determine

18 which reports shall be prepared and submitted in accord19 ance with subsection (b).

20 TITLE II—NATIONAL APPEALS

21 DIVISION

22 SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS.

23 As used in this title:

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

25 decision’’ means an administrative decision made by

26 a decisionmaker that is adverse to a participant, in-
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1 cluding a denial of equitable relief, except that the

2 term shall not include a decision over which the

3 Board of Contract Appeals has jurisdiction. The

4 term shall include the failure of a decisionmaker to

5 issue a decision or otherwise act on the request or

6 right of the participant to participate in, or receive

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

8 programs administered by an agency. Notwithstand9 ing section 701(a)(2) of title 5, United States Code,

10 a discretionary decision of the Secretary or the Divi11 sion shall be reviewable under section 706(2)(A) of

12 such title unless the decision is generally applicable

13 to all program participants and, as a matter of gen14 eral applicability, is committed to agency discretion

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

16 such title.

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

18 agency of the Department designated by the Sec19 retary or a successor agency of the Department, ex20 cept that the term shall include—

21 (A) ASCS;

22 (B) CCC, with respect to domestic pro23 grams;

24 (C) FmHA (including rural housing pro25 grams);
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1 (D) FCIC;

2 (E) RDA (including rural housing pro3 grams);

4 (F) SCS; or

5 (G) a State or county committee estab6 lished under section 8(b) of the Soil Conserva7 tion and Domestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C.

8 590h(b)) or the Consolidated Farm and Rural

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

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

11 a participant who appeals an adverse decision in ac12 cordance with this title.

13 (4) ASCS.—The term ‘‘ASCS’’ means the Agri14 cultural Stabilization and Conservation Service or a

15 successor agency.

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

17 means all the materials maintained by the Secretary

18 that concern the participant, including any materials

19 related to the adverse decision.

20 (6) CCC.—The term ‘‘CCC’’ means the Com21 modity Credit Corporation or a successor agency.

22 (7) DECISIONMAKER.—The term

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

24 committee of an agency who makes an adverse deci25 sion that is appealed by an appellant.
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1 (8) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means

2 the Director of the Division.

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

4 National Appeals Division established by this title.

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

6 an individual employed by an agency, including an

7 individual who enters into a contract with an agency

8 to perform services for the agency.

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

10 determination’’ means a determination of an appeal

11 by the Division that is administratively final, conclu12 sive, and binding.

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

14 Federal Crop Insurance Corporation or a successor

15 agency.

16 (13) FMHA.—The term ‘‘FmHA’’ means the

17 Farmers Home Administration or a successor agen18 cy.

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

20 officer’’ means an individual employed by the Divi21 sion who hears and determines appeals of adverse

22 decisions by any agency.

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

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

25 tape or similar recording of a hearing, any informa-
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1 tion from the case record that a hearing officer con2 siders relevant or that is raised by the appellant or

3 agency, and all documents and other evidence pre4 sented to a hearing officer.

5 (16) IMPLEMENT; IMPLEMENTATION.—The

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

7 those actions necessary to effectuate fully and

8 promptly a determination of the Division not later

9 than 30 calendar days after the effective date of the

10 determination.

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

12 means any individual, group of individuals, partner13 ship, corporation, association, cooperative, or other

14 entity whose application for, or right to participate

15 in or receive, payments, loans, or other benefits in

16 accordance with any of the programs administered

17 by an agency, is affected by an adverse decision

18 made by a decisionmaker.

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

20 Development Administration or a successor agency.

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

22 Conservation Service or a successor agency.

23 (20) STATE DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘State di24 rector’’ means the individual who is primarily re-
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1 sponsible for carrying out the program of an agency

2 within a State.

3 SEC. 202. NATIONAL APPEALS DIVISION AND DIRECTOR.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF DIVISION.—

5 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es6 tablish and maintain a National Appeals Division

7 within the Office of the Secretary to carry out this

8 title.

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

10 5, United States Code, shall apply to all appeals of

11 the Division, including chapters 5 and 7 of such

12 title.

13 (3) PROCEDURAL REGULATIONS AND POLI14 CIES.—The Secretary shall promulgate procedural

15 regulations and policies to govern the conduct of the

16 business of the Division. The Secretary shall ensure

17 and enhance the independence, integrity, and effi18 ciency of the Division, the Director, hearing officers,

19 and other employees of the Division.

20 (b) DIRECTOR.—

21 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Division shall be

22 headed by a Director.

23 (2) POSITION CLASSIFICATION.—The position

24 of the Director shall be a Senior Executive Service

25 position that shall be filled by a career appointee (as
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1 defined in section 3132(a)(4) of title 5, United

2 States Code), who shall not be subject to removal ex3 cept for cause in accordance with law.

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

5 person who has substantial experience in practicing

6 administrative law. In considering applicants for the

7 position of Director, the Secretary shall consider

8 persons employed outside the Government as well as

9 Government employees.

10 (4) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5316

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

12 at the end the following:

13 ‘‘Director, National Appeals Division, Depart14 ment of Agriculture.’’.

15 (c) DIRECTION, CONTROL, AND SUPPORT.—The Di16 rector shall be free from the direction and control of any

17 person other than the Secretary. The Division shall not

18 receive administrative support (except on a reimbursable

19 basis) from any agency other than the Office of the Sec20 retary. The Secretary may not delegate to any other offi21 cer or employee of the Department, other than the Direc22 tor, the authority of the Secretary with respect to the Divi23 sion.

24 (d) COMMUNICATION WITH SECRETARY AND AGEN25 CIES.—The Director shall inform the Secretary and the
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1 appropriate agency of problems regarding the functions of

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

3 of the Division under this title. The information provided

4 by the Director may include proposals to resolve the prob5 lems identified or otherwise to improve the programs of

6 the agency.

7 (e) APPEALABLE DECISIONS.—Subject to section

8 204(b)(2), if a decisionmaker determines that a decision

9 is not appealable and a participant appeals the decision

10 to the Director, the Director shall determine whether the

11 decision is adverse or of general applicability, and thus

12 appealable. Except for a legal interpretation that may be

13 reversed or modified by the Secretary, the determination

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

15 be administratively final, conclusive, and binding.

16 (f) OTHER POWERS OF THE DIRECTOR.—The Direc17 tor may enter into contracts and make other arrangements

18 for reporting and other services and make such payments

19 as may be necessary to carry out this title.

20 SEC. 203. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.

21 There are transferred to the Division all functions ex22 ercised and all administrative appeals pending before the

23 date of enactment of this Act (including all related func24 tions of any officer or employee) of or relating to—
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1 (1) the National Appeals Division established

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

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

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

5 (2) the National Appeals Division established

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

7 the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act

8 (7 U.S.C. 1983b) (as in effect before the amendment

9 made by section 215(b));

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

11 (4) appeals of decisions made by SCS.

12 SEC. 204. PERSONNEL OF THE DIVISION.

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

14 The Director shall appoint such hearing officers and other

15 employees as are necessary for the administration of the

16 Division. A hearing officer or other employee of the Divi17 sion shall have no duties other than those that are nec18 essary to carry out this title. Hearing officers shall be su19 pervised by the Director. All other employees of the Divi20 sion shall report to the Director.

21 (b) LEGAL COUNSEL.—

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

23 legal counsel to advise the Director with respect to

24 legal questions affecting the Division. The legal

25 counsel shall not serve as a counsel to any other
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1 agency of the Department. This subsection is not in2 tended to affect the role of the Office of General

3 Counsel in representing the Department in civil or

4 criminal actions or as a liaison between the Depart5 ment and any other Federal agency.

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

7 officer or the Director disagrees with the General

8 Counsel on a matter of legal interpretation with re9 spect to a program or authority of the Department,

10 the Secretary shall have the authority to make a

11 final determination on the interpretation at the re12 quest of the General Counsel. The authority of the

13 Secretary under this paragraph may not be dele14 gated.

15 (c) PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS.—The Director

16 shall establish policies to provide for the evaluation of the

17 Director, hearing officers, and other employees of the Di18 vision who are involved in the appeal process under section

19 208 or the supervision of other employees. The evaluation

20 process shall be designed to ensure and enhance the inde21 pendence, integrity, and efficiency of the Director and em22 ployees of the Division. The actual evaluations shall in23 clude evaluations by individuals outside of the Department

24 and may include peer review.
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1 SEC. 205. NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR HEARING.

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

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

4 the participant, the Secretary shall provide the participant

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

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

7 under subsection (a) shall contain a description of the fol8 lowing:

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

10 facts, and conclusions underlying the decision.

11 (2) The appeal and implementation process

12 available to the participant, including the rights and

13 responsibilities of the participant provided by this

14 title.

15 (3) An opportunity to request a determination

16 by the Director pursuant to section 202(e) concern17 ing whether a decision is appealable, if the

18 decisionmaker determines that the decision is not

19 appealable.

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

21 the Director shall maintain the entire case record and

22 hearing record, respectively, and any additional informa23 tion from any further appeal proceeding, of the participant

24 at least until the expiration of the period during which

25 the participant may seek administrative or judicial review

26 of the determination.
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1 (d) JOINDER.—

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

3 guaranteed loan under the Consolidated Farm and

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

5 borrower or applicant who is directly and adversely

6 affected by a decision of the Secretary may appeal

7 the decision pursuant to this title without the lender

8 joining in the appeal.

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

10 housing of an agency who is individually, directly,

11 and adversely affected by a decision of the Secretary

12 may appeal the decision pursuant to this title with13 out the landlord joining in the appeal.

14 (3) THIRD PARTIES.—If the Director deter15 mines that the receipt of a payment, loan, or other

16 direct benefit by a participant may be directly, sub17 stantially, and adversely affected by a determination

18 of the Division, a hearing officer may invite the par19 ticipant to participate in a hearing if the final deter20 mination resulting from the hearing would, as a

21 practical matter, foreclose the participant from re22 ceiving the payment, loan, or other direct benefit of

23 the participant. If the participant elects to partici24 pate in the hearing, the participant shall have the

25 same procedural rights as the appellant with regard
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1 to the hearing and other procedures described in this

2 title.

3 (e) EFFECT OF REVERSAL OR MODIFICATION OF AD4 VERSE DECISION.—If an adverse decision is reversed or

5 modified by the Division, a decisionmaker may not base

6 any subsequent adverse decision with regard to that appel7 lant on the information that was available to the previous

8 decisionmaker (or could have been available with reason9 able diligence on the part of the previous decisionmaker).

10 SEC. 206. INFORMAL HEARINGS.

11 If a decisionmaker of an agency makes an adverse

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

13 the participant, an informal hearing on the decision.

14 SEC. 207. RIGHTS OF PARTICIPANTS.

15 Among other rights, a participant shall have the

16 right, in accordance with this title, to—

17 (1) appeal any adverse decision;

18 (2) representation by an attorney or

19 nonattorney throughout the informal hearing and

20 appeals process under this title;

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

22 inspect and reproduce, the case record at an office

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

24 and

25 (4) an evidentiary hearing.
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1 SEC. 208. DIVISION HEARINGS AND DIRECTOR REVIEW.

2 (a) POWERS OF DIRECTOR AND HEARING OFFI3 CERS.—To carry out their responsibilities under this sec4 tion, the Director and hearing officers—

5 (1) shall have access to all records, reports, au6 dits, reviews, documents, papers, recommendations,

7 or other material available that relate to programs

8 and operations with respect to which an appeal has

9 been taken;

10 (2) shall have the authorities that are provided

11 under section 202(a)(2);

12 (3) may request such information or assistance

13 as may be necessary for carrying out the duties and

14 responsibilities established under this title from any

15 Federal, State, or local governmental agency or unit

16 of the agency;

17 (4) may, or shall at the request of an appellant

18 with good cause shown, require the attendance of

19 witnesses and the production of all information, doc20 uments, reports, answers, records, accounts, papers,

21 and other data and documentary evidence necessary

22 to the proper resolution of appeals;

23 (5) may require the attendance of witnesses,

24 and the production of evidence, by subpoena; and

25 (6) may administer oaths or affirmations.

26 (b) TIME FOR HEARING.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), an appellant shall have the right to—

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

4 days after the date an adverse decision is made;

5 and

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

7 adverse decision, not later than 45 days after

8 receipt of the request for the hearing.

9 (2) REDUCTION OR EXTENSION.—The Director

10 may establish an earlier deadline for a hearing (or

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

12 time sensitive decision, or delay a hearing (or re13 quest for a hearing), at the request of an appellant

14 for good cause shown.

15 (c) LOCATION AND ELEMENTS OF HEARING.—

16 (1) LOCATION.—A hearing on an adverse deci17 sion shall be held in the State of residence of the ap18 pellant or at a location that is otherwise convenient

19 to the appellant and the Division.

20 (2) EVIDENTIARY HEARING.—The evidentiary

21 hearing before a hearing officer shall be in person,

22 unless the appellant agrees to a hearing by telephone

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

24 The hearing officer shall conduct and resolve the

25 hearing (regardless of the hearing format) in a fair
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1 and impartial manner and free of undue influence.

2 The hearing officer shall not be bound by previous

3 findings of fact by the agency in making a deter4 mination.

5 (3) INFORMATION AT HEARING.—The hearing

6 officer shall consider information, including new in7 formation, presented at the hearing without regard

8 to whether the evidence was known to the

9 decisionmaker at the time the adverse decision was

10 made. The hearing officer shall leave the record

11 open after the hearing for a reasonable period of

12 time to allow the submission of information by the

13 appellant or the decisionmaker after the hearing to

14 the extent necessary to prevent the appellant or the

15 decisionmaker from being prejudiced by new facts,

16 information, arguments, or evidence presented or

17 raised by the decisionmaker or appellant. At the

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

19 grounds for the adverse decision, if the grounds were

20 not described in the agency decision notice.

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

22 bear the burden of proving that the adverse decision

23 of the agency was erroneous.

24 (5) PRODUCTION OF RECORD.—An official ver25 batim record shall be provided by the Division for
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1 each hearing before a hearing officer. The appellant

2 or agency representative may record an unofficial

3 record of the hearing.

4 (6) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In any case pend5 ing before a hearing officer, the hearing officer may

6 determine that the adverse decision was in error only

7 if substantial evidence demonstrates that the adverse

8 decision was not correct. For purposes of this para9 graph, the evidentiary threshold for substantial evi10 dence is lower than the evidentiary threshold for pre11 ponderance of the evidence.

12 (7) DETERMINATION NOTICE.—The hearing of13 ficer shall issue a notice of the determination on the

14 appeal not later than 30 days after a hearing or

15 after receipt of the request of the appellant to waive

16 a hearing, except that the Director may establish an

17 earlier or later deadline pursuant to subsection

18 (b)(2). The hearing officer may include rec19 ommendations in the determination notice. If the de20 termination is not appealed to the Director under

21 subsection (d), the notice provided by the hearing of22 ficer shall be considered to be a notice of final deter23 mination.

24 (d) REVIEW BY DIRECTOR.—
26

•S 1970 PCS

1 (1) REFERRAL.—At the request of the appel2 lant or the head of the agency affected by a deter3 mination of a hearing officer, the determination of

4 the hearing officer shall be referred to the Director

5 for review.

6 (2) APPEAL BY HEAD OF AGENCY TO DIREC7 TOR.—

8 (A) REVIEW OF DETERMINATION OF

9 HEARING OFFICER AT THE REQUEST OF AN

10 AGENCY HEAD.—In exceptional circumstances,

11 if the head of an agency believes that the deter12 mination of a hearing officer is contrary to a

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

14 hearing officer is clearly erroneous, only the

15 head of the agency may make a written request,

16 not later than 10 business days after receipt of

17 the determination, that the Director review the

18 determination.

19 (B) REQUESTS FOR REVIEW.—A request

20 for review shall—

21 (i) include a full description of—

22 (I) the exceptional circumstances

23 justifying the request for review; and

24 (II) the reasons that the head of

25 the relevant agency believes that the
27

•S 1970 PCS

1 determination is contrary to statute or

2 regulation, or the finding of fact of

3 the hearing officer is clearly erro4 neous; and

5 (ii) be provided to the appellant and

6 the hearing officer at the same time the re7 quest is provided to the Director.

8 (C) DETERMINATION OF DIRECTOR.—Not

9 later than 10 business days after receipt of the

10 request for review, the Director shall—

11 (i) conduct a review of the determina12 tion based on the case record and hearing

13 record, the request for review under sub14 section (b), and any additional arguments

15 or information submitted by the appellant

16 or the hearing officer; and

17 (ii)(I) issue a final determination no18 tice that upholds, reverses, or modifies the

19 determination of the hearing officer; or

20 (II) if the Director determines that

21 the hearing record is inadequate, remand

22 the determination for further proceedings

23 to complete the hearing record, or, at the

24 option of the Director, to hold a new hear-
28

•S 1970 PCS

1 ing, and notify the appellant, agency, and

2 hearing officer of the remand.

3 (D) NEW HEARING.—If the Director re4 mands a determination for a new hearing on

5 the adverse decision under subparagraph (C),

6 the hearing officer shall make a new determina7 tion with respect to the adverse decision based

8 on the case record and the hearing record.

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

10 agency may not request a second review as to

11 the determination of the hearing officer or the

12 Director on the same issue.

13 (3) APPEAL BY HEAD OF AGENCY OR APPEL14 LANT TO DIRECTOR.—

15 (A) USE OF RECORD.—If the determina16 tion of a hearing officer is appealed under para17 graph (1), the hearing officer shall certify the

18 hearing record and provide the record to the

19 Director.

20 (B) NEW INFORMATION.—The Director

21 may consider, under extraordinary cir22 cumstances, new information in reviewing a de23 termination under this section. The appellant,

24 decisionmaker, and hearing officer shall receive
29

•S 1970 PCS

1 and have the opportunity to comment on the

2 new information.

3 (C) ACTIONS.—Not later than 30 days

4 after the referral to the Director, the Director

5 shall—

6 (i) review the hearing record and the

7 determination;

8 (ii) uphold the determination, issue a

9 new determination, require that a new

10 hearing be held on 1 or more of the issues

11 considered at the original hearing, or take

12 any combination of the actions described in

13 this clause; and

14 (iii) issue a notice of—

15 (I) a new evidentiary hearing;

16 (II) a final determination; or

17 (III) a remand on certain issues

18 and a final determination on remain19 ing issues.

20 (D) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Director

21 may include recommendations in a final deter22 mination notice.

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

24 same authority as the Secretary to grant equi25 table relief. Notwithstanding the administrative
30

•S 1970 PCS

1 finality of a final determination, the Secretary

2 shall have the authority to grant equitable or

3 other types of relief to the appellant after a

4 final determination is issued by the Division.

5 (e) BASIS FOR DETERMINATION.—The determination

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

7 information from the hearing record, laws applicable to

8 the matter at issue, and applicable regulations published

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

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

11 rise to the adverse decision occurred, whichever date is ap12 propriate. The Director shall not reverse the determina13 tion of a hearing officer with regard to a finding of fact

14 that is based on oral testimony or inspection of evidence

15 unless the finding of fact is clearly erroneous or the Direc16 tor is considering new information under subsection (d)(3)

17 with respect to the finding of fact.

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

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

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

21 of the original adverse decision, whichever is applicable.

22 SEC. 209. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

23 A final determination of the Division under section

24 208 shall be reviewable and enforceable by any United

25 States district court of competent jurisdiction in accord-
31

•S 1970 PCS

1 ance with chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code. Not2 withstanding section 701(a)(2) of such title, a discre3 tionary decision of the Secretary or the Division shall be

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

5 decision is generally applicable to all program participants

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

7 agency discretion by law within the meaning of section

8 701(a)(2) of such title.

9 SEC. 210. IMPLEMENTATION OF FINAL DETERMINATIONS

10 OF DIVISION.

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

12 agency pursuant to the final determination of a hearing

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

14 implement the final determination of the Division not later

15 than 30 days after the effective date of the notice of the

16 final determination.

17 (b) ADDITIONAL AND UPDATED INFORMATION.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para19 graph (2), after notice of a final determination is re20 ceived by the agency—

21 (A) the agency may not require that addi22 tional and updated information be provided by

23 the appellant or considered by the

24 decisionmaker in implementing the final deter-
32

•S 1970 PCS

1 mination of the hearing officer or the Director;

2 and

3 (B) additional and updated information

4 from any other source may not be used in im5 plementing the final determination.

6 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—

7 (A) INTRODUCTION BY APPELLANT.—If

8 additional information is introduced by the ap9 pellant during the appeal process and accepted

10 by the hearing officer or the Director, the agen11 cy shall consider the additional information in

12 implementing the final determination.

13 (B) DETERMINATION LETTER.—If the

14 final determination notice specifically states

15 that additional and updated information will be

16 considered in implementing the final determina17 tion, the agency shall consider any additional

18 and updated information in implementing the

19 final determination.

20 (C) SUBSEQUENT ADVERSE DECISION.—

21 Additional and updated information considered

22 under this paragraph may not be used as a

23 ground for a subsequent adverse decision.

24 (c) IMPLEMENTATION RESPONSIBILITIES.—
33

•S 1970 PCS

1 (1) STATE DIRECTOR.—Each State director

2 shall be—

3 (A) required to implement final determina4 tions of a hearing officer or the Director that

5 affect appellants in the State; and

6 (B) responsible for monitoring and ensur7 ing the implementation of final determinations

8 that reverse and modify adverse decisions.

9 (2) AGENCY HEADS.—Relevant agency heads

10 shall be responsible for—

11 (A) the performance of State directors

12 under paragraph (1); and

13 (B) the implementation of all final deter14 minations of the Division that reverse or modify

15 adverse decisions of the agency.

16 (d) PROTECTION OF APPELLANTS’ RIGHTS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—No officer or employee of

18 the Federal Government shall make or engage in

19 threats or intimidation, or solicit action, to prevent

20 any potential appellant from exercising a right of the

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

22 in retaliation or retribution for the exercise of a

23 right of an appellant under this title.

24 (2) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If an officer or em25 ployee of the Federal Government violates paragraph
34

•S 1970 PCS

1 (1), the Secretary shall take corrective action (in2 cluding the imposition of sanctions, when necessary)

3 in conformance with civil service laws.

4 (e) IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS.—

5 (1) ACTIONS BY RELEVANT AGENCY HEAD.—

6 The relevant agency head shall promptly correct any

7 problems that may arise in the implementation of a

8 final determination.

9 (2) OVERSIGHT.—The Secretary shall assign

10 employees within the Office of the Inspector General

11 whom appellants may contact concerning problems

12 with the implementation of final determinations of

13 the Division. The employees shall investigate and, to

14 the extent practicable, resolve the implementation

15 problems.

16 (3) IDENTITY AND ACTIVITIES OF OVERSIGHT

17 AGENCY.—The Secretary shall notify the Director of

18 the business address and telephone number of em19 ployees assigned under paragraph (2). The Director

20 shall include this information in the final determina21 tion notice of the Division to an appellant.

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

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

24 committee (or an employee of the committee) that admin25 isters functions of CCC, or functions assigned to ASCS
35

•S 1970 PCS

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

2 in the absence of misrepresentation, false statement,

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

4 90 days after the date of filing of the application for bene5 fits, unless the decision is—

6 (1) appealed under this title; or

7 (2) modified by the Administrator of ASCS or

8 the Executive Vice President of CCC.

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

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

11 to recover amounts found to have been disbursed as a re12 sult of a decision in error if the decision of the State or

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

14 unless the participant had reason to believe that the deci15 sion was erroneous.

16 SEC. 212. PROHIBITION ON ADVERSE ACTION WHILE AP17 PEAL IS PENDING.

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

19 adverse action against an appellant relating to an appeal

20 while any proceeding authorized or required under this

21 title is pending, including any action that would prevent

22 the implementation of a decision that is favorable to the

23 appellant.

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

25 the Secretary from withholding a payment if the eligibility
36

•S 1970 PCS

1 for, or amount of, the payment is an issue on appeal, ex2 cept that ongoing assistance to then current borrowers

3 and grantees shall not be discontinued pending the out4 come of an appeal.

5 SEC. 213. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.

6 (a) OTHER RIGHTS.—This title is not intended to su7 persede or deprive a recipient of assistance from an agency

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

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

10 (42 U.S.C. 1480(g)).

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

12 to affect the authority of an agency head to grant equi13 table relief.

14 (c) EMPLOYEE RIGHTS.—This title shall neither su15 persede nor interfere with rights granted to employees or

16 their exclusive representatives by applicable civil service

17 laws.

18 SEC. 214. EVALUATION OF AGENCY DECISIONMAKERS AND

19 OTHER EMPLOYEES.

20 (a) EVALUATION IN ANNUAL REVIEW.—The Sec21 retary shall promulgate regulations to require the evalua22 tion described in subsection (b) as part of the annual re23 view of the performance of decisionmakers, State direc24 tors, and agency heads.
37

•S 1970 PCS

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

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

3 to have performed poorly if the decisionmaker, State direc4 tor, or agency head—

5 (1) takes action that leads to numerous appeals

6 that result in adverse decisions that are reversed or

7 modified;

8 (2) fails to properly implement final determina9 tions of the Division;

10 (3) fails to satisfactorily perform the reviewing

11 and monitoring responsibilities required under sub12 section (c) or (e)(1) of section 210, whichever ap13 plies; or

14 (4) threatens or intimidates, or engages in re15 taliation or retribution against, an appellant in viola16 tion of section 210(d).

17 (c) SANCTIONS.—If a decisionmaker, State director,

18 or relevant agency head has performed poorly (as deter19 mined under subsection (b)), the Secretary shall issue

20 sanctions against the decisionmaker, State director, or rel21 evant agency head, as the case may be, which may include

22 a formal reprimand or dismissal consistent with civil serv23 ice laws.

24 SEC. 215. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

25 (a) ASCS.—
38

•S 1970 PCS

1 (1) FINALITY OF FARMERS PAYMENTS AND

2 LOANS.—Section 385 of the Agricultural Adjustment

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

4 (A) by striking the first sentence and in5 serting the following new sentence: ‘‘As used in

6 this section, the term ‘payment’ means any pay7 ment under the Soil Conservation and Domestic

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

9 payment under the wheat, feed grain, upland

10 cotton, extra long staple cotton, and rice pro11 grams authorized by the Agricultural Act of

12 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1421 et seq.) and this Act, or

13 any loan or price support operation, or the

14 amount of the payment, loan, or price sup15 port.’’; and

16 (B) in the second sentence, by striking

17 ‘‘any such payment’’ and inserting ‘‘a pay18 ment’’.

19 (2) DETERMINATIONS BY SECRETARY; AP20 PEALS.—Sections 412 and 426 of the Agricultural

21 Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1429 and 1433e) are re22 pealed.

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

24 and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1983b) is repealed.
39

•S 1970 PCS

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

2 Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(f)) is amend3 ed by inserting before the period at the end the following:

4 ‘‘or within 1 year after the claimant receives a final deter5 mination notice from an administrative appeal made in ac6 cordance with title II of the Department of Agriculture

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

8 TITLE III—FARM AND INTER9 NATIONAL TRADE SERVICES

10 SEC. 301. UNDER SECRETARY FOR FARM AND INTER11 NATIONAL TRADE SERVICES.

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

13 Department the position of Under Secretary of Agri14 culture for Farm and International Trade Services (re15 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Under Secretary’’), to be

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

17 consent of the Senate.

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

19 such functions and perform such duties related to farm

20 and international trade services, and shall perform such

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

22 the Secretary.

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

24 serving as Under Secretary for International Affairs and

25 Commodity Programs on the date of enactment of this
40

•S 1970 PCS

1 Act, who has been appointed by the President and con2 firmed by the Senate, shall be considered on and after the

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

4 position established by subsection (a), and shall not be re5 quired to be reconfirmed by reason of the enactment of

6 this Act.

7 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

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

9 is amended by striking ‘‘Under Secretary of Agri10 culture for International Affairs and Commodity

11 Programs.’’ and inserting ‘‘Under Secretary of Agri12 culture for Farm and International Trade Serv13 ices.’’.

14 (2) Section 501 of the Agricultural Trade Act

15 of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5691) is repealed.

16 SEC. 302. FARM SERVICE AGENCY.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

18 to establish and maintain a Farm Service Agency (re19 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Agency’’) and assign to

20 the Agency such functions as the Secretary may consider

21 appropriate.

22 (b) HEAD.—

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

24 Agency, the Agency or any successor administrative

25 unit shall be headed by an Administrator who shall
41

•S 1970 PCS

1 be appointed by the President, by and with the ad2 vice and consent of the Senate.

3 (2) FCIC.—The Secretary may appoint the Ad4 ministrator of the Agency, or any other person, to

5 serve as head of the Federal Crop Insurance Cor6 poration.

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

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

9 Agency—

10 (1) price and income support, production ad11 justment, and other related functions;

12 (2) functions of the Federal Crop Insurance

13 Corporation;

14 (3) notwithstanding section 331 of the Consoli15 dated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C.

16 1981), agricultural credit functions assigned prior to

17 the date of enactment of this Act to the Farmers

18 Home Administration, including farm ownership, op19 erating, emergency, and disaster loan functions, and

20 other lending programs for producers of agricultural

21 commodities; and

22 (4) any other function or administrative unit

23 that the Secretary considers appropriate.

24 (d) FUNCTIONS NOT ASSIGNABLE TO THE AGEN25 CY.—Except as otherwise determined by the Secretary,
42

•S 1970 PCS

1 functions relating to conservation programs authorized to

2 be assigned to the Natural Resources Conservation Service

3 established under section 601 may not be assigned to the

4 Agency.

5 (e) USE OF EMPLOYEES.—Notwithstanding any

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

7 area any functions assigned to the Agency or any succes8 sor administrative area, the Secretary is authorized to—

9 (1) use interchangeably, in the implementation

10 of functions, Federal employees, and employees of

11 county and State committees established under sec12 tion 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Al13 lotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)); and

14 (2) provide interchangeably for supervision by

15 the employees of the performance of functions as16 signed to the Agency.

17 (f) COLLOCATION.—The Secretary, to the maximum

18 extent practicable, shall collocate county offices of the

19 Agency with county offices of the Natural Resources Con20 servation Service in order to—

21 (1) maximize savings from shared equipment,

22 office space, and administrative support;

23 (2) simplify paperwork and regulatory require24 ments;
43

•S 1970 PCS

1 (3) provide improved services to producers and

2 landowners affected by programs administered by

3 the Agency and the Service; and

4 (4) achieve computer compatibility between the

5 Agency and the Service to maximize efficiency and

6 savings.

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

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

9 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,

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

11 enactment of this Act.

12 (h) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

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

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

15 is amended by striking ‘‘the Under Secretary or As16 sistant Secretary of Agriculture responsible for the

17 farm credit programs of the Department of Agri18 culture,’’ and inserting ‘‘one additional Under or As19 sistant Secretary of Agriculture, as designated by

20 the Secretary,’’.

21 (2) Section 507(d) of the Federal Crop Insur22 ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1507(d)) is amended by striking

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

24 through the period at the end of the subsection and

25 inserting ‘‘section 516.’’.
44

•S 1970 PCS

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

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

3 amended by striking ‘‘assets to the Farmers Home

4 Administration’’ and all that follows through the pe5 riod at the end of the subsection and inserting ‘‘as6 sets to such officers or administrative units of the

7 Department of Agriculture as the Secretary may

8 consider appropriate.’’.

9 SEC. 303. STATE AND COUNTY COMMITTEES.

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

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

12 (1) by designating the first through eighth un13 designated paragraphs as paragraphs (1) through

14 (8), respectively; and

15 (2) in paragraph (5) (as so designated) by add16 ing at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Sec17 retary is authorized, after consultation with the

18 State committee of the State in which the affected

19 counties are located, to terminate, combine, and con20 solidate two or more county committees established

21 under this subsection.’’.

22 SEC. 304. INTERNATIONAL TRADE SERVICE.

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

24 to establish and maintain an International Trade Service

25 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign
45

•S 1970 PCS

1 to the Service such functions or administrative units as

2 the Secretary may consider appropriate and consistent

3 with this Act.

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

5 the Service or any successor administrative unit shall be

6 headed by an Administrator who shall be appointed by the

7 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen8 ate.

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

10 carry out, through the Service or through such other offi11 cers or administrative units as the Secretary may consider

12 appropriate, programs and activities involving—

13 (1) the acquisition of information pertaining to

14 agricultural trade;

15 (2) market promotion and development;

16 (3) promotion of exports of United States agri17 cultural commodities;

18 (4) administration of international food assist19 ance; and

20 (5) international development, technical assist21 ance, and training.

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

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

24 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,
46

•S 1970 PCS

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

2 enactment of this Act.

3 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sections 502 and

4 503 of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5692

5 and 5693) are repealed.

6 TITLE IV—RURAL ECONOMIC

7 AND COMMUNITY DEVELOP8 MENT

9 SEC. 401. UNDER SECRETARY FOR RURAL ECONOMIC AND

10 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.

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

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

13 2211b) is amended to read as follows:

14 ‘‘(a)(1) There is established in the Department of Ag15 riculture the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture

16 for Rural Economic and Community Development to be

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

18 consent of the Senate.

19 ‘‘(2) The Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural

20 Economic and Community Development shall exercise

21 such functions and perform such duties related to rural

22 economic and community development, and shall perform

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

24 by the Secretary of Agriculture.’’.
47

•S 1970 PCS

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

2 as Under Secretary of Agriculture for Small Community

3 and Rural Development on the date of enactment of this

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

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

6 the date of enactment of this Act to be serving in the suc7 cessor position established by the amendment made by

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

9 by reason of the enactment of this Act.

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5314 of

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

12 ‘‘Under Secretary of Agriculture for Small Community

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

14 of Agriculture for Rural Economic and Community Devel15 opment.’’.

16 SEC. 402. RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

18 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

19 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec20 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

21 Department the Rural Utilities Service (referred to in this

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

23 functions and administrative units as the Secretary may

24 consider appropriate.
48

•S 1970 PCS

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

2 the Service or any successor administrative unit shall be

3 headed by an Administrator who shall be appointed by the

4 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen5 ate.

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

7 through the Service, or through any other officer or ad8 ministrative unit as the Secretary may consider appro9 priate—

10 (1) electric and telephone loan programs and

11 water and waste facility activities authorized by law,

12 including—

13 (A) the Rural Electrification Act of 1936

14 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.); and

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

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

17 1926–1); and

18 (2) water and waste facility programs and ac19 tivities authorized by law, including—

20 (A) sections 306, 306A, 306B, and 306C,

21 the provisions of sections 309 and 309A relat22 ing to assets, terms, and conditions of water

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

24 the amendment made by section 342 of the

25 Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act
49

•S 1970 PCS

1 (7 U.S.C. 1926, 1926a, 1926b, 1926c, 1929,

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

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

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

5 1926 note).

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

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

8 appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,

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

10 enactment of this Act.

11 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE RURAL

12 ELECTRIFICATION ACT.—

13 (1) The first section of the Rural Electrification

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

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

16 and inserting ‘‘this Act’’.

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

18 amended by striking ‘‘Administrator’’ and inserting

19 ‘‘Secretary of Agriculture’’.

20 (3) Section 3(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C 903(a))

21 is amended—

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

23 request and approval of the Secretary of Agri24 culture,’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary,’’; and
50

•S 1970 PCS

1 (B) by striking ‘‘Administrator appointed

2 pursuant to the provisions of this Act or from

3 the Administrator of the Rural Electrification

4 Administration established by Executive Order

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

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

7 amended—

8 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘Ad9 ministrator authorized to be appointed by this

10 Act’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’; and

11 (B) in the second sentence, by striking

12 ‘‘Rural Electrification Administration created

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

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

15 repealed.

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

17 amended by inserting before the period the follow18 ing: ‘‘; and the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary

19 of Agriculture’’.

20 (7) Sections 206(b)(2), 306A(b), 311, and

21 405(b)(1)(A) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 927(b)(2),

22 936a(b), 940a, and 945(b)(1)(A)) are amended by

23 striking ‘‘Rural Electrification Administration’’ each

24 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.
51

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

2 943(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘Rural Electrifica3 tion Administration or of any other agency of the

4 Department of Agriculture,’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec5 retary’’.

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

7 amended by striking ‘‘the Administrator of the

8 Rural Electrification Administration’’ and inserting

9 ‘‘the Secretary of Agriculture shall designate an offi10 cial of the Department of Agriculture who’’.

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

12 (7 U.S.C. 946(c) and 950) are amended by striking

13 ‘‘Administrator of the Rural Electrification Adminis14 tration’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Sec15 retary’’.

16 (11) Such Act (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amend17 ed by striking ‘‘Administrator’’ each place it appears

18 and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

19 (f) MISCELLANEOUS CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

20 (1) Section 236(a) of the Disaster Relief Act of

21 1970 (7 U.S.C. 912a) is amended by striking ‘‘Rural

22 Electrification Administration’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec23 retary pursuant to the Rural Electrification Act of

24 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.)’’.
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1 (2) The second undesignated paragraph of sec2 tion 401 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1938

3 (52 Stat. 818; 7 U.S.C. 903 note) is amended by

4 striking ‘‘Administrator of the Rural Electrification

5 Administration’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Agri6 culture’’.

7 (3) Section 15 of the Department of Agri8 culture Organic Act of 1944 (7 U.S.C. 915) is

9 amended by striking ‘‘Rural Electrification Adminis10 tration’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

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

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

13 950aaa–2) is amended—

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

15 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2)

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

17 respectively.

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

19 such Act (7 U.S.C. 950aaa et seq.) is amended by

20 striking ‘‘Administrator’’ each place it appears and

21 inserting ‘‘Secretary’’.

22 SEC. 403. RURAL HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOP23 MENT SERVICE.

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

25 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7
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1 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec2 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

3 Department the Rural Housing and Community Develop4 ment Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’)

5 and to assign to the Service such functions as the Sec6 retary may consider appropriate.

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

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

9 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap10 propriate—

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

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

13 (2) programs and activities authorized under

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

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

16 provisions of law; and

17 (3) programs and activities that relate to rural

18 community lending programs, including programs

19 authorized by sections 365 through 369 of the Con20 solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7

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

22 SEC. 404. RURAL BUSINESS AND COOPERATIVE DEVELOP23 MENT SERVICE.

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Notwithstanding section 364

25 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7
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1 U.S.C. 2006f) and any other provision of law, the Sec2 retary is authorized to establish and maintain within the

3 Department the Rural Business and Cooperative Develop4 ment Service (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Service’’),

5 and to assign to the Service such functions as the Sec6 retary may consider appropriate.

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

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

9 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap10 propriate, programs and activities, including—

11 (1) section 313 and title V of the Rural Elec12 trification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 940c and 950aa et

13 seq.);

14 (2) subtitle G of title XVI of the Food, Agri15 culture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7

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

17 (3) sections 306(a)(1) and 310B of the Consoli18 dated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C.

19 1926(a)(1) and 1932);

20 (4) section 1323 of the Food Security Act of

21 1985 (Public Law 99–198; 7 U.S.C. 1932 note); and

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

23 chapter 725; 7 U.S.C. 451 et seq.).
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1 TITLE V—FOOD, NUTRITION,

2 AND CONSUMER SERVICES

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

4 NUTRITION, AND CONSUMER SERVICES.

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

6 Department the position of Under Secretary of Agri7 culture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services to be

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

9 consent of the Senate.

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

11 for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services shall exercise

12 such functions and perform such duties related to food,

13 nutrition, and consumer services, and shall perform such

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

15 the Secretary.

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

17 serving as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Food and

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

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

20 and consent of the Senate, shall be considered to be serv21 ing in the successor position established by subsection (a),

22 and shall not be required to be reconfirmed by reason of

23 the enactment of this Act.
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1 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5314 of

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

3 end the following:

4 ‘‘Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nu5 trition, and Consumer Services.’’.

6 SEC. 502. FOOD AND CONSUMER SERVICE.

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

8 to establish and maintain within the Department the Food

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

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

11 the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

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

14 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap15 propriate, programs and activities, including—

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

17 2011 et seq.);

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

19 1751 et seq.); and

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

21 1771 et seq).

22 SEC. 503. NUTRITION RESEARCH AND EDUCATION SERV23 ICE.

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

25 to establish and maintain within the Department the Nu-
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1 trition Research and Education Service (referred to in this

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

3 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

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

6 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap7 propriate, programs and activities relating to human nu8 trition research and education.

9 TITLE VI—NATURAL RESOURCES

10 AND ENVIRONMENT

11 SEC. 601. NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE.

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

13 to establish and maintain within the Department the Nat14 ural Resources Conservation Service (referred to in this

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

16 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

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

19 or administrative unit of the Department as the Secretary

20 may consider appropriate, programs and activities, includ21 ing—

22 (1) title X of the Agricultural Act of 1970 (16

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

24 (2) the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allot25 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 590a et seq.);
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1 (3) the Water Bank Act (16 U.S.C. 1301 et

2 seq.);

3 (4) section 4 of the Cooperative Forestry As4 sistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2103);

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

6 (16 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.);

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

8 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.);

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

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

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

12 U.S.C. 4201 note).

13 (c) USE OF EMPLOYEES.—Notwithstanding any

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

15 area any functions assigned to the Service or any succes16 sor administrative unit, the Secretary is authorized to—

17 (1) use interchangeably, in the implementation

18 of functions, Federal employees, and employees of

19 county and area committees established under sec20 tion 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Al21 lotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590h(b)); and

22 (2) provide interchangeably for supervision by

23 the employees of the performance of functions as24 signed to the Service.
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1 (d) AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION PROGRAM.—In

2 carrying out the Agricultural Conservation Program, the

3 Secretary shall—

4 (1) acting on the recommendations of the Serv5 ice, with the concurrence of the Farm Service Agen6 cy, issue regulations to carry out the program; and

7 (2) use a county committee established under

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

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

10 decision on which applicants are eligible to receive

11 cost share assistance under the program based on

12 priorities and guidelines established at the national

13 and State levels by the Service.

14 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

15 (1) Section 5 of the Soil Conservation and Do16 mestic Allotment Act (16 U.S.C. 590e) is repealed.

17 (2)(A) Section 2(2) of the Soil and Water Re18 sources Conservation Act of 1977 (16 U.S.C.

19 2001(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘the Soil Conserva20 tion Service of’’.

21 (B) Section 3(2) of such Act (16 U.S.C.

22 2002(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘through the Soil

23 Conservation Service’’.

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

25 Act (16 U.S.C. 2005(a)) is amended by striking
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1 ‘‘Soil Conservation Service’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec2 retary’’.

3 SEC. 602. REORGANIZATION OF FOREST SERVICE.

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

5 developed by the Secretary to carry out the designation

6 by the President of the Forest Service as a Reinvention

7 Lab pursuant to the National Performance Review (Sep8 tember 1993) shall include proposals for—

9 (1) reorganizing the Service in a manner that

10 is consistent with the principles of interdisciplinary

11 planning;

12 (2) redefining and consolidating the mission

13 and roles of, and research conducted by, employees

14 of the Service in connection with the National For15 est System and State and private forestry to facili16 tate interdisciplinary planning and to eliminate func17 tionalism;

18 (3) reforming the budget structure of the Serv19 ice to support interdisciplinary planning, including

20 reducing the number of budget line items;

21 (4) defining new measures of accountability so

22 that Congress may meet the constitutional obligation

23 of Congress to oversee the Service;

24 (5) achieving structural and organizational con25 solidations;
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1 (6) to the extent practicable, sharing office

2 space, equipment, vehicles, and electronic systems

3 with other administrative units of the Department

4 and other Federal field offices, including proposals

5 for using an on-line system by all administrative

6 units of the Department to maximize administrative

7 efficiency; and

8 (7) reorganizing the Service in a manner that

9 will result in a larger percentage of employees of the

10 Service being retained at organizational levels below

11 regional offices, research stations, and the area of12 fice of the Service.

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

14 Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Agri15 culture of the House of Representatives and the Commit16 tee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate

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

18 and identifies any disparities in regional funding patterns

19 and the rationale behind the disparities.

20 TITLE VII—MARKETING AND

21 INSPECTION SERVICES

22 SEC. 701. GRAIN INSPECTION, PACKERS AND STOCKYARDS

23 ADMINISTRATION.

24 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

25 to establish and maintain within the Department the
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1 Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

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

3 to assign to the Administration such functions as the Sec4 retary may consider appropriate.

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

6 carry out through the Administration, or through any

7 other officer or administrative unit as the Secretary may

8 consider appropriate, programs and activities authorized

9 under—

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

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

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

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

14 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

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

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

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

18 and

19 (ii) by redesignating subsection (bb) as

20 subsection (z).

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

22 repealed.

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

24 is amended by striking ‘‘Service employees’’ and in25 serting ‘‘employees of the Secretary’’.
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1 (D) The first sentences of each of sections

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

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

4 ‘‘supervision by Service personnel of its field office

5 personnel’’ and inserting ‘‘supervision by the Sec6 retary of the field office personnel of the Secretary’’.

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

8 amended—

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

10 by striking ‘‘or Administrator’’; and

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

12 Administrator’’.

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

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

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

16 (2) Section 407 of the Packers and Stockyards

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

18 (A) by striking subsection (b);

19 (B) by redesignating subsections (c)

20 through (f) as subsections (b) through (e), re21 spectively; and

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

23 striking ‘‘subsection (e)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub24 section (d)’’.
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1 TITLE VIII—RESEARCH,

2 ECONOMICS, AND EDUCATION

3 SEC. 801. FEDERAL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION SERV4 ICE.

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

6 to establish and maintain within the Department the Fed7 eral Research and Information Service (referred to in this

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

9 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

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

12 or administrative unit as the Secretary may consider ap13 propriate, programs and activities, including—

14 (1) agricultural research; and

15 (2) agricultural information and library serv16 ices.

17 SEC. 802. COOPERATIVE STATE RESEARCH AND EDU18 CATION SERVICE.

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

20 to establish and maintain within the Department the Co21 operative State Research and Education Service (referred

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

23 Service such functions as the Secretary may consider ap24 propriate.
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1 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to

2 carry out through the Service programs and activities, in3 cluding—

4 (1) cooperative research programs; and

5 (2) agricultural extension and education pro6 grams.

7 SEC. 803. AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS

8 SERVICE.

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary may establish

10 and maintain within the Department the Agricultural Eco11 nomics and Statistics Service (referred to in this section

12 as the ‘‘Service’’) and to assign to the Service such func13 tions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

15 through the Service, or through any other officer or ad16 ministrative unit as the Secretary may consider appro17 priate, programs and activities, including—

18 (1) economic analysis and research;

19 (2) energy-related programs;

20 (3) crop and livestock estimates; and

21 (4) agricultural statistics.

22 (c) STATE AND LOCAL STATISTICAL OFFICES AND

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

24 and (b) shall not authorize a substantial change in the
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1 functions or structures of State and local statistical offices

2 and employees of the offices.

3 SEC. 804. PROGRAM POLICY AND COORDINATION STAFF.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary is authorized

5 to establish and maintain within the Department the Pro6 gram Policy and Coordination Staff (referred to in this

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

8 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

10 maintained, the Staff shall provide common program pol11 icy development for the Federal Research and Information

12 Service, the Cooperative State Research and Education

13 Service, and the Agricultural Economics and Statistics

14 Service.

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

16 employees of the Staff shall be former employees of the

17 Cooperative State Research Service and the Extension

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

19 Act.

20 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO FUNCTIONS CURRENTLY PER21 FORMED BY NASS.—The Staff may not—

22 (1) interfere with statistic collection and report23 ing; or

24 (2) compromise the independence or integrity of

25 statistic collection and reporting functions of the
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1 National Agricultural Statistics Service as in effect

2 on the date of enactment of this Act.

3 TITLE IX—FOOD SAFETY

4 SEC. 901. FOOD SAFETY SERVICE.

5 (a) MEAT INSPECTION.—The Federal Meat Inspec6 tion Act (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding

7 at the end the following new title:

8 ‘‘TITLE V—FOOD SAFETY

9 SERVICE

10 ‘‘SEC. 501. FOOD SAFETY SERVICE.

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

12 and maintain within the United States Department of Ag13 riculture the Food Safety Service (referred to in this sec14 tion as the ‘Service’) and to assign to the Service such

15 functions as the Secretary may consider appropriate.

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

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

18 Service the position of Assistant Secretary for Food

19 Safety (referred to in this section as the ‘Assistant

20 Secretary’), who shall be appointed by the President,

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

22 ‘‘(2) CONTINUITY OF THE POSITION.—Any offi23 cial serving on the date of enactment of this section,

24 who has been appointed by the President and con-
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1 firmed by the Senate, shall not be required to be re2 confirmed by reason of the enactment of this Act.

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

4 Assistant Secretary shall report directly to the Sec5 retary.

6 ‘‘(4) GENERAL POWERS.—The Secretary is au7 thorized to carry out, through the Service or through

8 such other officers or administrative units as the

9 Secretary may consider appropriate, programs and

10 activities involving food safety under this Act and

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

12 et seq.), including—

13 ‘‘(A) providing overall direction to the

14 Service and establishing and implementing gen15 eral policies concerning the management and

16 operation of programs and inspection activities

17 of the Service;

18 ‘‘(B) coordinating and overseeing the oper19 ation of all administrative entities within the

20 Service;

21 ‘‘(C) research and inspection relating to

22 meat, meat food products, poultry, and poultry

23 products in carrying out this Act and the Poul24 try Products Inspection Act;
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1 ‘‘(D) conducting educational and public in2 formation programs relating to the responsibil3 ities of the Service; and

4 ‘‘(E) performing such other functions re5 lated to food safety as the Secretary may pre6 scribe, except that only programs and activities

7 related to food safety, as determined by the

8 Secretary, shall be administered through the

9 Service.

10 ‘‘(c) TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC REVIEW

11 GROUPS.—The Secretary, acting through the Assistant

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

13 5, United States Code, governing appointment in the com14 petitive service, and without regard to the provisions of

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

16 United States Code, relating to classification and General

17 Schedule pay rates—

18 ‘‘(1) establish such technical and scientific re19 view groups as are needed to carry out the functions

20 of the Service, including functions under this Act

21 and under the Poultry Products Inspection Act (21

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

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

24 groups, except that officers and employees of the
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1 United States shall not receive additional compensa2 tion for service as a member of a group.’’.

3 (b) POULTRY PRODUCTS INSPECTION.—The Poultry

4 Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.) is amend5 ed—

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

7 and

8 (2) by inserting after section 28 the following

9 new section:

10 ‘‘SEC. 29. ADMINISTRATION.

11 ‘‘The Secretary shall administer this Act through the

12 Assistant Secretary for Food Safety of the Food Safety

13 Service established under section 501 of the Federal Meat

14 Inspection Act.’’.

15 TITLE X—MISCELLANEOUS

16 SEC. 1001. ASSISTANT SECRETARIES OF AGRICULTURE.

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

18 Department six positions of Assistant Secretary of Agri19 culture, each to be appointed by the President, by and

20 with the advice and consent of the Senate.

21 (b) FUNCTIONS.—Each Assistant Secretary of Agri22 culture shall exercise such functions and perform such du23 ties as may be required by law or prescribed by the Sec24 retary, and shall receive compensation at the rate pre25 scribed by law for an Assistant Secretary of Agriculture.
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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

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

3 (25 Stat. 659, chapter 122; 7 U.S.C. 2212), is re4 pealed.

5 (2) Section 604 of the Rural Development Act

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

7 subsection (a).

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

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

10 (4) Section 1413 of the National Agricultural

11 Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of

12 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3128) is amended by striking sub13 section (d).

14 (5) Section 8 of the International Carriage of

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

16 amended by striking subsection (a).

17 (d) CONTINUITY OF POSITIONS.—Notwithstanding

18 subsections (a) and (b) and the amendments made by sub19 section (c), any official serving in any of the positions re20 ferred to in this section on the date of enactment of this

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

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

23 the date of enactment of this Act to be serving in the suc24 cessor positions established by subsection (a) and shall not
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1 be required to be reappointed by reason of the enactment

2 of this Act.

3 (e) ADDITIONAL CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sec4 tion 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended—

5 (1) by striking ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of Agri6 culture (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of

7 Agriculture (six)’’; and

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

9 ‘‘Administrator, Farm Service Agency, Depart10 ment of Agriculture.

11 ‘‘Administrator, International Trade Service,

12 Department of Agriculture.

13 ‘‘Administrator, Rural Utilities Service, Depart14 ment of Agriculture.’’.

15 SEC. 1002. REMOVAL OF OBSOLETE PROVISIONS.

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

17 amended—

18 (1) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural

19 Marketing Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

20 (2) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural Re21 search Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

22 (3) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Agricultural

23 Stabilization and Conservation Service, Department

24 of Agriculture.’’;
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1 (4) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Farmers Home

2 Administration.’’;

3 (5) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Foreign Agri4 cultural Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

5 (6) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Rural Elec6 trification Administration, Department of Agri7 culture.’’;

8 (7) by striking ‘‘Administrator, Soil Conserva9 tion Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

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

11 Service, Department of Agriculture.’’;

12 (9) by striking ‘‘Director of Science and Edu13 cation, Department of Agriculture.’’;

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

15 Plant Health Inspection Service, Department of Ag16 riculture.’’; and

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

18 Inspection Service, Department of Agriculture.’’.

19 SEC. 1003. ADDITIONAL CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

20 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment

21 of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Con22 gress recommended legislation containing additional tech23 nical and conforming amendments to Federal law that are

24 necessary as a result of the enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 1004. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the au3 thority delegated to the Secretary by this Act to reorganize

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

5 after the date of enactment of this Act.

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

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

8 carry out a function that the Secretary performs on

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

10 of this Act; or

11 (2) the authority delegated to the Secretary

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

13 App. 1).

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S. 1970 PCS——5

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