I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5971 

To require the Secretary of Agriculture to direct a study on soil health 

of Federal lands, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 17, 2023 

Mr. NEGUSE introduced the following bill 

OCTOBER 25, 2023 

Referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of Agriculture to direct a study 

on soil health of Federal lands, 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 ‘‘Study on Improving 

5 Lands Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. STUDY. 

7 The Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the 

8 Secretary of the Interior, shall direct the National AcadVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:00 Nov 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5971.IH H5971

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•HR 5971 IH

1 emies of Science to study and report on the state of soil 

2 health on Federal lands in the United States. 

3 SEC. 3. DUTIES. 

4 The National Academies of Science shall determine 

5 the parameters by which to measure soil health, includ6 ing— 

7 (1) soil organic matter and other measure8 ments; 

9 (2) soil qualities that lead to the sequester of 

10 carbon; and 

11 (3) soil qualities that support strong ecosystems 

12 and resilient environments. 

13 SEC. 4. DATABASE. 

14 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

15 of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture, in coordination 

16 with the Secretary of the Interior and the National Acad17 emies of Science, shall— 

18 (1) commence a study on the state of soil 

19 health on Federal lands that determines impacts 

20 such as grazing, wildfire, recreation, invasive species, 

21 and other relevant impacts on soil health on Federal 

22 lands; and 

23 (2) create a database of the information col24 lected during the study. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•HR 5971 IH

1 SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

2 (a) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days 

3 after the commencement of the study under section 4, and 

4 annually thereafter, the Secretary of Agriculture shall 

5 evaluate the progress of that study and report any short6 term findings to the Committee on Natural Resources and 

7 the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representa8 tives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Re9 sources and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

10 Forestry of the Senate. 

11 (b) REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later 

12 than 2 years after the commencement of the study under 

13 this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the 

14 Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on 

15 Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Com16 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources and the Com17 mittee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Sen18 ate a report summarizing the results of the study together 

19 with any recommendations for legislative or regulatory ac20 tion to improve soil health, increase carbon sequestration, 

21 and improve community benefits of soil health programs 

22 on Federal lands. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB