II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 541 

To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to promote 

local and regional support for sustainable bioenergy and biobased products, to support the future of farming, forestry, and land management, 

to develop and support local bioenergy, biobased products, and food 

systems, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 8, 2007 

Mr. FEINGOLD introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

A BILL 

To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act 

of 2002 to promote local and regional support for sustainable bioenergy and biobased products, to support the 

future of farming, forestry, and land management, to 

develop and support local bioenergy, biobased products, 

and food systems, 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 ‘‘Rural Opportunities 

5 Act of 2007’’. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
2 

•S 541 IS

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Section 9001 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest3 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8101) is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through 

5 (6), as paragraphs (5) through (7), respectively; 

6 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

9 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

10 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher 

11 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(8) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means— 

14 ‘‘(A) a State; 

15 ‘‘(B) the District of Columbia; 

16 ‘‘(C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(D) any other territory or possession of 

19 the United States.’’. 

20 SEC. 3. LOCAL AND REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE BIOENERGY 

21 AND BIOBASED PRODUCT USE AND PRODUC22 TION. 

23 (a) LOCAL AND REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE BIO24 ENERGY AND BIOBASED PRODUCT USE AND PRODUC25 TION.—Title IX of the Farm Security and Rural InvestVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
3 

•S 541 IS

1 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8101 et seq.) is amended by 

2 adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 9012. LOCAL AND REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE BIO4 ENERGY AND BIOBASED PRODUCT USE AND 

5 PRODUCTION. 

6 ‘‘(a) EXTENSION, EDUCATION, TECHNICAL ASSIST7 ANCE, APPLIED RESEARCH, AND DEVELOPMENT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

9 grants to States to carry out extension, education, 

10 applied research, and development activities at ap11 propriate institutions of higher education, State 

12 agencies, or partnerships in the States to support 

13 local and regional sustainable bioenergy and 

14 biobased product use and production. 

15 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara17 graphs (B) and (C), funds made available 

18 under paragraph (4) shall be allocated among 

19 the States in accordance with the terms and 

20 conditions of paragraphs (1) through (3) of sec21 tion 3(c) of the Hatch Act of 1887 (7 U.S.C. 

22 361c(c)) and subparagraph (C). 

23 ‘‘(B) UNALLOCATED FUNDS.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

25 may use funds described in clause (ii) to 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
4 

•S 541 IS

1 provide bonus grants to States based on 

2 the need and merit of projects identified 

3 through annual reports submitted under 

4 paragraph (3)(E), as determined by the 

5 Secretary. 

6 ‘‘(ii) RELEVANT FUNDS.—The funds 

7 referenced in clause (i) are funds that— 

8 ‘‘(I) would otherwise remain 

9 unallocated under this subsection for 

10 a fiscal year; 

11 ‘‘(II) remain unused by a State 

12 as of the end of the grant term, as de13 termined by the Secretary; or 

14 ‘‘(III) are returned to the Sec15 retary in accordance with paragraph 

16 (3)(C)(ii). 

17 ‘‘(C) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary 

18 shall use not more than 5 percent of funds 

19 made available under paragraph (4)— 

20 ‘‘(i) to maintain a clearinghouse for 

21 projects funded under this subsection; 

22 ‘‘(ii) to fund liaisons to provide tech23 nical assistance within— 

24 ‘‘(I) the Department of Agri25 culture; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
5 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(II) the Department of Com2 merce; 

3 ‘‘(III) the Department of Energy; 

4 ‘‘(IV) the Environmental Protec5 tion Agency; and 

6 ‘‘(V) other appropriate Federal 

7 agencies as determined by the Sec8 retary. 

9 ‘‘(iii) to support studies, competitions, 

10 and administration required by this sec11 tion; and 

12 ‘‘(iv) to support the collection and 

13 sharing of local innovations between the 

14 State lead agencies designated under this 

15 section. 

16 ‘‘(3) CONDITIONS ON RECEIVING GRANTS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) LEAD AGENCY.— 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a 

19 State shall designate or establish an agen20 cy, institution of higher education, or joint 

21 entity in the State as the lead agency for 

22 the distribution of grant funds. 

23 ‘‘(ii) DUTIES.—A lead agency des24 ignated under clause (i) shall— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
6 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(I) encourage collaboration be2 tween agencies, institutions of higher 

3 education, cooperative extension, and 

4 appropriate nonprofit organizations in 

5 the State; 

6 ‘‘(II) support private- and non7 profit-public partnerships for purposes 

8 of the grant; 

9 ‘‘(III) establish a local citizen 

10 and industry advisory board; 

11 ‘‘(IV) improve the energy inde12 pendence of the State; and 

13 ‘‘(V) in consultation with the ad14 visory board, develop a comprehensive 

15 statewide energy plan to increase en16 ergy independence described in clause 

17 (iii). 

18 ‘‘(iii) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.—The 

19 plan developed under clause (ii)(IV) 

20 shall— 

21 ‘‘(I) support local and regional 

22 sustainable bioenergy and biobased 

23 product use and production; 

24 ‘‘(II) provide flexibility for local 

25 needs; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
7 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(III) support other renewable 

2 energy, energy efficiency and con3 servation activities, and coordination 

4 with other State and Federal energy 

5 initiatives (including the Clean Cities 

6 Program established under sections 

7 405, 409, and 505 of the Energy Pol8 icy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13231, 

9 13235, 13256)); 

10 ‘‘(IV) support a diverse array of 

11 farm sizes, crops (including agro12 forestry), and production techniques, 

13 with a particular focus on small- and 

14 moderate-sized family farms; 

15 ‘‘(V) have a goal of maximizing 

16 the public value of developing and 

17 using sustainable bioenergy and 

18 biobased products; 

19 ‘‘(VI) include activities— 

20 ‘‘(aa) to manage energy 

21 usage through energy efficiency 

22 and conservation; 

23 ‘‘(bb) to develop new energy 

24 sources in a manner that is eco25 nomically viable, ecologically 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
8 

•S 541 IS

1 sound, and socially responsible; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(cc) to grow or produce 

4 biomass in a sustainable manner 

5 that has net environmental bene6 fits and considers such factors as 

7 relative water quality, soil qual8 ity, air quality, wildlife impacts, 

9 net energy balance, crop diver10 sity, and provision of adequate 

11 income for the agricultural pro12 ducers; and 

13 ‘‘(VII) consider providing grant 

14 preferences to local and farmer-owned 

15 projects in order to retain and maxi16 mize local and regional economic ben17 efits. 

18 ‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.— 

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

20 (ii), a grant received under this subsection 

21 may be used to pay the Federal share of 

22 carrying out that support the establish23 ment, growth, and use of local bioenergy 

24 and biobased products, including— 

25 ‘‘(I) extension; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
9 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(II) curriculum development; 

2 ‘‘(III) education and training; 

3 ‘‘(IV) technical assistance; 

4 ‘‘(V) applied research; 

5 ‘‘(VI) grants to support local pro6 duction and use of bioenergy and 

7 biobased products; 

8 ‘‘(VII) energy conservation or 

9 support for other renewable fuels, if 

10 identified as part of the comprehen11 sive statewide energy plan developed 

12 under subparagraph (A)(ii)(IV); 

13 ‘‘(VIII) support of bioenergy and 

14 biobased product cooperatives through 

15 education, training, technical assist16 ance, or grants; and 

17 ‘‘(IX) any other activity identi18 fied or approved by the Secretary as 

19 meeting those goals. 

20 ‘‘(ii) ALLOCATION OF GRANT RE21 SOURCES.— 

22 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Each com23 prehensive statewide energy plan shall 

24 include a balanced allocation of grant 

25 resources to ensure support for each 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
10 

•S 541 IS

1 of research, education, extension, and 

2 development. 

3 ‘‘(II) SECRETARIAL REVIEW.—If 

4 after review of a comprehensive state5 wide energy plan received under sub6 paragraph (D)(i), the Secretary deter7 mines that the plan or allocation of 

8 resources is inadequate or inappro9 priate, the Secretary shall request 

10 clarification or revisions. 

11 ‘‘(C) MATCHING FUNDS.— 

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A recipient of 

13 funds for an activity under this subsection 

14 shall contribute an amount of non-Federal 

15 funds (including non-Federal funds from 

16 nonprofit organizations, local governments, 

17 and public-private partnerships) in the 

18 form of cash or in-kind contributions to 

19 carry out the activity that is equal to the 

20 amount of Federal funds received for the 

21 activity. 

22 ‘‘(ii) RETURN OF FUNDS.—A recipient 

23 of funds for an activity under this sub24 section that fails to comply with the re25 quirement to provide full matching funds 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
11 

•S 541 IS

1 for a fiscal year under clause (i) shall re2 turn to the Secretary an amount equal to 

3 the difference between— 

4 ‘‘(I) the amount provided to the 

5 recipient under this subsection; and 

6 ‘‘(II) the amount of matching 

7 funds actually provided by the recipi8 ent. 

9 ‘‘(D) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

11 February 1 of each year, each State receiv12 ing a grant under this subsection shall 

13 submit to the Secretary a report that— 

14 ‘‘(I) describes and evaluates the 

15 use of grant funds during the pre16 ceding fiscal year; and 

17 ‘‘(II) includes the comprehensive 

18 statewide energy plan, and any revi19 sions to the plan, developed under 

20 subparagraph (A)(ii)(IV). 

21 ‘‘(ii) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary 

22 shall make available to the public all re23 ports received under clause (i). 

24 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

25 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
12 

•S 541 IS

1 this subsection $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

2 2008 through 2013, to remain available until ex3 pended. 

4 ‘‘(b) STUDY.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 

6 the United States shall carry out a study that as7 sesses— 

8 ‘‘(A) changes to law (including regulations) 

9 and policies to provide or increase incentives for 

10 the potential production of bioenergy (at levels 

11 greater than in existence as of the date of en12 actment of this section) to maintain local own13 ership, control, economic development, and the 

14 value-added nature of bioenergy and biobased 

15 product production; 

16 ‘‘(B) potential limits to prevent excessive 

17 payments, including variable support (such as 

18 reducing subsidies based on the price of bio19 energy or a comparable conventional energy 

20 source); and 

21 ‘‘(C) the use of existing and proposed in22 centives for particular stages in the bioenergy 

23 system (including production, blending, or re24 tail), including an evaluation of which incentives 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
13 

•S 541 IS

1 would be most efficient and beneficial for local 

2 and regional communities and consumers. 

3 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen5 eral of the United States shall submit to Congress 

6 the report under paragraph (1). 

7 ‘‘(c) BASIC RESEARCH ON NEXT GENERATION

8 TECHNOLOGY.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 

10 2008 through 2013, the Secretary, acting through 

11 the National Research Initiative, shall use 

12 $5,400,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Cor13 poration, to remain available until expended, to 

14 carry out additional research on biobased products 

15 and bioenergy production with an emphasis on devel16 oping and improving the next generation of products 

17 and production methods (such as cellulosic ethanol). 

18 ‘‘(2) MAINTENANCE OF FUNDING.—The fund19 ing provided under this subsection shall supplement 

20 (and not supplant) other Federal funding for the 

21 National Research Initiative in those research areas. 

22 ‘‘(d) SUPPLEMENTAL RURAL COOPERATIVE DEVEL23 OPMENT GRANTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 

25 2008 through 2013, the Secretary, acting through 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
14 

•S 541 IS

1 the Under Secretary for Rural Development, may 

2 use up to $1,000,000 to supplement existing grants 

3 under the rural cooperative development grant pro4 gram established under section 310B(e) of the Con5 solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 

6 U.S.C. 1932(e)) (referred to in this subsection as 

7 the ‘program’). 

8 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary may 

9 award supplemental grants under this subsection to 

10 program grant recipients the applications or ongoing 

11 activities of which support, establish, or assist the 

12 establishment of, renewable fuels or biobased prod13 uct-based cooperatives. 

14 ‘‘(3) AMOUNT.—The amount of a supplemental 

15 grant under this subsection shall not exceed 20 per16 cent of the amount of the base program grant. 

17 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

18 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

19 this subsection $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

20 2008 through 2013. 

21 ‘‘(5) MAINTENANCE OF FUNDING.—The fund22 ing provided under this subsection shall supplement 

23 (and not supplant) other Federal funding for the 

24 program.’’. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
15 

•S 541 IS

1 (b) REGIONAL BIOENERGY AND BIOBASED PROD2 UCTS COMPETITIVE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND EX3 TENSION PROGRAMS.—Title IV of the Agricultural Re4 search, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 

5 U.S.C. 7621 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 412. REGIONAL BIOENERGY AND BIOBASED PROD8 UCTS COMPETITIVE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, 

9 AND EXTENSION PROGRAMS. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish re11 gional funds in accordance with this section. 

12 ‘‘(b) UNALLOCATED FUNDS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may use 

14 funds described in paragraph (2) to provide bonus 

15 grants to regional centers based on need and merit, 

16 as determined by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(2) RELEVANT FUNDS.—The funds referenced 

18 in paragraph (1) are funds that— 

19 ‘‘(A) would otherwise remain unallocated 

20 under this section for a fiscal year; or 

21 ‘‘(B) remain unused by a regional center 

22 as of the end of the grant term, as determined 

23 by the Secretary; or 

24 ‘‘(C) are returned to the Secretary in ac25 cordance with paragraph (3)(B). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
16 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(3) MATCHING FUNDS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A recipient of funds 

3 for an activity under this section shall con4 tribute in the form of cash or in-kind contribu5 tions an amount of non-Federal funds to carry 

6 out the activity that is equal to the amount of 

7 Federal funds received under this section for 

8 the activity. 

9 ‘‘(B) RETURN OF FUNDS.—A recipient of 

10 funds for an activity under this section that 

11 fails to comply with the requirement to provide 

12 full matching funds for a fiscal year under sub13 paragraph (A) shall return to the Secretary an 

14 amount equal to the difference between— 

15 ‘‘(i) the amount provided to the recipi16 ent under this section; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) the amount of matching funds 

18 actually provided by the recipient. 

19 ‘‘(C) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive 

20 the matching funds requirement described in 

21 subparagraph (A) with respect to a project if 

22 the Secretary determines that— 

23 ‘‘(i) the results of the project, while of 

24 particular benefit to a specific bioenergy or 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
17 

•S 541 IS

1 biobased product research question, are 

2 also likely to be generally applicable; or 

3 ‘‘(ii)(I) the project involves a minor 

4 crop or production method and deals with 

5 scientifically important research; and 

6 ‘‘(II) the grant recipient is unable to 

7 satisfy the matching funds requirement. 

8 ‘‘(c) IDENTIFICATION OF REGIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Regions under this section 

10 shall correspond with the regions of the Cooperative 

11 State Research, Education, and Extension Service of 

12 the Department of Agriculture. 

13 ‘‘(2) SUBREGIONS.—Each regional board estab14 lished under subsection (f) may establish up to 3 

15 subregions based on common characteristics, includ16 ing— 

17 ‘‘(A) bioenergy production methods; 

18 ‘‘(B) research questions; 

19 ‘‘(C) the benefits in efficiency and coordi20 nation of identifying the same regions as are 

21 used by other Federal programs, such as re22 gions used for sun grant centers under section 

23 9011(d) of the Farm Security and Rural In24 vestment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8109(d)); and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
18 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(D) other factors important in fulfilling 

2 the goal of increasing local and regional sus3 tainable bioenergy and biobased product use 

4 and production in the United States. 

5 ‘‘(d) REGIONAL FUNDS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab7 lish for each region identified under subsection (c) a 

8 regional fund. 

9 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Funds made 

10 available under subsection (g) shall be allocated 

11 among the regional funds in accordance with the 

12 proportional share of funds received under section 

13 9012(a)(1) of the Farm Security and Rural Invest14 ment Act of 2002 by the States that constitute the 

15 appropriate region. 

16 ‘‘(e) COMPETITION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not less often than once 

18 every 5 years, in conjunction with the appropriate 

19 regional board, the Secretary shall competitively 

20 award— 

21 ‘‘(A) the funds in each regional fund to a 

22 regional center to carry out multi-State applied 

23 research, extension, education, and develop24 ment; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
19 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(B) the designation of the regional center 

2 to an agency, institution of higher education, 

3 nonprofit organization, or joint entity in the re4 gion. 

5 ‘‘(2) SHARED CENTERS.—An agency, institu6 tion of higher education, nonprofit organization, or 

7 joint entity may host more than 1 regional center if 

8 the appropriate regional board determines that 

9 shared administrative and other expenses benefits 

10 program efficiency. 

11 ‘‘(f) REGIONAL BOARD.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab13 lish a regional board for each region. 

14 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The membership of 

16 each regional board shall include— 

17 ‘‘(i) representatives of— 

18 ‘‘(I) the Agricultural Research 

19 Service; 

20 ‘‘(II) the Cooperative State Re21 search, Education, and Extension 

22 Service; 

23 ‘‘(III) the Natural Resources 

24 Conservation Service; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
20 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(IV) nonprofit organizations 

2 with demonstrable expertise in sus3 tainable agriculture and sustainable 

4 bioenergy and biobased product use 

5 and production; 

6 ‘‘(V) cooperatives engaged in bio7 energy or biobased products produc8 tion; 

9 ‘‘(VI) agricultural producers in10 volved in production of agricultural 

11 commodities for bioenergy and 

12 biobased products; 

13 ‘‘(VII) landowners or businesses 

14 involved in forestry; and 

15 ‘‘(VIII) agribusinesses; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) 1 member from each State des17 ignated by the Governor of the State and 

18 approved by the Secretary who rep19 resents— 

20 ‘‘(I) State cooperative extension 

21 services; 

22 ‘‘(II) State agricultural experi23 ment stations; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
21 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(III) State departments engaged 

2 in bioenergy and biobased products 

3 programs. 

4 ‘‘(B) ROTATION.—The members of the 

5 board described in clause (ii) shall regularly ro6 tate among representatives of the groups de7 scribed in subclauses (I), (II), and (III) in 

8 order that each regional board has equitable 

9 representation of each of those groups. 

10 ‘‘(3) RELATION TO EXISTING OR FUTURE RE11 GIONAL CONSORTIUMS.—If a regional consortium is 

12 developed that, as determined by the Secretary, ful13 fills the goals of this section and reflects, to the 

14 maximum extent practicable, the membership diver15 sity described in paragraph (2), the regional consor16 tium or a subpart of the regional consortium may 

17 act as the regional board for the purposes of this 

18 section. 

19 ‘‘(4) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each regional board 

20 shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) promote the programs established 

22 under this section at the regional level; 

23 ‘‘(B) establish goals and criteria for the se24 lection of projects authorized under this section 

25 within the applicable region; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
22 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(C) appoint a technical committee to 

2 evaluate proposals for projects to be considered 

3 under this section by the regional board; 

4 ‘‘(D) review and act on the recommenda5 tions of the technical committee, and coordinate 

6 the activities of the regional board with the re7 gional host institution; and 

8 ‘‘(E) prepare and make available an an9 nual report covering projects funded under this 

10 section and including an evaluation of the 

11 project activity. 

12 ‘‘(5) PREFERENCES.—In determining regional 

13 priorities and making funding decisions, the regional 

14 board shall give preference to— 

15 ‘‘(A) collaborative proposals; 

16 ‘‘(B) research that adapts existing tech17 nology to local conditions; 

18 ‘‘(C) proposals that include more than 1 of 

19 the components of education, extension, and re20 search and development; 

21 ‘‘(D) proposals that examine multiple fac22 tors (including economic, social, and environ23 mental factors) at a landscape or watershed 

24 scale to maximize the public value; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
23 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(E) proposals that develop and evaluate 

2 more sustainable alternatives to traditional 

3 monocultures, including perennial continuous 

4 living cover systems and incorporating bio5 energy or biobased product production on con6 ventional farms in sensitive areas, such as pe7 rennial biomass production on watercourses. 

8 ‘‘(6) OTHER DUTIES.—The regional board shall 

9 coordinate with other Federal programs (including 

10 the research, extension, and educational programs 

11 described in section 9011 of the Farm Security and 

12 Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8109)) to 

13 support joint initiatives, encourage complimentary 

14 priorities, and prevent duplication of effort. 

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

16 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sub17 section $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 

18 2013, to remain available until expended.’’. 

19 (c) AGROFORESTRY CONVERSION AND CELLULOSIC

20 PRODUCTION PILOT PROGRAMS.— 

21 (1) AGROFORESTRY CONVERSION.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agri23 culture (referred to in this paragraph as the 

24 ‘‘Secretary’’) shall carry out an agroforestry 

25 conversion pilot program under which the SecVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
24 

•S 541 IS

1 retary shall provide technical assistance, cost 

2 share assistance, grants, or loans to landowners 

3 during the establishment phase of a woody 

4 crop. 

5 (B) SELECTION.—In providing assistance 

6 under this paragraph, the Secretary shall— 

7 (i) use a competitive selection process; 

8 and 

9 (ii) consider diversity of— 

10 (I) region; 

11 (II) production method; 

12 (III) type of woody crop; 

13 (IV) method of requested sup14 port. 

15 (2) CELLULOSIC PRODUCTION PILOT PRO16 GRAM.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

18 carry a cellulosic production pilot program 

19 under which the Secretary shall provide loans, 

20 loan guarantees, or grants, or any combination 

21 thereof, to cooperatives, businesses, or joint 

22 ventures to produce cellulosic ethanol from 

23 woody biomass on a commercial scale. 

24 (B) MULTIPLE PILOT PROGRAMS.—If 

25 there is sufficient funding for the Secretary to 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
25 

•S 541 IS

1 carry out more than 1 pilot program under this 

2 paragraph, the Secretary shall ensure, to the 

3 maximum extent practicable, that the pilot pro4 grams are geographically representative of the 

5 major forestry regions of the United States. 

6 (3) REPORT.—Not later than October 1, 2013, 

7 the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Ag8 riculture of the House of Representatives and the 

9 Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

10 of the Senate a report that— 

11 (A) describes the effectiveness of the pilot 

12 programs under this subsection; and 

13 (B) recommends whether or not the pilot 

14 programs should be continued and at what 

15 funding level. 

16 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

17 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

18 this subsection $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

19 2008 through 2013. 

20 (d) REAUTHORIZATIONS.— 

21 (1) RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS AND EN22 ERGY EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS.—Section 9006(f) 

23 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 

24 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8106(f)) is amended by striking 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
26 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘section $23,000,000’’ and all that follows and in2 serting ‘‘section— 

3 ‘‘(1) $23,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

4 ‘‘(2) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; and 

5 ‘‘(3) $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

6 through 2013.’’. 

7 (2) GRANTS FOR CERTAIN VALUE-ADDED AGRI8 CULTURAL PRODUCTS.—Section 231(b)(4) of the 

9 Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 

10 1621 note; Public Law 106–224) is amended— 

11 (A) by striking ‘‘Not later’’ and inserting 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(A) FISCAL YEARS 2003 THROUGH 2007.— 

14 Not later’’; and. 

15 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(B) FISCAL YEARS 2008 THROUGH 2013.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than Oc18 tober 1, 2007, and each October 1 there19 after through October 1, 2012, of the 

20 funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora21 tion, the Secretary shall made available to 

22 carry out this subsection, $60,000,000, to 

23 remain available until expended. 

24 ‘‘(ii) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary 

25 shall ensure that not less than 10 percent 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
27 

•S 541 IS

1 of the competitive grants awarded during 

2 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013 are 

3 awarded to producers of value-added agri4 cultural products that use or produce 

5 biobased products or bioenergy.’’. 

6 SEC. 4. FUTURE OF FARMING, RANCHING, AND LAND MAN7 AGEMENT. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle D of the Consolidated 

9 Farm and Rural Development Act is amended by inserting 

10 after section 344 (7 U.S.C. 1991) the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 345. FUTURE OF FARMING, RANCHING, AND LAND 

12 MANAGEMENT. 

13 ‘‘(a) GRANTS TO SUPPORT THE FUTURE OF FARM14 ING, RANCHING, AND LAND MANAGEMENT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

16 grants to States to support the development of the 

17 next generation of farmers, ranchers, and other land 

18 managers. 

19 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara21 graphs (B) and (C), funds made available 

22 under paragraph (4) shall be allocated among 

23 the States in accordance with the terms and 

24 conditions of paragraphs (1) through (3) of secVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
28 

•S 541 IS

1 tion 3(c) of the Hatch Act of 1887 (7 U.S.C. 

2 361c(c)) and subparagraph (C). 

3 ‘‘(B) UNALLOCATED FUNDS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

5 may use funds described in clause (ii) to 

6 provide bonus grants to States based on 

7 the need and merit of projects identified 

8 through annual reports submitted under 

9 paragraph (3)(E), as determined by the 

10 Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(ii) RELEVANT FUNDS.—The funds 

12 referenced in clause (i) are funds that— 

13 ‘‘(I) would otherwise remain 

14 unallocated under this subsection for 

15 a fiscal year; or 

16 ‘‘(II) remain unused by a State 

17 as of the end of the grant term, as de18 termined by the Secretary; or 

19 ‘‘(III) are returned to the Sec20 retary in accordance with paragraph 

21 (3)(D)(ii). 

22 ‘‘(C) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary 

23 shall use not more than 5 percent of funds 

24 made available under paragraph (4)— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
29 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(i) to maintain a clearinghouse for 

2 projects funded under this section; 

3 ‘‘(ii) to fund liaisons within each 

4 agency of the Department of Agriculture; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(iii) to support studies, competitions, 

7 and administration required by this sec8 tion. 

9 ‘‘(3) CONDITIONS ON RECEIVING GRANTS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a 

11 State shall designate or establish an agency, 

12 public institution of higher education (as that 

13 term is defined in section 101 of the Higher 

14 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), or 

15 joint entity in the State as the lead agency for 

16 the distribution of grant funds. 

17 ‘‘(B) DUTIES.—A lead agency designated 

18 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) encourage collaboration between 

20 agencies, cooperative extension, local non21 profit organizations, agricultural organiza22 tions, and institutions of higher education 

23 in the State; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
30 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) support private- and nonprofit2 public partnerships for purposes of the 

3 grant; 

4 ‘‘(iii) establish a local citizen and in5 dustry advisory board; 

6 ‘‘(iv) in consultation with the advisory 

7 board, develop a statewide plan to increase 

8 opportunities for, and reduce barriers to, 

9 beginning farmers and ranchers and, in ac10 cordance with subparagraph (C), other 

11 rural professions; 

12 ‘‘(v) support the development of local 

13 community-based support and mentoring 

14 networks; 

15 ‘‘(vi) to the maximum extent prac16 ticable, enable the transfer of family farms 

17 to children or other relatives of owners in 

18 order to allow family farms to be kept 

19 whole in cases in which the division of the 

20 farm would result in a less viable agricul21 tural operation; and 

22 ‘‘(vii) support small-scale models for 

23 farms or ranches for beginning farmers 

24 and ranchers and other rural professions, 

25 including models based on— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
31 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(I) community-supported agri2 culture; 

3 ‘‘(II) organic agriculture; 

4 ‘‘(III) farmers markets; 

5 ‘‘(IV) speciality agricultural 

6 products; 

7 ‘‘(V) sustainable production; 

8 ‘‘(VI) grazing; 

9 ‘‘(VII) agrotourism; and 

10 ‘‘(VIII) agroforestry. 

11 ‘‘(C) OTHER RURAL PROFESSIONS.—A 

12 State that identifies other important rural pro13 fessions in the State (including professions in14 volving forestry, conservation, land manage15 ment, tourism, or a combination of those pro16 fessions) may include those professions in the 

17 statewide plan under subparagraph (B)(iv). 

18 ‘‘(D) MATCHING FUNDS.— 

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A recipient of 

20 funds for an activity under this subsection 

21 shall contribute in the form of cash or in22 kind contributions an amount of non-Fed23 eral funds to carry out the activity that is 

24 equal to the amount of Federal funds re25 ceived for the activity. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
32 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) RETURN OF FUNDS.—A recipient 

2 of funds for an activity under this sub3 section that fails to comply with the re4 quirement to provide full matching funds 

5 for a fiscal year under clause (i) shall re6 turn to the Secretary an amount equal to 

7 the difference between— 

8 ‘‘(I) the amount provided to the 

9 recipient under this subsection; and 

10 ‘‘(II) the amount of matching 

11 funds actually provided by the recipi12 ent. 

13 ‘‘(E) USE OF FUNDS.— 

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A grant received 

15 under this subsection may be used to pay 

16 the Federal share of carrying out the pro17 grams that support and develop the next 

18 generation of farmers, ranchers, and other 

19 rural professionals, including— 

20 ‘‘(I) extension; 

21 ‘‘(II) education, including tar22 geted scholarships and loan forgive23 ness, for traditional degree and cer24 tificate courses and continuing edu25 cation and short courses; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
33 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(III) technical assistance, in2 cluding support for development of co3 operatives; 

4 ‘‘(IV) grants to support transi5 tional ownership, mentorships, ap6 prenticeships, and peer-support net7 works; 

8 ‘‘(V) support of matched-savings 

9 programs through individual develop10 ment accounts that can be used for 

11 capitol expenses, land acquisition, or 

12 training for beginning farmers, ranch13 ers, and other rural professionals; 

14 ‘‘(VI) support of farmer land 

15 contract programs to provide payment 

16 guarantees to encourage retiring land17 owners to sell to beginning farmers, 

18 ranchers, and rural professionals; and 

19 ‘‘(VII) any other activity identi20 fied or approved by the Secretary as 

21 meeting those goals; 

22 ‘‘(ii) PREFERENCE.—In allocating 

23 grants and other direct assistance under 

24 this subsection, a lead agency shall give 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
34 

•S 541 IS

1 priority to limited resource and socially2 disadvantaged individuals. 

3 ‘‘(F) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

5 February 1 of each year, each State receiv6 ing a grant under this subsection shall 

7 submit to the Secretary a report that de8 scribes and evaluates the use of grant 

9 funds during the preceding fiscal year. 

10 ‘‘(ii) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary 

11 shall make available to the public all re12 ports received under clause (i). 

13 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

14 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

15 this subsection $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

16 2008 through 2013, to remain available until ex17 pended. 

18 ‘‘(b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON BEGINNING FARM19 ERS AND RANCHERS.—To the maximum extent prac20 ticable, the Secretary shall use funds otherwise available 

21 to the Secretary— 

22 ‘‘(1) to support the work of the Advisory Com23 mittee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers estab24 lished under section 5(b) of the Agricultural Credit 

25 Improvement Act of 1992 (7 U.S.C. 1929 note; PubVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
35 

•S 541 IS

1 lic Law 102–554) (referred to in this subsection as 

2 the ‘Committee’)— 

3 ‘‘(2) to fund more frequent meetings of the 

4 Committee (including meetings at least twice per 

5 year); and 

6 ‘‘(3) to increase the outreach activities of the 

7 Committee, including increased public field hearings, 

8 if determined to be necessary by the Committee. 

9 ‘‘(c) STUDY AND PILOT PROGRAM.— 

10 ‘‘(1) BEGINNING FARMER AND RANCHER LOAN

11 PROGRAM.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal 

13 years 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall 

14 use funds made available under subparagraph 

15 (D)— 

16 ‘‘(i) to study the provision under this 

17 Act of direct farm ownership and guaran18 teed loans to beginning farmers and ranch19 ers; 

20 ‘‘(ii) to carry out a pilot program to 

21 use additional resources to reduce the 

22 backlog of loan applications from begin23 ning farmers and ranchers; 

24 ‘‘(iii) to carry out a pilot program 

25 under which grants, rather than loans, are 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
36 

•S 541 IS

1 provided to support capitol investments or 

2 farm purchases at the same amount as the 

3 subsidy would be over the term of a com4 parable loan; and 

5 ‘‘(iv) to carry out a pilot program 

6 under which direct and guaranteed loans 

7 are provided under this Act to beginning 

8 farmers and ranchers with no interest or 

9 payments due, and no accrual of interest, 

10 during a period of up to the first 36 

11 months of the loans. 

12 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.— 

13 ‘‘(i) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 

14 1 year after the date of enactment of this 

15 Act, the Secretary shall submit to Con16 gress a report that— 

17 ‘‘(I) describes the results of the 

18 study under subparagraph (A)(i); and 

19 ‘‘(II) recommends changes to im20 prove the efficiency of the provision 

21 under this Act of direct and guaran22 teed loans to beginning farmers and 

23 ranchers. 

24 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL REPORTS.—Not 

25 later than 4 years after the date of enactVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
37 

•S 541 IS

1 ment of this Act, and thereafter as appro2 priate, the Secretary shall submit to Con3 gress a report that describes the effective4 ness of the pilot programs described in 

5 subparagraph (A)(ii). 

6 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL PILOT PROGRAMS.— 

7 After submission of the study under subpara8 graph (B)(i), the Secretary may use funds 

9 made available to carry out this subsection— 

10 ‘‘(i) to continue the pilot programs de11 scribed in subparagraph (A)(ii); or 

12 ‘‘(ii) to carry out other pilot programs 

13 based on the conclusions and recommenda14 tions of the study. 

15 ‘‘(D) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA16 TIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

17 to carry out this subsection $10,000,000 for 

18 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013. 

19 ‘‘(d) GAO STUDY AND REPORT.— 

20 ‘‘(1) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the 

21 United States shall carry out a study of possible tax 

22 incentives, contract guarantees, and other measures 

23 to support the transfer of land from retiring farmers 

24 and ranchers to beginning farmers and ranchers. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
38 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

2 date of enactment of this section, the Comptroller 

3 General of the United States shall submit to Con4 gress a report that evaluates, and makes rec5 ommendations concerning, the effectiveness of meas6 ures studied under paragraph (1).’’. 

7 (b) BEGINNING FARMER AND RANCHER DEVELOP8 MENT PROGRAM.—Section 7405 of the Farm Security and 

9 Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 3319f) is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) in subsection (c)(5)— 

12 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

13 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

14 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the 

15 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

16 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(D) refugee or immigrant farmers or 

18 ranchers’’; and 

19 (2) by striking subsection (h) and inserting the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(h) FUNDING.— 

22 ‘‘(1) FEES AND CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

24 ‘‘(i) charge a fee to cover all or part 

25 of the costs of curriculum development and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
39 

•S 541 IS

1 the delivery of programs or workshops pro2 vided by— 

3 ‘‘(I) a beginning farmer and 

4 rancher education team established 

5 under subsection (d); or 

6 ‘‘(II) the online clearinghouse es7 tablished under subsection (e); and 

8 ‘‘(ii) accept contributions from cooper9 ating entities under a cooperative agree10 ment entered into under subsection 

11 (d)(4)(B) to cover all or part of the costs 

12 for the delivery of programs or workshops 

13 by the beginning farmer and rancher edu14 cation teams. 

15 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—Fees and contribu16 tions received by the Secretary under subpara17 graph (A) shall— 

18 ‘‘(i) be deposited in the account that 

19 incurred the costs to carry out this section; 

20 ‘‘(ii) be available to the Secretary to 

21 carry out the purposes of the account, 

22 without further appropriation; 

23 ‘‘(iii) remain available until expended; 

24 and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
40 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(iv) be in addition to any funds made 

2 available under paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(2) FUNDING.—For each of fiscal years 2008 

4 through 2013, the Secretary shall use $20,000,000 

5 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation to 

6 carry out this section, to remain available for 2 fis7 cal years after the date on which the funds are first 

8 made available.’’. 

9 (c) IMPROVING AND TARGETING FARM SUPPORT AND

10 CONSERVATION PROGRAMS FOR BEGINNING FARMERS, 

11 RANCHERS, AND RURAL PROFESSIONALS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

13 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 

14 carry out a study to identify and propose remedies 

15 to barriers to small, beginning, socially disadvan16 taged, and limited resource producers in conserva17 tion and farm support programs, including— 

18 (A) the environmental quality incentives 

19 program established under chapter 4 of subtitle 

20 D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 

21 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa et seq.); 

22 (B) the conservation security program es23 tablished under subchapter A of chapter 2 of 

24 subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act 

25 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3838 et seq.); 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
41 

•S 541 IS

1 (C) the farmland protection program es2 tablished under subchapter B of chapter 2 of 

3 subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act 

4 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3838h et seq.) (commonly 

5 known as the ‘‘Farm and Ranch Lands Protec6 tion Program’’); 

7 (D) the wetlands reserve program estab8 lished under subchapter C of chapter 1 of sub9 title D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 

10 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3837 et seq.); 

11 (E) risk management tools, such as insur12 ance; 

13 (F) commodity support programs; 

14 (G) food purchases by the Agricultural 

15 Marketing Service; 

16 (H) the provision of value-added agricul17 tural product market development grants to 

18 producers under section 231(b) of the Agricul19 tural Risk Protection Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 

20 1621 note; Public Law 106–224); and 

21 (I) other programs identified by the Advi22 sory Committee on Beginning Farmers and 

23 Ranchers established under section 5(b) of the 

24 Agricultural Credit Improvement Act of 1992 

25 (7 U.S.C. 1929 note; Public Law 102–554). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
42 

•S 541 IS

1 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years 

3 thereafter, or otherwise on the recommendation of 

4 the Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and 

5 Ranchers established under section 5(b) of the Agri6 cultural Credit Improvement Act of 1992 (7 U.S.C. 

7 1929 note; Public Law 102–554), the Secretary 

8 shall submit to Congress a report that— 

9 (A) describes the results of the study 

10 under paragraph (1); 

11 (B) summarizes the participation rates for 

12 small, beginning, socially disadvantaged, and 

13 limited resource producers in the programs 

14 studied; 

15 (C) recommends changes to make the pro16 grams studied more accessible and effective for 

17 limited resource and beginning farmers and 

18 ranchers; and 

19 (D) for each report after the initial report, 

20 describes the status of changes recommended 

21 by previous reports. 

22 (3) SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING CON23 SERVATION SECURITY PROGRAM.—It is the sense of 

24 the Senate that— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
43 

•S 541 IS

1 (A) the conservation security program es2 tablished under subchapter A of chapter 2 of 

3 subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act 

4 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3838 et seq.) was intended 

5 to be an entitlement available to all agricultural 

6 producers, rather than available on a piecemeal 

7 basis; 

8 (B) sufficient mandatory funds should be 

9 provided to the conservation security program 

10 to fulfill the promise of supporting conservation 

11 on working land; and 

12 (C) the next reauthorization of the Farm 

13 Bill should— 

14 (i) contain sufficient mandatory fund15 ing for the conservation security program; 

16 and 

17 (ii) continue the 15 percent cost-share 

18 bonus for beginning farmers and ranchers 

19 for the conservation security program and 

20 the environmental quality incentives pro21 gram established under chapter 4 of sub22 title D of title XII of the Food Security 

23 Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa et seq.). 

24 (d) SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE INITIATIVES.— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
44 

•S 541 IS

1 (1) APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER FOR

2 RURAL AREAS.—There is authorized to be appro3 priated to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out 

4 appropriate technology transfer for rural areas pro5 gram under the same terms and conditions as funds 

6 provided under the heading ‘‘RURAL COOPERATIVE

7 DEVELOPMENT GRANTS’’ under the heading ‘‘RURAL

8 BUSINESS-COOPERATIVE SERVICE’’ in title III of the 

9 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug 

10 Administration, and Related Agencies Appropria11 tions Act, 2006 (Public Law 109–97; 119 Stat. 

12 2141) $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

13 through 2013, to remain available until expended. 

14 (2) SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE RESEARCH

15 AND EDUCATION PROGRAM.— 

16 (A) BEST UTILIZATION OF BIOLOGICAL AP17 PLICATIONS.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—Section 1624 of the 

19 Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and 

20 Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5814) is 

21 amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 1624. FUNDING. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro24 priated to carry out sections 1621 and 1622 $75,000,000 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
45 

•S 541 IS

1 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013, to remain 

2 available until expended. 

3 ‘‘(b) FEDERAL-STATE MATCHING GRANT PRO4 GRAM.—For each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013, the 

5 Secretary shall use $20,000,000 of funds of the Com6 modity Credit Corporation to carry out section 1623, to 

7 remain available until expended.’’. 

8 (ii) MULTI-STATE REGIONS.—Section 

9 1623 of the Food, Agriculture, Conserva10 tion, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 

11 5813) is amended— 

12 (I) in subsections (a), (b), (c)(1), 

13 and (d)(1), by inserting ‘‘or multi14 State regions’’ after ‘‘States’’ each 

15 place it appears; 

16 (II) in subsection (a), by insert17 ing ‘‘or multi-State’’ after ‘‘enhance18 ment of State’’; 

19 (III) in subsection (b)(8), by in20 serting ‘‘or multi-State region’’ after 

21 ‘‘State’’; 

22 (IV) in paragraphs (1), (2), and 

23 (3) of subsection (c) and subsection 

24 (d)(1), by inserting ‘‘or multi-State’’ 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
46 

•S 541 IS

1 after ‘‘State’’ each place it appears; 

2 and 

3 (V) in subsection (d)(2)— 

4 (aa) in the paragraph head5 ing by inserting ‘‘OR MULTI6 STATE’’ after ‘‘STATE’’; 

7 (bb) by inserting ‘‘or multi8 State region’’ after ‘‘a State’’; 

9 (cc) by inserting ‘‘or multi10 State’’ after ‘‘from State’’; 

11 (dd) by inserting ‘‘or multi12 State’’ after ‘‘other State’’; and 

13 (ee) by inserting ‘‘or multi14 State region’’ after ‘‘the State’’. 

15 (B) NATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM.—Sec16 tion 1629 of the Food, Agriculture, Conserva17 tion, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5832) 

18 is amended by striking subsection (i) and in19 serting the following: 

20 ‘‘(i) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appro21 priated to carry out this section $25,000,000 for each of 

22 fiscal years 2008 through 2013, to remain available until 

23 expended.’’. 

24 (e) ORGANIC PROGRAMS.— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
47 

•S 541 IS

1 (1) ORGANIC AGRICULTURE RESEARCH AND EX2 TENSION INITIATIVE.—Section 1672B of the Food, 

3 Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 

4 U.S.C. 5925b) is amended by striking subsection (e) 

5 and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—For each of fiscal years 2008 

7 through 2013, the Secretary shall use $15,000,000 of 

8 funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out 

9 this section, to remain available until expended.’’. 

10 (2) NATIONAL ORGANIC CERTIFICATION COST11 SHARE PROGRAM.—Section 10606 of the Farm Se12 curity and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 

13 6523) is amended— 

14 (A) in subsection (a), by striking 

15 ‘‘$5,000,000 for fiscal year 2002’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$25,000,000 for fiscal year 2008’’; 

17 (B) in subsection (b)(2), by striking 

18 ‘‘$500’’ and inserting ‘‘$750’’; and 

19 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(c) RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

22 through the Agricultural Marketing Service, shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) keep accurate, up-to-date records of 

24 requests and disbursements from the program 

25 under this section; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
48 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(B) require accurate and consistent rec2 ordkeeping from each State or other entity re3 ceiving program payments. 

4 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.—Not later 

5 than 30 days after the closing date for States to re6 quest funding under the program, the Secretary 

7 shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) finalize records that describe— 

9 ‘‘(i) each State that has requested 

10 funding; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the amount of each funding re12 quest; and 

13 ‘‘(B) distribute the funding to the States. 

14 ‘‘(3) STATE REQUIREMENTS.—Annual funding 

15 requests from each State shall include data from the 

16 program during the previous year, including— 

17 ‘‘(A)(i) a description of which entities re18 quested reimbursement; 

19 ‘‘(ii) the amount of each reimbursement; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(iii) any discrepancies between requests 

22 and the fulfillment of the requests; 

23 ‘‘(B) data to support increases in requests 

24 expected in the coming year, including informaVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
49 

•S 541 IS

1 tion from certifiers or other data showing 

2 growth projections; and 

3 ‘‘(C) an explanation if an annual request is 

4 made for an amount less than the amount re5 quested the previous year. 

6 ‘‘(d) REPORTING.—Not later than March of each 

7 year, the Secretary shall provide an annual report to Con8 gress that describes, for each State, the expenditures 

9 under the program under this section, including the num10 ber of producers and handlers served by the program in 

11 the previous fiscal year.’’. 

12 (3) NATIONAL ORGANIC CONVERSION AND

13 STEWARDSHIP INCENTIVE PROGRAM.—The Organic 

14 Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et 

15 seq.) is amended— 

16 (A) by redesignating sections 2122 and 

17 2123 (7 U.S.C. 6521, 6522) as sections 2124 

18 and 2125, respectively; and 

19 (B) by inserting after section 2121 (7 

20 U.S.C. 6520) the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 2122. NATIONAL ORGANIC CONVERSION AND STEW22 ARDSHIP INCENTIVE PROGRAM. 

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF SECRETARY.—In this section, 

24 the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary (acting through 

25 the Natural Resources Conservation Service), in consultaVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
50 

•S 541 IS

1 tion with the National Organic Technical Committee es2 tablished under subsection (h). 

3 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM.—Not later than 180 days after the 

4 date of the enactment of the Rural Opportunities Act of 

5 2007, the Secretary shall establish a national organic agri6 culture conversion and stewardship incentives program 

7 under which the Secretary shall provide cost-share and in8 centive payments and technical assistance to eligible pro9 ducers who enter into contracts with the Secretary to as10 sist the producers in— 

11 ‘‘(1) developing and implementing practices to 

12 convert all or part of nonorganic farms to certified 

13 organic farms; and 

14 ‘‘(2) adopting advanced organic farming con15 servation systems. 

16 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE PRODUCERS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for a pay18 ment or technical assistance under this section, a 

19 producer shall enter into a contract with the Sec20 retary under which the producer shall agree to de21 velop and implement an organic system plan that— 

22 ‘‘(A) describes the conservation and envi23 ronmental purposes to be achieved through con24 servation practices and activities under the con25 tract; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
51 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(B) demonstrates an existing market or 

2 reasonable expectation of a future market for 

3 an agricultural product that is organically pro4 duced; and 

5 ‘‘(C) meets the requirements of this title. 

6 ‘‘(2) COMPLIANCE.—To be eligible for a pay7 ment or technical assistance under this section, a 

8 producer shall comply with organic certification re9 quirements as verified by a certifying agent (as de10 fined in section 2103 of the Organic Foods Produc11 tion Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6502). 

12 ‘‘(3) CONVERSION PAYMENTS FOR CERTIFIED

13 ORGANIC PRODUCERS.—A producer who owns or op14 erates a farm that is partially a certified organic 

15 farm and who otherwise meets the requirements of 

16 this section shall be eligible for payments under this 

17 section to convert other parts of the farm to a cer18 tified organic farm. 

19 ‘‘(4) APPEALS.—An applicant that seeks assist20 ance under this section shall have the right to appeal 

21 an adverse decision of the Secretary with respect to 

22 an application for the assistance, in accordance with 

23 subtitle H of the Department of Agriculture Reorga24 nization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6991 et seq.). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
52 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE PRACTICES AND ACTIVITIES.—The 

2 Secretary shall provide payments and technical assistance 

3 to eligible producers under this section for— 

4 ‘‘(1) carrying out— 

5 ‘‘(A) organic practices and activities to 

6 convert all or part of a nonorganic farm to a 

7 certified organic farm, in accordance with an 

8 organic system plan that meets the require9 ments of this title; 

10 ‘‘(B) advanced organic practices that are 

11 consistent with the organic system plan; 

12 ‘‘(C) organic animal welfare measures, so 

13 long as the measures are— 

14 ‘‘(i) necessary to implement an or15 ganic practice standard; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) consistent with an approved plan 

17 to transition to certified organic produc18 tion; and 

19 ‘‘(D) other measures, as determined by the 

20 Secretary; and 

21 ‘‘(2) developing an organic system plan that 

22 meets the requirements of this title. 

23 ‘‘(e) PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graphs (2) and (3), an individual or entity may not 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
53 

•S 541 IS

1 receive, directly or indirectly, cost-share or incentive 

2 payments under this section— 

3 ‘‘(A) that, in the aggregate, exceed 

4 $10,000 per year; or 

5 ‘‘(B) for a period of more than 4 years. 

6 ‘‘(2) SPECIALTY CROPS.—In the case of an in7 dividual or entity who annually produces 3 or more 

8 types of specialty crops (as defined in section 3 of 

9 the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act of 2004 (7 

10 U.S.C. 1621 note; Public Law 108–465)), the indi11 vidual or entity may not receive, directly or indi12 rectly, cost-share or incentive payments under this 

13 section— 

14 ‘‘(A) that, in the aggregate, exceed 

15 $20,000 per year; or 

16 ‘‘(B) for a period of more than 4 years. 

17 ‘‘(3) DAIRY.—In the case of an individual or 

18 entity whose principal farming enterprise is a dairy 

19 operation, the individual or entity may not receive, 

20 directly or indirectly, cost-share or incentive pay21 ments under this section— 

22 ‘‘(A) that, in the aggregate, exceed 

23 $20,000 per year; or 

24 ‘‘(B) for a period of more than 4 years. 

25 ‘‘(f) TECHNICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
54 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use not 

2 less than 50 percent of the funds that are made 

3 available under subsection (k) for each fiscal year 

4 to— 

5 ‘‘(A) provide technical assistance to eligible 

6 producers to carry out eligible practices and ac7 tivities described in subsection (d); and 

8 ‘‘(B) enter into cooperative agreements 

9 with qualified nonprofit and nongovernmental 

10 organizations and consultants to carry out edu11 cational programs that promote the purposes of 

12 this section, as determined by the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(2) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—Of the 

14 amount of funds for a fiscal year described in para15 graph (1), the Secretary shall use not less than 50 

16 percent of the funds to carry out paragraph (1)(B). 

17 ‘‘(g) SUSPENSION AUTHORITY.— 

18 ‘‘(1) ASSESSMENTS.—Not later than October 1 

19 of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall publish in the 

20 Federal Register and otherwise make available an 

21 assessment for each organic product that analyzes— 

22 ‘‘(A) the domestic production and con23 sumption of the organic product; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
55 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(B) the import and export organic market 

2 demand and growth potential for the organic 

3 product; and 

4 ‘‘(C) the estimated number and total 

5 amount of new payments under this section for 

6 the fiscal year to be made to producers of the 

7 organic product. 

8 ‘‘(2) SUSPENSION OF NEW CONTRACTS.—The 

9 Secretary shall not enter into contracts with new 

10 producers of an organic product under this section 

11 if the Secretary determines that entering into the 

12 contracts would— 

13 ‘‘(A) produce an increased quantity of the 

14 organic product that the Secretary finds is rea15 sonably anticipated to adversely affect the eco16 nomic viability of producers who own or operate 

17 certified organic farms under this title; or 

18 ‘‘(B) create an unreasonable geographic 

19 disparity in the distribution of payments under 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(h) NATIONAL ORGANIC TECHNICAL COM22 MITTEE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es24 tablish a National Organic Technical Committee 

25 to— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
56 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(A) advise and assist the Secretary in 

2 carrying out the program established under this 

3 section; and 

4 ‘‘(B) improve the interface between owners 

5 and operators of certified organic farms and 

6 other conservation programs and activities ad7 ministered by the Natural Resources Conserva8 tion Service, including development of criteria 

9 for the approval of qualified organic technical 

10 advisors under this title. 

11 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The National Organic 

12 Technical Committee shall consist of 9 members ap13 pointed by the Secretary, including— 

14 ‘‘(A) 3 owners or operators of certified or15 ganic farms; 

16 ‘‘(B) 2 certifying agents; 

17 ‘‘(C) 2 inspectors of organic products; 

18 ‘‘(D) 1 representative of an environmental 

19 organization that is knowledgeable concerning 

20 organic agriculture; and 

21 ‘‘(E) 1 scientist with expertise in conserva22 tion planning. 

23 ‘‘(i) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than March 1 of 

24 each year, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 

25 on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
57 

•S 541 IS

1 Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the 

2 Senate a report that describes the operation of the pro3 gram established under this section, including— 

4 ‘‘(1) a State-by-State analysis of expenditures 

5 on assistance under this section, including the num6 ber of producers served by the program and the 

7 practices and activities implemented; 

8 ‘‘(2) an assessment of the impact of the pro9 gram on organic food production; and 

10 ‘‘(3) any recommended modifications to the pro11 gram. 

12 ‘‘(j) NATIONAL PROGRAM REVIEW.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 4 years 

14 after the commencement of the program established 

15 under this section, the Secretary shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) conduct a national program review 

17 (including public hearings) of the program es18 tablished under this section; and 

19 ‘‘(B) submit to the Committee on Agri20 culture of the House of Representatives and the 

21 Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and For22 estry of the Senate a report that describes the 

23 results of the review (including any appropriate 

24 recommendations). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
58 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—In conducting the review, the 

2 Secretary shall evaluate and make recommendations 

3 to— 

4 ‘‘(A) resolve any program deficiencies; 

5 ‘‘(B) redress any underserved States, agri6 cultural products, and regions; and 

7 ‘‘(C) ensure that the program is contrib8 uting positively to the profitability of small- and 

9 intermediate-size producers and existing owners 

10 and operators of certified organic farms. 

11 ‘‘(k) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

12 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use to carry out 

13 this section $50,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 

14 through 2013, to remain available until expended.’’. 

15 (4) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Organic Foods 

16 Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) is 

17 amended by inserting after section 2122 (as added 

18 by paragraph (3)) the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 2123. ANNUAL REPORT. 

20 ‘‘Each year, the Secretary shall submit to Congress, 

21 and make available to the public, a report that— 

22 ‘‘(1) describes the enforcement activities carried 

23 out by the Secretary under this Act to ensure the in24 tegrity of organic labels; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
59 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(2) includes specific details on the number and 

2 investigative results of retail surveillance and over3 sight by certifying agents under this Act.’’. 

4 (5) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

6 shall submit to Congress a report describing the 

7 progress in carrying out the national organic pro8 gram established under the Organic Foods Produc9 tion Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) in imple10 menting the recommendations contained in— 

11 (A) the audit conducted in 2004 by the 

12 American National Standards Institute; and 

13 (B) the audit conducted in 2005 by the Of14 fice of the Inspector General of the Department 

15 of Agriculture. 

16 (f) SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED FARMERS AND

17 RANCHERS OUTREACH AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

18 PROGRAM.—Section 2501 of the Food, Agriculture, Con19 servation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 2279) is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a)(4), by adding at the end 

22 the following: 

23 ‘‘(C) FUNDING.—For each of fiscal years 

24 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use 

25 $25,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
60 

•S 541 IS

1 Corporation to carry out this subsection, to re2 main available until expended.’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (c)(1)(A), by inserting ‘‘, in4 cluding beginning farmers and ranchers in those 

5 groups,’’ after ‘‘groups’’. 

6 SEC. 5. ENCOURAGING LOCAL MARKETS FOR FOOD, BIO7 ENERGY, AND BIOPRODUCTS. 

8 (a) GEOGRAPHIC PROCUREMENT PREFERENCE FOR

9 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND DEPARTMENT OF AGRI10 CULTURE.— 

11 (1) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

12 (A) local produce, as compared to trans13 ported produce— 

14 (i) is often harvested closer to full 

15 ripeness and can have higher nutritional 

16 quality; 

17 (ii) can have improved ripeness, taste, 

18 or selection, which can increase rates of 

19 consumption of fruits and vegetables; and 

20 (iii) is more efficient to store, dis21 tribute, and package; 

22 (B) use of local produce— 

23 (i) reduces dependence upon foreign 

24 oil by reducing fuel consumption rates asVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
61 

•S 541 IS

1 sociated with the production or transpor2 tation of fruits and vegetables; 

3 (ii) can help to improve the ability of 

4 those using the procurement system to 

5 provide education on nutrition, farming, 

6 sustainability, energy efficiency, and the 

7 importance of local purchases to the local 

8 economy; 

9 (iii) helps to maintain a robust logis10 tics network for agricultural product pro11 curement; and 

12 (iv) promotes farm, business, and eco13 nomic development by accessing local mar14 kets; and 

15 (C) section 9(j) of the Richard B. Russell 

16 National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(j)) 

17 directs the Secretary of Agriculture to encour18 age institutions participating in the school 

19 lunch program established under that Act and 

20 the school breakfast program established by 

21 section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 

22 (42 U.S.C. 1773) to purchase, in addition to 

23 other food purchases, locally produced foods, to 

24 the maximum extent practicable and appro25 priate. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
62 

•S 541 IS

1 (2) GEOGRAPHIC PROCUREMENT PREF2 ERENCE.— 

3 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

4 other provision of law, the Department of De5 fense, the Department of Agriculture, schools, 

6 local educational agencies, and other entities 

7 may use a geographic preference to purchase lo8 cally produced fruits and vegetables for— 

9 (i) in the case of programs carried out 

10 by the Department of Defense— 

11 (I) the Defense Supply Center 

12 Philadelphia; 

13 (II) the Department of Defense 

14 Farm to School Program; 

15 (III) the Department of Defense 

16 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program; 

17 (IV) the service academies; 

18 (V) Department of Defense do19 mestic dependant schools; 

20 (VI) other Department of De21 fense schools under chapter 108 of 

22 title 10, United States Code; 

23 (VII) commissary and exchange 

24 stores; and 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
63 

•S 541 IS

1 (VIII) morale, welfare, and recre2 ation (MWR) facilities operated by 

3 the Department of Defense; and 

4 (ii) in the case of programs carried 

5 out by the Department of Agriculture, 

6 schools, local educational agencies, and 

7 other entities— 

8 (I) the school breakfast program 

9 established by section 4 of the Child 

10 Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 

11 1773); 

12 (II) the school lunch program es13 tablished under the Richard B. Rus14 sell National School Lunch Act (42 

15 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); 

16 (III) the summer food service 

17 program for children established 

18 under section 13 of the Richard B. 

19 Russell National School Lunch Act 

20 (42 U.S.C. 1761); and 

21 (IV) the child and adult care 

22 food program established under sec23 tion 17 of the Richard B. Russell Na24 tional School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 

25 1766). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
64 

•S 541 IS

1 (B) ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZATIONS.—A 

2 local food service director or other entity may 

3 include a geographic preference described in 

4 subparagraph (A) in bid specifications and may 

5 select a bid involving locally produced fruits and 

6 vegetables, even if that bid is not the lowest bid. 

7 (3) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—The authority pro8 vided in paragraph (2) applies to the purchase of 

9 fruits and vegetables for both Department of De10 fense and non-Department of Defense uses. 

11 (4) REPORTING.—A school, local educational 

12 agency, or other entity participating in 1 or more of 

13 the programs described in paragraph (2)(B) shall re14 port to the Secretary of Agriculture if the school, 

15 local educational agency, or other entity pays more 

16 than 10 percent more than the lowest bid to pur17 chase locally produced fruits and vegetables in ac18 cordance with this subsection. 

19 (5) REVIEW.—The Secretary of Defense and 

20 the Secretary of Agriculture shall periodically review 

21 the program under this subsection to prevent fraud 

22 or abuse. 

23 (b) ACCESS TO LOCAL FOODS AND SCHOOL GAR24 DENS.—Section 18(i) of the Richard B. Russell National 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
65 

•S 541 IS

1 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769(i)) is amended by 

2 striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(2) FUNDING.—For each of fiscal years 2008 

4 through 2013, the Secretary shall use $10,000,000 

5 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation to 

6 carry out this subsection, to remain available until 

7 expended.’’. 

8 (c) SENIOR FARMERS’ MARKET NUTRITION PRO9 GRAM.—Section 4402(a) of the Farm Security and Rural 

10 Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 3007(a)) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary;’’; and 

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

15 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT FUNDING.—Of funds of the 

16 Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall 

17 use to carry out this section $25,000,000 for fiscal 

18 year 2008, to remain available until expended.’’. 

19 (d) WIC FARMERS’ MARKET NUTRITION PRO20 GRAM.—Section 17(m)(9)(A) of the Child Nutrition Act 

21 of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(9)(A)) is amended by strik22 ing clause (ii) and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(i) MANDATORY FUNDING.—Of 

24 funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora25 tion, the Secretary shall use to carry out 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
66 

•S 541 IS

1 this subsection $30,000,000 for fiscal year 

2 2008, to remain available until expended.’’. 

3 (e) FARMERS MARKET PROMOTION PROGRAM.—Sec4 tion 6 of the Farmer-to-Consumer Direct Marketing Act 

5 of 1976 (7 U.S.C. 3005) is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘(f) MANDATORY FUNDING.—For each of fiscal 

8 years 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use 

9 $20,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora10 tion to carry out this section, to remain available until ex11 pended.’’. 

12 (f) GRANTS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL FOOD, 

13 BIOENERGY, AND BIOPRODUCTS SYSTEMS.—Section 

14 231(b)(4)(B) of the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 

15 2000 (7 U.S.C. 1621 note; Public Law 106–224) (as 

16 added by section 3(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘(iii) DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL FOOD, 

19 BIOENERGY, AND BIOPRODUCTS SYS20 TEMS.— 

21 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The Sec22 retary shall ensure that not less than 

23 30 percent of the competitive grants 

24 awarded during each of fiscal years 

25 2008 through 2013 are awarded to 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
67 

•S 541 IS

1 producers of value-added agricultural 

2 products relating to developing local 

3 food, bioenergy, and bioproducts sys4 tems (such as supporting local mar5 kets, labeling of production location, 

6 local infrastructure, or local distribu7 tion). 

8 ‘‘(II) SPECIFIC PROJECTS.—Not 

9 less than 50 percent of the grants 

10 specified in subclause (I) shall be used 

11 to fund projects that support the es12 tablishment of mid-tier food value13 added chains intended to help mid14 sized farms, through the marketing of 

15 differentiated products that adhere to 

16 sound social and environmental prin17 ciples and equitable business practices 

18 at regional scales. 

19 ‘‘(III) PROJECT DETAILS.— 

20 Projects described in subclause (II) 

21 should— 

22 ‘‘(aa) facilitate partnerships 

23 between businesses, cooperatives, 

24 non-profits, agencies, and edu25 cational institutions; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
68 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(bb) have mid-sized farmer 

2 or rancher participation; 

3 ‘‘(cc) include an agreement 

4 from the eligible agricultural pro5 ducer group, farmer or rancher 

6 cooperative, or majority-con7 trolled producer-based business 

8 venture engaged in the food 

9 value-added chain relating to the 

10 method for price determination; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(dd) articulate clear and 

13 transparent social, environ14 mental, fair labor, and fair trade 

15 standards.’’. 

16 (g) ASSISTANCE FOR COMMUNITY FOOD

17 PROJECTS.—Section 25 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

18 (7 U.S.C. 2034) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 

20 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

21 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

22 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

23 at the end and inserting ‘‘and’’; and 

24 (C) by adding at the end the following: 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
69 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(D) supply healthy local foods to under2 served markets, including— 

3 ‘‘(i) purchase of local foods by govern4 ment and nonprofit institutions; 

5 ‘‘(ii) provision of technical assistance 

6 for retail development in underserved 

7 areas; 

8 ‘‘(iii) support of metropolitan produc9 tion linked to community-based food serv10 ices and markets (such as urban, commu11 nity, school, and market gardens); 

12 ‘‘(iv) provision of technical assistance 

13 for limited-resource and socially-disadvan14 taged applicants; 

15 ‘‘(v) support of local purchase of foods 

16 by food banks and other emergency pro17 viders; and 

18 ‘‘(vi) support of an information clear19 inghouse on innovative solutions to com20 mon community food security challenges; 

21 or’’; 

22 (2) in subsection (b), by striking paragraph (1) 

23 and inserting the following: 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
70 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 

2 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use, of 

3 funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation— 

4 ‘‘(A) $15,000,000 to make grants to assist 

5 eligible private nonprofit entities to establish 

6 and carry out community food projects; 

7 ‘‘(B) $10,000,000 to encourage eligible 

8 private nonprofit entities to purchase of local 

9 foods for community food projects; 

10 ‘‘(C) $10,000,000 to provide technical as11 sistance under this section for retail develop12 ment in underserved areas; 

13 ‘‘(D) $10,000,000 for the community food 

14 project competitive grant program to support 

15 metropolitan production linked to community16 based food services and markets (urban, com17 munity, school and market gardens); 

18 ‘‘(E) $7,000,000 to provide technical as19 sistance under this section for limited resource 

20 and socially disadvantaged applicants for com21 munity food project funds; 

22 ‘‘(F) $5,000,000 for the community food 

23 project competitive grant program to support 

24 food policy councils and food system networks 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
71 

•S 541 IS

1 to develop demonstration regional food authori2 ties; 

3 ‘‘(G) $3,000,000 to support local purchase 

4 of foods by food banks and other emergency 

5 food providers under this section; and 

6 ‘‘(H) $500,000 to support an information 

7 clearinghouse on innovative solutions to com8 mon community food security challenges.’’; and 

9 (3) in subsection (h)(4), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

11 SEC. 6. BROADBAND REQUIREMENTS. 

12 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

13 (1) While data collection on broadband access 

14 and affordability could be improved, several reports 

15 indicate that both factors have led to a digital divide 

16 in the nation, with rural areas lagging behind subur17 ban and urban areas. 

18 (2) Even as early as 2000, a joint Department 

19 of Commerce and Department of Agriculture report 

20 demonstrated that there was a noticeable disparity 

21 in the availability of broadband access between rural 

22 and urban areas, with less than 5 percent of towns 

23 smaller than 10,000 people having broadband ac24 cess, while 56 percent of cities with populations of 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
72 

•S 541 IS

1 100,000 and 65 percent of cities with populations of 

2 250,000 have broadband access. 

3 (3) A February 2002 report by the Department 

4 of Commerce found that among Internet users, only 

5 12.2 percent of such users located in rural areas had 

6 high speed connections versus 21.2 percent of such 

7 users located in urban areas. Furthermore, the re8 port found higher income households were more like9 ly to have broadband access than lower income 

10 households. 

11 (4) A September 2004 report by the Depart12 ment of Commerce evidenced growth in broadband 

13 subscribers among all Internet users, however, the 

14 broadband access gap between rural (24.7 percent) 

15 and urban areas (40.4 percent) remained. 

16 (5) A May 2006 report by the Government Ac17 countability Office found that 17 percent of rural 

18 households subscribe to broadband service, while 

19 suburban households had a broadband subscription 

20 rate 11 percent higher and urban households had a 

21 broadband subscription rate 12 percent higher than 

22 that of rural households. 

23 (6) A May 2006 report by the Government Ac24 countability Office found that data collected by the 

25 Federal Communications Commission on broadband 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
73 

•S 541 IS

1 subscribers at a zip code level was of limited useful2 ness for an accurate assessment of local availability 

3 of broadband service, especially in rural areas. More4 over such report found that this lack of reliable in5 formation was a key obstacle in analyzing and tar6 geting Federal aid for increasing access to 

7 broadband service. 

8 (7) Even with this limited zip code level data, 

9 the most recently released Federal Communications 

10 Commission data (for December 31, 2005) disclosed 

11 that 11 percent fewer of the lowest population den12 sity zip codes had at least 1 subscriber relative to 

13 the highest population density zip codes. 

14 (8) A February 2006 report prepared for the 

15 Economic Development Administration of the De16 partment of Commerce found that communities with 

17 early broadband availability experienced more rapid 

18 growth in employment, number of businesses, and 

19 number of information technology businesses. 

20 (9) The United States is losing ground relative 

21 to other developed countries. According to the Orga22 nization for Economic Cooperation and Develop23 ment, the United States now ranks 12th out of the 

24 30 OECD countries in broadband access per 100 in25 habitants. In 2001, the United States ranked 4th, 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
74 

•S 541 IS

1 behind only Korea, Sweden, and Canada. A similar 

2 worldwide ranking by the International Tele3 communications Union put the United States even 

4 further behind at 16th in broadband penetration. 

5 (b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the 

6 Senate that, given the growing number of opportunities 

7 provided by broadband access, the digital divide affecting 

8 rural households and other underserved groups be elimi9 nated not later than 10 years after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act with the ultimate goal of providing nationwide 

11 universal access to affordable broadband. 

12 (c) IMPROVING FCC DATA COLLECTION.— 

13 (1) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 (A) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—Not later 

15 than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

16 this Act, the Federal Communications Commis17 sion shall revise FCC Form 477 (relating to re18 porting requirements) to require each 

19 broadband service provider to report the fol20 lowing information: 

21 (i) Identification of where such pro22 vider provides broadband service to cus23 tomers, identified by zip code plus 4 digit 

24 location (in this section referred to as 

25 ‘‘service area’’). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
75 

•S 541 IS

1 (ii) Percentage of households and 

2 businesses in each service area that are of3 fered broadband service by such provider, 

4 and the percentage of such households that 

5 subscribe to each service plan offered. 

6 (iii) The average price per megabyte 

7 of download speed and upload speed in 

8 each service area. 

9 (iv) Identification by service area of 

10 such provider’s broadband service’s— 

11 (I) actual average throughput; 

12 and 

13 (II) contention ratio of the num14 ber of users sharing the same line. 

15 (B) EXCEPTION.—The Federal Commu16 nications Commission shall exempt a broadband 

17 service provider from the requirements in sub18 paragraph (A) if the Commission determines 

19 that compliance with such reporting require20 ments by the provider is cost prohibitive, as de21 fined by the Commission. 

22 (C) REPORT TO JOINT BOARD.—Not later 

23 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this 

24 Act, the Federal Communications Commission 

25 shall provide the Federal-State Joint Board esVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00075 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
76 

•S 541 IS

1 tablished pursuant to section 410 of the Com2 munications Act of 1934 with any and all data 

3 and analysis collected from the initial set of 

4 submitted revised Form 477s. 

5 (2) DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION FOR

6 UNSERVED AREAS.—The Federal Communications 

7 Commission, using available Census Bureau data, 

8 shall provide to Congress on an annual basis a re9 port containing the following information for each 

10 service area that is not served by a broadband serv11 ice provider: 

12 (A) Population. 

13 (B) Population density. 

14 (C) Average per capita income. 

15 (d) REVIEWS AND REPORTS.— 

16 (1) DATA TRANSFER RATE.—Not later than 2 

17 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

18 every 2 years thereafter, the Federal Communica19 tions Commission, in consultation with the Secretary 

20 of Agriculture and any other Federal agency that 

21 administers a broadband program, shall revise its 

22 definition of broadband to— 

23 (A) reflect a data rate— 

24 (i) greater than the 200 kilobits per 

25 second standard established in the ComVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:39 Feb 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S541.IS S541

bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
77 

•S 541 IS

1 mission’s Section 706 Report (14 FCC 

2 Rec. 2406); and 

3 (ii) consistent with data rates in the 

4 marketplace; and 

5 (B) promote uniformity in the definition of 

6 broadband service. 

7 (2) USDA REPORT.—Not later than 90 days 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec9 retary of Agriculture shall report on the adoption or 

10 planned adoption of the recommendations contained 

11 in the September 2005 audit report by the Inspector 

12 General of the United States Department of Agri13 culture entitled ‘‘Rural Utilities Service Broadband 

14 Grant and Loan Programs’’. 

15 (3) UNIVERSAL SERVICE.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

18 Federal-State Joint Board in accordance with 

19 the authority granted to such Board under sec20 tion 254(c)(2) of the Communications Act of 

21 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254(c)(2)) shall recommend to 

22 the Federal Communications Commission 

23 whether advanced services such as broadband 

24 service should be included in the definition of 

25 universal service. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
78 

•S 541 IS

1 (B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 

2 (i) FEDERAL-STATE JOINT BOARD.— 

3 The term ‘‘Federal-State Joint Board’’ 

4 means the joint board established pursuant 

5 to section 410 of the Communications Act 

6 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 410). 

7 (ii) UNIVERSAL SERVICE.—The term 

8 ‘‘universal service’’ means services that are 

9 to be supported by Federal universal sup10 port mechanisms under section 254 of the 

11 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

12 254). 

13 SEC. 7. OFFSETS. 

14 (a) LIMITATIONS ON MARKETING LOAN GAINS, 

15 LOAN DEFICIENCY PAYMENTS, AND COMMODITY CER16 TIFICATE TRANSACTIONS.—Section 1001 of the Food Se17 curity of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308) is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘$40,000’’ 

19 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘$20,000’’; 

20 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$65,000’’ 

21 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘$32,500’’; and 

22 (3) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the 

23 following: 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
79 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS ON MARKETING LOAN GAINS, 

2 LOAN DEFICIENCY PAYMENTS, AND COMMODITY CER3 TIFICATE TRANSACTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) LOAN COMMODITIES.—The total amount 

5 of the following gains and payments that a person 

6 may receive during any crop year may not exceed 

7 $75,000: 

8 ‘‘(A)(i) Any gain realized by a producer 

9 from repaying a marketing assistance loan for 

10 1 or more loan commodities under subtitle B of 

11 title I of the Farm Security and Rural Invest12 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7931 et seq.) at a 

13 lower level than the original loan rate estab14 lished for the loan commodity under that sub15 title. 

16 ‘‘(ii) In the case of settlement of a mar17 keting assistance loan for 1 or more loan com18 modities under that subtitle by forfeiture, the 

19 amount by which the loan amount exceeds the 

20 repayment amount for the loan if the loan had 

21 been settled by repayment instead of forfeiture. 

22 ‘‘(B) Any loan deficiency payments re23 ceived for 1 or more loan commodities under 

24 that subtitle. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
80 

•S 541 IS

1 ‘‘(C) Any gain realized from the use of a 

2 commodity certificate issued by the Commodity 

3 Credit Corporation for 1 or more loan commod4 ities, as determined by the Secretary, including 

5 the use of a certificate for the settlement of a 

6 marketing assistance loan made under that sub7 title, with the gain reported annually to the In8 ternal Revenue Service and to the taxpayer in 

9 the same manner as gains under subparagraphs 

10 (A) and (B). 

11 ‘‘(2) OTHER COMMODITIES.—The total amount 

12 of the following gains and payments that a person 

13 may receive during any crop year may not exceed 

14 $75,000: 

15 ‘‘(A)(i) Any gain realized by a producer 

16 from repaying a marketing assistance loan for 

17 peanuts, wool, mohair, or honey under subtitle 

18 B or C of title I of the Farm Security and 

19 Rural Investment Act of 2002 at a lower level 

20 than the original loan rate established for the 

21 commodity under those subtitles. 

22 ‘‘(ii) In the case of settlement of a mar23 keting assistance loan for peanuts, wool, mo24 hair, or honey under those subtitles by for25 feiture, the amount by which the loan amount 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
81 

•S 541 IS

1 exceeds the repayment amount for the loan if 

2 the loan had been settled by repayment instead 

3 of forfeiture. 

4 ‘‘(B) Any loan deficiency payments re5 ceived for peanuts, wool, mohair, and honey 

6 under those subtitles. 

7 ‘‘(C) Any gain realized from the use of a 

8 commodity certificate issued by the Commodity 

9 Credit Corporation for peanuts, wool, mohair, 

10 or honey, as determined by the Secretary, in11 cluding the use of a certificate for the settle12 ment of a marketing assistance loan made 

13 under those subtitles, with the gain reported 

14 annually to the Internal Revenue Service and to 

15 the taxpayer in the same manner as gains 

16 under subparagraphs (A) and (B).’’. 

17 (b) RESCISSIONS.— 

18 (1) SECTION 32.—Of the unobligated balances 

19 under section 32 of the August of August 24, 1935 

20 (7 U.S.C. 612c), $37,601,000 is rescinded. 

21 (2) CUSHION OF CREDIT PAYMENTS PRO22 GRAM.—Of the funds derived from interest on the 

23 cushion of credit payments, as authorized by section 

24 313 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
82 

•S 541 IS

1 U.S.C. 940c), $74,000,000 shall not be obligated 

2 and $74,000,000 is rescinded. 

3 (c) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—For each of fiscal years 

4 2008 through 2011, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

5 transfer to the Commodity Credit Corporation from unob6 ligated funds made available under section 32 of the Au7 gust of August 24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c), $125,500,000, 

8 to be used to carry out the amendments made by section 

9 5. 

10 SEC. 8. REGULATIONS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture may 

12 promulgate such regulations as are necessary to imple13 ment this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 

14 (b) PROCEDURE.—The promulgation of the regula15 tions and administration of this Act and the amendments 

16 made by this Act shall be made without regard to— 

17 (1) the notice and comment provisions of sec18 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code; 

19 (2) the Statement of Policy of the Secretary of 

20 Agriculture effective July 24, 1971 (36 Fed. Reg. 

21 13804), relating to notices of proposed rulemaking 

22 and public participation in rulemaking; and 

23 (3) chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code 

24 (commonly known as the ‘‘Paperwork Reduction 

25 Act’’). 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
83 

•S 541 IS

1 (c) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF AGENCY RULE2 MAKING.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall 

3 use the authority provided under section 808 of title 5, 

4 United States Code. 

Æ 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS