II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1904 

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

that only producers receive commodity program payments. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 31, 2007 

Mr. SALAZAR (for himself and Mr. NELSON of Nebraska) 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 ensure that only producers receive commodity 

program payments. 

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

3 SECTION 1. ESTABLISHMENT OF BASE ACRES AND PAY4 MENT ACRES FOR A FARM. 

5 Section 1101 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest6 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7911) is amended by striking 

7 subsection (h) and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(h) PERMANENT REDUCTION IN BASE ACRES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) REDUCTION AT OPTION OF OWNER.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The owner of a farm 

2 may reduce, at any time, the base acres for any 

3 covered commodity for the farm. 

4 ‘‘(B) EFFECT OF REDUCTION.—A reduc5 tion under subparagraph (A) shall be perma6 nent and made in a manner prescribed by the 

7 Secretary. 

8 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED REDUCTION BY SECRETARY.— 

9 The Secretary shall permanently reduce base acres 

10 for land that— 

11 ‘‘(A) has been developed for commercial or 

12 industrial use; 

13 ‘‘(B) has been subdivided and developed 

14 into multiple residential units or other non15 farming uses; or 

16 ‘‘(C) is otherwise no longer intended to be 

17 used in conjunction with a farming operation.’’. 

18 SEC. 2. PRODUCER AGREEMENT REQUIRED AS CONDITION 

19 OF PROVISION OF DIRECT PAYMENTS AND 

20 COUNTER-CYCLICAL PAYMENTS. 

21 Section 1105 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest22 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7915) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘and in the case of sub2 paragraph (D), the Farm Service Agency shall 

3 certify,’’ after ‘‘shall agree,’’; and 

4 (B) by striking subparagraph (D) and in5 serting the following: 

6 ‘‘(D)(i) that the producers meet the defini7 tion of a producer under section 1001; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) to use the land on the farm, in a 

9 quantity equal to the attributable base acres for 

10 the farm and any base acres for peanuts for the 

11 farm under subtitle C for an agricultural or 

12 conserving use, and not for a nonagricultural 

13 commercial, industrial, or residential use (in14 cluding land subdivided and developed into resi15 dential units or other nonfarming uses, or that 

16 is otherwise no longer intended to be used in 

17 conjunction with a farming operation), as deter18 mined by the Secretary; and’’; and 

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

20 ‘‘(f) AUDIT AND REPORT.—Each year, to ensure, to 

21 the maximum extent practicable, that payments are re22 ceived only by producers, the Secretary shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) conduct an audit of direct payments, 

24 counter-cyclical payments, and base acreage; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) submit to Congress a report that describes 

2 the results of that audit.’’. 

Æ 


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