I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2088 

To amend the United States Grain Standards Act to improve inspection 

services performed at export elevators at export port locations, to reauthorize certain authorities of the Secretary of Agriculture under such 

Act, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 29, 2015 

Mr. CONAWAY (for himself, Mr. PETERSON, Mr. CRAWFORD, and Mr. WALZ) 

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

A BILL 

To amend the United States Grain Standards Act to improve 

inspection services performed at export elevators at export port locations, to reauthorize certain authorities of 

the Secretary of Agriculture under such Act, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘United States Grain 

5 Standards Act Reauthorization Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF UNITED STATES GRAIN 

2 STANDARDS ACT. 

3 (a) POLICY AND PURPOSE OF ACT.—Section 2(b) of 

4 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 74(b)) 

5 is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘to both do7 mestic and foreign buyers’’ and inserting ‘‘respon8 sive to the purchase specifications of domestic and 

9 foreign buyers’’; 

10 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

11 (2); 

12 (3) by striking the period at the end of para13 graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

15 paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(4) to provide an accurate, reliable, consist17 ently available, and cost-effective official grain in18 spection and weighing system.’’. 

19 (b) DEFINITIONS.— 

20 (1) MAJOR DISASTER DEFINED.—Section 3 of 

21 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

22 75) is amended by adding at the end the following 

23 new paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(aa) The term ‘major disaster’ has the mean25 ing given that term in section 102(2) of the Robert 

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1 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122(2)), except that the term 

2 includes a severe weather incident causing a region3 wide interruption of government services.’’. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 3 of 

5 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

6 75) is further amended— 

7 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (a), 

8 by striking ‘‘otherwise–’’ and inserting ‘‘other9 wise:’’; 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘the term’’ at the begin11 ning of each paragraph (other than paragraphs 

12 (n) and (t)) and inserting ‘‘The term’’; 

13 (C) in paragraphs (n) and (t), by striking 

14 ‘‘the terms’’ and inserting ‘‘The terms’’; 

15 (D) in paragraph (s), by striking ‘‘the 

16 verb’’ and inserting ‘‘The verb’’; 

17 (E) in paragraph (x)— 

18 (i) by striking ‘‘conveyance (the 

19 terms’’ and inserting ‘‘conveyance. The 

20 terms’’; and 

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘accordingly);’’ and in22 serting ‘‘accordingly.’’; 

23 (F) by striking the semicolon at the end of 

24 each paragraph (other than paragraphs (x) and 

25 (y)) and inserting a period; and 


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1 (G) in paragraph (y), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

2 and inserting a period. 

3 (c) OFFICIAL INSPECTION AND WEIGHING REQUIRE4 MENTS.— 

5 (1) DISCRETIONARY WAIVER AUTHORITY.—Sec6 tion 5(a)(1) of the United States Grain Standards 

7 Act (7 U.S.C. 77(a)(1)) is amended by striking 

8 ‘‘may waive’’ and inserting ‘‘shall promptly waive’’. 

9 (2) WEIGHING REQUIREMENTS AT EXPORT

10 ELEVATORS.—Section 5(a)(2) of the United States 

11 Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 77(a)(2)) is amend12 ed by striking ‘‘intracompany shipments of grain 

13 into an export elevator by any mode of transpor14 tation, grain transferred into an export elevator by 

15 transportation modes other than barge,’’ and insert16 ing ‘‘shipments of grain into an export elevator by 

17 any mode of transportation’’. 

18 (d) DELEGATION OF OFFICIAL INSPECTION AUTHOR19 ITY.— 

20 (1) AUTHORIZED INSPECTION PERSONNEL AT

21 EXPORT ELEVATORS AT EXPORT PORT LOCA22 TIONS.—Paragraph (1) of section 7(e) of the United 

23 States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(e)) is 

24 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (3) 

2 and (4) of this subsection, the Secretary shall cause offi3 cial inspection at export elevators at export port locations, 

4 for all grain required or authorized to be inspected by this 

5 Act, to be performed— 

6 ‘‘(A) by official inspection personnel employed 

7 by the Secretary; or 

8 ‘‘(B) by other persons under contract with the 

9 Secretary as provided in section 8 of this Act.’’. 

10 (2) DELEGATION TO STATE AGENCIES.—Sec11 tion 7(e) of the United States Grain Standards Act 

12 (7 U.S.C. 79(e)) is amended— 

13 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘, meets the criteria’’ 

15 and all that follows through ‘‘the Secretary 

16 may delegate’’ and inserting ‘‘and meets 

17 the criteria specified in subsection 

18 (f)(1)(A) of this section, the Secretary may 

19 delegate’’; 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘at export port loca21 tions within the State, including export 

22 port locations’’ and inserting ‘‘at export 

23 elevators at export port locations within 

24 the State, including at export elevators at 

25 export port locations’’; and 


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1 (iii) in the last sentence, by striking 

2 ‘‘Any such delegation’’ and inserting ‘‘The 

3 delegation under this paragraph of author4 ity to conduct official inspection services 

5 shall be for a term not to exceed five years, 

6 and may be renewed thereafter in accord7 ance with this subsection, except that any 

8 such delegation’’; 

9 (B) by transferring paragraph (4) to the 

10 end of subsection (f), redesignating such para11 graph as paragraph (5), and, in such para12 graph, by striking ‘‘or subsection (f)’’ and in13 serting ‘‘or subsection (e)’’; and 

14 (C) by striking paragraph (3) and insert15 ing the following new paragraphs: 

16 ‘‘(3) Prior to delegating authority to a State agency 

17 for the performance of official inspection services at export 

18 elevators at export port locations pursuant to paragraph 

19 (2) of this subsection, the Secretary shall comply with the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(A) Upon receipt of an application from a 

22 State agency requesting the delegation of authority 

23 to perform official inspection services on behalf of 

24 the Secretary, publish notice of the application in 


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1 the Federal Register and provide a minimum 30-day 

2 comment period on the application. 

3 ‘‘(B) Evaluate the comments received under 

4 subparagraph (A) with respect to an application and 

5 conduct an investigation to determine whether the 

6 State agency that submitted the application and its 

7 personnel are qualified to perform official inspection 

8 services on behalf of the Secretary. In conducting 

9 the investigation, the Secretary shall consult with, 

10 and review the available files of the Department of 

11 Justice, the Office of Inspector General of the De12 partment of Agriculture, and the Government Ac13 countability Office. 

14 ‘‘(C) Make findings based on the results of the 

15 investigation and consideration of public comments 

16 received. 

17 ‘‘(D) Publish a notice in the Federal Register 

18 announcing whether the State agency has been dele19 gated the authority to perform official inspection 

20 services at export elevators at export port locations 

21 on behalf of the Secretary, and the basis upon which 

22 the Secretary has made the decision. 

23 ‘‘(4)(A) Except in the case of a major disaster, if a 

24 State agency that has been delegated the authority to per25 form official inspection services at export elevators at exVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 May 07, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2088.IH H2088

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1 port port locations on behalf of the Secretary fails to per2 form such official services, the Secretary shall submit to 

3 Congress, within 90 days after the first day on which in4 spection services were not performed by the delegated 

5 State agency, a report containing— 

6 ‘‘(i) the reasons for the State agency’s fail7 ure; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) the rationale as to whether or not the 

9 Secretary will permit the State agency to retain 

10 its delegated authority. 

11 ‘‘(B) A State agency may request that the delegation 

12 of inspection authority to the agency be canceled by pro13 viding written notice to the Secretary at least 90 days in 

14 advance of the requested cancellation date. 

15 ‘‘(C) If a State agency that has been delegated the 

16 authority under paragraph (2) of this subsection to per17 form official inspection services at an export elevator at 

18 an export port location on behalf of the Secretary intends 

19 to temporarily discontinue such official inspection services 

20 or weighing services for any reason, except in the case of 

21 a major disaster, the State agency shall notify the Sec22 retary in writing of its intention to do so at least 72 hours 

23 in advance of the discontinuation date. The receipt of such 

24 prior notice shall be considered by the Secretary as a mitiVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:57 May 07, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2088.IH H2088

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1 gating factor in determining whether to maintain or re2 voke the delegation of authority to the State agency.’’. 

3 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(A) Section 

4 7(f)(1) of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 

5 U.S.C. 79(f)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘other than 

6 at export port locations’’ and inserting ‘‘(other than 

7 at an export elevator at an export port location)’’. 

8 (B) Section 16(d) of the United States Grain 

9 Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 87e(d)) is amended by 

10 striking ‘‘The Office of Investigation of the Depart11 ment of Agriculture (or such other organization or 

12 agency within the Department of Agriculture which 

13 may be delegated the authority, in lieu thereof, to 

14 conduct investigations on behalf of the Department 

15 of Agriculture)’’ and inserting ‘‘The Office of In16 spector General of the Department of Agriculture’’. 

17 (4) EVALUATION OF CURRENT DELEGATIONS.— 

18 Not later than two years after the date of the enact19 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall 

20 complete a review of each State agency that, as of 

21 the date of the enactment of this Act, has been dele22 gated inspection authority under section 7(e) of the 

23 United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(e)) 

24 and determine if the State agency is qualified to 

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1 port elevators at export port locations on behalf of 

2 the Secretary under such section, as amended by 

3 this subsection. The Secretary shall conduct the re4 view subject to the requirements of section 7(e) of 

5 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

6 79(e)), as amended by this subsection, and a State 

7 agency determined to be qualified to continue to per8 form such official inspection services shall be subject 

9 thereafter to such requirements. 

10 (e) CONTINUITY OF OPERATIONS.—Section 7(e) of 

11 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(e)) 

12 is further amended by inserting after paragraph (4), as 

13 added by subsection (d), the following new paragraphs: 

14 ‘‘(5) Except in the case of a major disaster, the Sec15 retary shall cause official inspections at an export elevator 

16 at an export port location— 

17 ‘‘(A) to be performed without interruption by 

18 official inspection personnel employed by the Sec19 retary or by a State agency delegated such authority 

20 under paragraph (2) of this subsection; or 

21 ‘‘(B) if interrupted, to be resumed at the export 

22 elevator by utilizing official inspection personnel em23 ployed by the Secretary or by another delegated 

24 State agency as provided under paragraph (2) of 

25 this subsection as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(i) Within six hours after the interrup2 tion, if the interruption is caused by a State 

3 agency delegated such authority under this sub4 section and the Secretary received advance no5 tice of the interruption pursuant to paragraph 

6 (4)(C) of this subsection. 

7 ‘‘(ii) Within 12 hours after the interrup8 tion, if the State agency failed to provide the 

9 required advance notice of the interruption. 

10 ‘‘(6)(A) If the Secretary is unable to restore official 

11 inspection services within the applicable time period re12 quired by paragraph (5)(B) of this subsection, the inter13 ested person requesting such services at the export eleva14 tor at an export port location shall be authorized to utilize 

15 official inspection personnel, as provided under section 8 

16 of the Act, employed by another State agency delegated 

17 authority under paragraph (2) of this subsection or des18 ignated under subsection (f)(1) of this section. 

19 ‘‘(B) A delegated or designated State agency pro20 viding inspection services under subparagraph (A) may, 

21 at its discretion, provide such services for a period of up 

22 to 90 days from the date on which the services are initi23 ated, after which time the Secretary may restore official 

24 inspection services using official inspection personnel em25 ployed by the Secretary or a State agency delegated such 


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1 authority under this subsection, if available. The State 

2 agency shall notify the Secretary in writing of its intention 

3 to discontinue inspection services under subparagraph (A) 

4 at least 72 hours in advance of the discontinuation date. 

5 ‘‘(7) Not later than 60 days after the date of the en6 actment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall make avail7 able to the public, including pursuant to a website main8 tained by the Secretary, a list of all delegated States and 

9 all official agencies authorized to perform official inspec10 tions on behalf of the Secretary. This list shall include 

11 the name, contact information, and category of authority 

12 granted. The Secretary shall update the list at least semi13 annually.’’. 

14 (f) GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARIES FOR OFFICIAL AGEN15 CIES.— 

16 (1) OFFICIAL INSPECTION AUTHORITY.—Sec17 tion 7(f)(2) of the United States Grain Standards 

18 Act (7 U.S.C. 79(f)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘the 

19 Secretary may’’ and all that follows through the end 

20 of the paragraph and inserting the following: ‘‘the 

21 Secretary shall allow a designated official agency to 

22 cross boundary lines to carry out inspections in an23 other geographic area if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the current designated official agency 

2 for that geographic area is unable to provide in3 spection services in a timely manner; 

4 ‘‘(B) a person requesting inspection serv5 ices in that geographic area requests a probe 

6 inspection on a barge-lot basis; or 

7 ‘‘(C) the current official agency for that 

8 geographic area agrees in writing with the adja9 cent official agency to waive the current geo10 graphic area restriction at the request of the 

11 applicant for service.’’. 

12 (2) WEIGHING AUTHORITY.—Section 7A(i)(2) 

13 of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

14 79a(i)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘the Secretary 

15 may’’ and all that follows through the end of the 

16 paragraph and inserting the following: ‘‘the Sec17 retary shall allow a designated official agency to 

18 cross boundary lines to carry out weighing in an19 other geographic area if— 

20 ‘‘(A) the current designated official agency 

21 for that geographic area is unable to provide 

22 weighing services in a timely manner; or 

23 ‘‘(B) the current official agency for that 

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1 graphic area restriction at the request of the 

2 applicant for service.’’. 

3 (g) DURATION OF DESIGNATIONS OF OFFICIAL

4 AGENCIES.—Section 7(g)(1) of the United States Grain 

5 Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(g)(1)) is amended by striking 

6 ‘‘triennially’’ and inserting ‘‘every five years’’. 

7 (h) INSPECTION FEES.— 

8 (1) COLLECTION AND AMOUNTS.—Section 

9 7(j)(1) of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 

10 U.S.C. 79(j)(1)) is amended— 

11 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’; 

12 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

13 subparagraph: 

14 ‘‘(B) For official inspections and weighing at an ex15 port elevator at an export port location performed by the 

16 Secretary, performed by a State agency delegated the au17 thority to perform official inspection services at the export 

18 elevator on behalf of the Secretary, or performed by a 

19 State agency utilized as authorized by subsection 

20 (e)(6)(A), the portion of the fees based upon export ton21 nage shall be based upon a rolling five-year average of ex22 port tonnage volumes. In order to maintain an operating 

23 reserve of between three to six months, the Secretary shall 

24 adjust such fees at least annually.’’. 


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1 (2) DURATION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 7(j)(4) 

2 of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

3 79(j)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 

4 2015’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2020’’. 

5 (i) OFFICIAL WEIGHING OR SUPERVISION AT LOCA6 TIONS WHERE OFFICIAL INSPECTION IS PROVIDED

7 OTHER THAN BY THE SECRETARY.—Section 7A(c)(2) of 

8 the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

9 79a(c)(2)) is amended— 

10 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘with re11 spect to export port locations’’ and inserting ‘‘with 

12 respect to an export elevator at an export port loca13 tion’’; and 

14 (2) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘subsection 

15 (g) of section 7’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (e) and 

16 (g) of section 7’’. 

17 (j) COLLECTION OF FEES FOR WEIGHING SERV18 ICES.—Section 7A(l)(3) of the United States Grain Stand19 ards Act (7 U.S.C. 79a(l)(2)) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘September 30, 2015’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 

21 2020’’. 

22 (k) LIMITATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPER23 VISORY COSTS.—Section 7D of the United States Grain 

24 Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79d) is amended by striking 

25 ‘‘2015’’ and inserting ‘‘2020’’. 


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1 (l) ISSUANCE OF AUTHORIZATIONS.— 

2 (1) DURATION.—Section 8(b) of the United 

3 States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 84(b)) is 

4 amended by striking ‘‘triennially’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘every five years’’. 

6 (2) PERSONS WHO MAY BE HIRED AS OFFICIAL

7 INSPECTION PERSONNEL.—Section 8(e) of the 

8 United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 84(e)) 

9 is amended— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘(on the date of enactment 

11 of the United States Grain Standards Act of 

12 1976)’’; 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘the United States Grain 

14 Standards Act’’ and inserting ‘‘this Act’’; and 

15 (C) by striking ‘‘, on the date of enactment 

16 of the United States Grain Standards Act of 

17 1976, was performing’’ and inserting ‘‘per18 forms’’. 

19 (m) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

20 19 of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 

21 87h) is amended by striking ‘‘2015’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘2020’’. 

23 (n) EXPIRATION OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—Sec24 tion 21(e) of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 


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1 U.S.C. 87j(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 

2 2015’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2020’’. 

Æ 


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