I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1551 

To reauthorize Department of Agriculture conservation and energy programs 

and certain other programs of the Department, to modify the operation 

and administration of these programs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 15, 2007 

Mr. KIND (for himself, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. 

BAIRD, Mr. BECERRA, Mr. BISHOP of New York, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 

BRALEY of Iowa, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. CHANDLER, Ms. 

CLARKE, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. DEGETTE, 

Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. DICKS, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. ENGEL, 

Mr. ENGLISH of Pennsylvania, Mr. FARR, Mr. FILNER, Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN, Mr. GERLACH, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. HIGGINS, Ms. HIRONO, 

Mr. HINCHEY, Ms. HOOLEY, Mr. HOLT, Mr. HONDA, Mr. INSLEE, Ms. 

KAPTUR, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. 

LOBIONDO, Mr. LYNCH, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Mr. 

MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. MEEKS of New York, 

Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. MICHAUD, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. 

MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. 

NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. OLVER, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. 

PAYNE, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. PETRI, Mr. PRICE of 

North Carolina, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. RAMSTAD, Mr. REICHERT, Mr. 

SAXTON, Mr. SIRES, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. STUPAK, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. UDALL of Colorado, Mr. 

UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. WALSH of New York) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor and 

Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To reauthorize Department of Agriculture conservation and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
2 

•HR 1551 IH

energy programs and certain other programs of the Department, to modify the operation and administration 

of these programs, 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 AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Healthy Farms, Foods, and Fuels Act of 2007’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

TITLE I—CONSERVATION 

Sec. 101. Conservation reserve program. 

Sec. 102. Wetlands reserve program. 

Sec. 103. Conservation security program. 

Sec. 104. Reauthorization of and increased enrollment authority for grassland 

reserve program. 

Sec. 105. Environmental quality incentives program. 

Sec. 106. Reauthorization of and increased funding for wildlife habitat incentive 

program. 

Sec. 107. Cooperative conservation partnership initiative. 

Sec. 108. Regional equity in funding of certain Department of Agriculture conservation programs. 

Sec. 109. Exclusion of payments under Department of Agriculture conservation 

programs from adjusted gross income limitation. 

Sec. 110. Reauthorization of and additional funding for agricultural management assistance program. 

Sec. 111. Community Forests and Open Space Conservation Program. 

Sec. 112. Farmland protection and farm viability programs. 

Sec. 113. Healthy forests reserve program. 

Sec. 114. Integrated pest management initiative. 

Sec. 115. Conservation access initiative to encourage greater participation by 

socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers in conservation 

programs. 

Sec. 116. Conservation loan guarantee program. 

Sec. 117. Pilot program for comprehensive conservation planning. 

Sec. 118. Technical assistance under Department of Agriculture conservation 

programs. 

TITLE II—ENERGY 

Sec. 201. Definition of biomass. 

Sec. 202. Support for development of biorefineries. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
3 

•HR 1551 IH

Sec. 203. Reauthorization of energy audit and renewable energy development 

program. 

Sec. 204. Reauthorization of and increased funding for renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements program. 

Sec. 205. Reauthorization of Department of Agriculture bioenergy program. 

Sec. 206. Reauthorization of and increased funding for biomass research and 

development. 

Sec. 207. Reauthorization of carbon cycle research. 

TITLE III—HEALTHY FOOD CHOICES 

Sec. 301. Reauthorization of and increased funding for community food project 

competitive grants. 

Sec. 302. Expansion of fresh fruit and vegetable program. 

Sec. 303. Authorization level for farm-to-cafeteria activities. 

Sec. 304. Extension of WIC farmer’s market nutrition program. 

Sec. 305. Senior farmers’ market nutrition program. 

Sec. 306. Farmers’ market promotion program. 

Sec. 307. Department of Defense and Department of Agriculture procurement 

of locally produced agricultural products. 

Sec. 308. Fruit and vegetable nutrition promotion program. 

Sec. 309. Use of ‘‘Dietary Guidelines for Americans’’ in special nutrition programs and school lunch programs. 

Sec. 310. Section 32 specialty crop purchases. 

Sec. 311. Amendments to the food stamp program. 

Sec. 312. Food stamp fruit and vegetable electronic benefit transfer pilot 

project. 

TITLE IV—PROMOTION OF NEW MARKETS AND FARM VIABILITY 

Sec. 401. Farm viability program. 

Sec. 402. National organic certification and transition cost share program. 

Sec. 403. Organic agriculture research and extension initiative. 

Sec. 404. Funding for education grants programs for Hispanic-serving institutions. 

Sec. 405. Extension and funding increase for the Value-Added Agricultural 

Product Market Development Grant Program. 

1 TITLE I—CONSERVATION 

2 SEC. 101. CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM. 

3 (a) EXTENSION.— 

4 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION.—Section 1241(a) of 

5 the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) 

6 is amended— 

7 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

8 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’; and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
4 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘The’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2002 

3 through 2013, the’’. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 1231 

5 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3831) is amended— 

6 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘2013’’; 

8 (B) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘2013’’; 

10 (C) in subsection (e)(3), by striking 

11 ‘‘2002’’ and inserting ‘‘2008’’; and 

12 (D) in subsection (h)(1), by striking 

13 ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

14 (b) ELIGIBLE LAND.—Section 1231(b) of such Act 

15 (16 U.S.C. 3831(b)) is amended— 

16 (1) by striking the period at the end of para17 graph (1) and inserting a semicolon; 

18 (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 

19 (4)(C); 

20 (3) by striking the period at the end of para21 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

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

23 paragraphs: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
5 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(6) marginal pasture land or hay land that is 

2 otherwise ineligible, if the land is to be devoted to 

3 native vegetation appropriate to the locale and— 

4 ‘‘(A) will provide suitable habitat for State 

5 or federally listed threatened or endangered 

6 species or species determined by the Secretary 

7 of the Interior to be species of concern; or 

8 ‘‘(B) will contribute to the restoration of 

9 an endangered ecosystem or rare and declining 

10 forest ecosystem, as defined by the Secretary.’’. 

11 (c) ENROLLMENT GOALS.—Section 1231(d) of such 

12 Act (16 U.S.C. 3831(d)) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting: 

14 ‘‘(1) ACREAGE AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary’’; 

15 and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

17 paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(2) ENROLLMENT GOALS.—For the period be19 ginning on the date of the enactment of this para20 graph and ending on December 31, 2013, the Sec21 retary shall establish a goal— 

22 ‘‘(A) to enroll not less than 7,000,000 

23 acres of eligible land, including land to be de24 voted to the restoration of rare and declining 

25 forests, through the continuous enrollment proVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
6 

•HR 1551 IH

1 gram and the conservation reserve enhancement 

2 program; and 

3 ‘‘(B) to maintain enrollment of at least 

4 7,800,000 acres in the Prairie Pothole Region 

5 National Conservation Priority Area.’’. 

6 (d) CONTRACTS TO RESTORE RARE AND DECLINING

7 FORESTS.—(d) Section 1231(e)(2) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

8 3831(e)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following 

9 new subparagraph: 

10 ‘‘(C) RARE AND DECLINING FORESTS.—In 

11 the case of land to be devoted to the restoration 

12 of rare and declining forest ecosystems, as de13 termined by the Secretary, the Secretary may 

14 enter into contracts of more than 15 years.’’. 

15 (e) BALANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCE PURPOSES.— 

16 Section 1231(j) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3831(j)) is amend17 ed— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘In determining’’ and inserting 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(1) EQUITABLE BALANCE OF CONSERVATION

21 PURPOSES.—In determining’’; 

22 (2) by striking the period at the end and insert23 ing ‘‘, but need not balance all conservation purposes 

24 with respect to each particular contract offer.’’; and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
7 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(2) WILDLIFE.—In considering the extent to 

4 which a contract offer will achieve the conservation 

5 purposes of the program related to wildlife habitat, 

6 the Secretary shall consider the extent to which the 

7 contract offer will contribute to increased popu8 lations of wildlife, including waterfowl, nongame 

9 grassland birds and neotropical migrants, and assist 

10 in the recovery of at-risk species.’’. 

11 (f) DUTIES OF PARTICIPANTS.—Section 1232(a) of 

12 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3832(a)) is amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

14 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

15 and (B) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respec16 tively; and 

17 (B) by inserting before subparagraph (B), 

18 as so redesignated, the following new subpara19 graph: 

20 ‘‘(A) approved vegetative cover shall not 

21 include vegetative cover inappropriate to the lo22 cale;’’; 

23 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through 

24 (10) as paragraphs (6) through (11), respectively; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
8 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol2 lowing new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(5) to undertake appropriate management ac4 tivities on the land as needed throughout the term 

5 of the contract to achieve the purposes of the con6 servation reserve program;’’; and 

7 (4) in subparagraph (A)(i)(II) of paragraph (8), 

8 as so redesignated, by inserting after ‘‘may be con9 ducted’’ the following: ‘‘, taking into account grass10 land types and species, location, weather conditions, 

11 and other factors that determine to what extent har12 vesting and grazing activities will advance the con13 servation purposes of the program’’. 

14 (g) CONSERVATION PLAN.—Section 1232(b)(1) of 

15 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3832(b)(1)) is amended— 

16 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘, including appropriate management 

18 activities required by subsection (a)(5);’’ and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub20 paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(C) criteria for conducting any commer22 cial use to be permitted, including criteria for 

23 managed harvesting and grazing specifying fre24 quency, timing, number of animal units, per25 centage of field, and other criteria to ensure 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
9 

•HR 1551 IH

1 that managed harvesting and grazing advances 

2 the conservation purposes of the program; 

3 and’’. 

4 (h) COST-SHARE AND MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE.— 

5 Section 1234(b) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3834(b)) is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the pe8 riod at the end the following: ‘‘, except that the Sec9 retary shall pay 75 percent of the cost of estab10 lishing bottomland hardwood trees and longleaf 

11 pine’’; and 

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

13 paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(6) MANAGEMENT COSTS.—The Secretary 

15 shall pay 75 percent of the cost of management ac16 tivities, including the use of prescribed fire, control 

17 of invasive species, and native understory restoration 

18 on land devoted to trees, that are required under a 

19 contract entered into under this subchapter, subject 

20 to such limits as the Secretary may establish.’’. 

21 (i) ACCEPTANCE OF CONTRACT OFFERS.—Section 

22 1234(c)(3) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3834(c)(3)) is amend23 ed— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘In determining’’ and inserting 

25 the following: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
10 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(A) MAXIMIZING ENVIRONMENTAL BENE2 FITS.—In determining’’; 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘may’’ and all that follows 

4 through ‘‘take into consideration’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘shall take into consideration’’; 

6 (3) by striking ‘‘benefits; and’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘benefits. The Secretary shall establish criteria for 

8 the acceptance of contract offers that will maximize 

9 environmental benefits, including criteria related to 

10 the characteristics of the land that is the subject of 

11 the contract offer, its location, proposed cover and 

12 proposed management practices.’’; 

13 (4) by striking ‘‘(B) establish’’ and inserting 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(B) FLEXIBILITY.—The Secretary may 

16 establish’’; 

17 (5) by striking ‘‘abated.’’ and inserting ‘‘abated, 

18 in order to more effectively address specific State or 

19 regional resource concerns and conservation prior20 ities, including restoration of rare and declining for21 est ecosystems.’’; and 

22 (6) by adding at the end the following new sub23 paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(C) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER CONSERVA25 TION PROGRAMS.—In the enrollment of land in 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
11 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the conservation reserve established under this 

2 subchapter, the Secretary shall give a priority 

3 to land that cannot produce comparable envi4 ronmental benefits if maintained in agricultural 

5 production and enrolled in the environmental 

6 quality incentives program or other program de7 signed to assist producers in improving the en8 vironmental performance of working agricul9 tural land.’’. 

10 (j) CONSERVATION RESERVE ENHANCEMENT PRO11 GRAM.—Section 1234(f)(1) of such Act is (16 U.S.C. 

12 3834(f)) is amended by adding at the end the following 

13 new sentence: ‘‘The Secretary may waive this payment 

14 limitation for persons participating in a conservation re15 serve enhancement program if the Secretary determines 

16 such a waiver is necessary to achieve the objectives of the 

17 conservation reserve enhancement program.’’. 

18 SEC. 102. WETLANDS RESERVE PROGRAM. 

19 (a) EXTENSION.— 

20 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION.—Section 1241(a)(2) 

21 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

22 3841(a)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘The’’ and in23 serting ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2002 through 

24 2013, the’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
12 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 1237(c) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(c)) is amended 

3 by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

4 (b) MAXIMUM AND YEARLY ENROLLMENT.—Section 

5 1237(b)(1) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(b)(1)) is amend6 ed— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘2,275,000 acres’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘5,000,000 acres’’; and 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘250,000 acres in each calendar 

10 year’’ and inserting ‘‘350,000 acres in each of cal11 endar years 2008 and 2009 and 250,000 acres in 

12 each of calendar years 2010 through 2013’’. 

13 (c) ENROLLMENT OF RIPARIAN AREAS.—Section 

14 1237(d)(3) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837(d)(3)) is amend15 ed by striking ‘‘that link’’ and all that follows through ‘‘an 

16 easement’’. 

17 (d) WETLAND EASEMENT CONSERVATION PLAN.— 

18 Section 1237A(b)(3) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837a(b)(3)) 

19 is amended by inserting before the semicolon at the end 

20 the following: ‘‘and management activities necessary to 

21 maintain the functional values of the wetlands’’. 

22 (e) VALUATION OF EASEMENTS.—Section 1237A(f) 

23 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837a(f)) is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘but not to exceed’’ and all that follows through the end 

25 of the sentence and inserting ‘‘, and the amount of such 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
13 

•HR 1551 IH

1 compensation shall be based on appraisals of the current 

2 fair market agricultural value of the land to be encum3 bered by the easement. The Uniform Relocation Assist4 ance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 

5 (42 U.S.C. 4601 et seq.) shall not apply to appraisals of 

6 land offered for enrollment in the wetlands reserve pro7 gram.’’. 

8 (f) COST-SHARE AND MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE.— 

9 Section 1237C of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837c) is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ‘‘including 

12 management activities,’’ after ‘‘values,’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

14 following new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(4) MANAGEMENT COSTS.—The Secretary 

16 may make payments to owners to cover up to the 

17 full actual cost of undertaking any ongoing or peri18 odic management activities necessary to maintain 

19 the functional values of wetland enrolled in the wet20 lands reserve program.’’. 

21 (g) EASEMENT PRIORITIES.—Section 1237C(d) of 

22 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3837c(d)) is amended by striking 

23 ‘‘wildlife’’ and inserting ‘‘wildlife, particularly rare, threat24 ened, endangered, and candidate species, or for furthering 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
14 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the goals and objectives of the State’s comprehensive wild2 life conservation strategy’’. 

3 SEC. 103. CONSERVATION SECURITY PROGRAM. 

4 (a) REPEAL OF FUNDING CAP.—Section 1241(a)(3) 

5 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)(3)) 

6 is amended by striking ‘‘, using not more than’’ and all 

7 that follows through ‘‘2015’’. 

8 (b) PROGRAM EXTENSION.—Section 1238A(a) of the 

9 Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3838a(a)) is 

10 amended by striking ‘‘2011’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

11 (c) THREE TIERS OF CONSERVATION SECURITY

12 CONTRACTS.—Section 1238A(d) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

13 3838a(d)) is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

15 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (R) 

16 and (S) as subparagraphs (S) and (T), respec17 tively; and 

18 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (Q), 

19 the following new subparagraph: 

20 ‘‘(R) enhancement of in-stream flows;’’; 

21 (2) in paragraph (5)— 

22 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

23 (A), by striking ‘‘paragraph (6)’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘paragraph (7)’’; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
15 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (B) in subparagraph (A)(ii)(I), by striking 

2 ‘‘1 significant resource’’ and inserting ‘‘2 sig3 nificant resources’’; and 

4 (C) in subparagraph (B)(ii)(I), by striking 

5 ‘‘1 significant resource’’ and inserting ‘‘3 sig6 nificant resources’’; and 

7 (3) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para8 graph (7); and 

9 (4) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol10 lowing new paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(6) SOIL QUALITY REQUIREMENTS FOR CER12 TAIN PRODUCERS.—Certified organic producers and 

13 producers implementing a resource-conserving crop 

14 rotation shall be deemed to meet any minimum re15 quirements related to soil quality and the preserva16 tion of soil carbon that the Secretary may establish 

17 for each tier of conservation security contracts.’’. 

18 (d) CONTRACT RENEWAL.—Section 1238A(e)(4) of 

19 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838a(e)(4)) is amended—— 

20 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘subpara21 graph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (B), (C), 

22 and (D)’’; and 

23 (2) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting 

24 the following new subparagraphs: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
16 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(B) TIER I RENEWALS.—In the case of 

2 land enrolled under a Tier I conservation secu3 rity contract of a producer, the producer may— 

4 ‘‘(i) renew the contract if the producer 

5 agrees to a new conservation security plan 

6 that addresses at least one additional sig7 nificant resource concern and includes sig8 nificant new conservation practices and ac9 tivities, as determined by the Secretary; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) enroll the land under a Tier II or 

11 Tier III conservation security contract at 

12 the time the Tier I contract expires if the 

13 producer demonstrates that the eligibility 

14 criteria for a Tier III conservation security 

15 contract are met. 

16 ‘‘(C) TIER II RENEWALS.—In the case of 

17 land enrolled under a Tier II conservation secu18 rity contract of a producer, the producer may— 

19 ‘‘(i) renew the contract if the producer 

20 agrees to a new conservation security plan 

21 that includes significant new conservation 

22 practices or activities, as determined by the 

23 Secretary; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) enroll the land under a Tier III 

25 conservation security contract at the time 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
17 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the Tier II contract expires if the producer 

2 demonstrates that the eligibility criteria for 

3 a Tier III conservation security contract 

4 are met. 

5 ‘‘(D) TIER III RENEWALS.—In the case of 

6 land enrolled under a Tier III conservation se7 curity contract of a producer, the producer may 

8 renew the contract, subject to a benchmark as9 sessment by the Secretary to determine whether 

10 the producer fully complied with the require11 ments of the Tier III conservation security 

12 plan.’’. 

13 (e) ELIMINATION OF MAINTENANCE PAYMENTS.— 

14 Section 1238C(b)(1)(B) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

15 3838c(b)(1)(B)) is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing new sentence: ‘‘Effective for payments made after 

17 October 1, 2006, payments under a conservation security 

18 contract may not include amounts for the maintenance of 

19 existing land management and vegetative practices or the 

20 maintenance of existing land-based structural practices.’’. 

21 (f) MINIMUM CONTRACT PAYMENT.—Section 

22 1238C(b) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838c(b)) is amended 

23 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(4) MINIMUM PAYMENT.—Notwithstanding 

25 any other provision in this subsection, a producer 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
18 

•HR 1551 IH

1 participating in the conservation security program 

2 shall be entitled to an annual payment of not less 

3 than $1,500 under a conservation security con4 tract.’’. 

5 (g) ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES.—Subsection (f) of 

6 section 1238C of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838c) is amended 

7 to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(f) ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) NO USE OF COMPETITIVE BIDDING.—In 

10 entering into conservation security contracts with 

11 producers under this subchapter, the Secretary shall 

12 not use competitive bidding or any similar proce13 dure. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT FOR TIER III

15 CONTRACTS.—The Secretary shall enroll lands that 

16 meet Tier III enrollment criteria on a continuous 

17 basis. 

18 ‘‘(3) PERIODIC ENROLLMENT OPPORTUNITIES

19 FOR TIER I AND II CONTRACTS.—The Secretary shall 

20 ensure that producers whose land meets the eligi21 bility criteria for enrollment under a Tier I or Tier 

22 II conservation security contract have the oppor23 tunity to enroll the land in the conservation security 

24 program once every three years.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
19 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (h) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Subsection (f) of sec2 tion 1238C of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838c) is amended 

3 to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(g) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

5 ‘‘(1) PROVISION OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

6 For each of fiscal years 2003 through 2013, the 

7 Secretary shall provide appropriate technical assist8 ance to producers for the development and imple9 mentation of conservation security contracts. 

10 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The amount expended to 

11 provide technical assistance with respect to a con12 servation security contract over the life of the con13 tract may not exceed 15 percent of the total amount 

14 expended over the life of the contract.’’. 

15 SEC. 104. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED ENROLL16 MENT AUTHORITY FOR GRASSLAND RESERVE 

17 PROGRAM. 

18 (a) EXTENSION AND FUNDING.—Section 1241(a) of 

19 the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is 

20 amended by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the fol21 lowing new paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(5) For each of fiscal years 2002 through 

23 2013, the grassland reserve program under sub24 chapter C of chapter 2.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
20 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (b) ENROLLMENT GOALS AND LIMITATION ON USE

2 OF RENTAL AGREEMENTS.—Section 1238N(b) of such 

3 Act (16 U.S.C. 3838N(b)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘2,000,000 

5 acres’’ and inserting ‘‘10,000,000 acres’’; and 

6 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

7 following new paragraphs: 

8 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON USE OF RENTAL AGREE9 MENTS.—Of the total number of acres enrolled in 

10 the program at any one time through the methods 

11 described in paragraph (2)(A), not more than 30 

12 percent of the acres shall be enrolled through the 

13 use of rental agreements described in clause (i) of 

14 such paragraph. 

15 ‘‘(4) ENROLLMENT GOAL.—For the period be16 ginning on the date of the enactment of this para17 graph and ending on December 31, 2013, the Sec18 retary shall establish a goal to enroll not less than 

19 2,000,000 acres of native grasslands in the pro20 gram.’’. 

21 (c) ENROLLMENT OF CONSERVATION RESERVE PRO22 GRAM LAND.—Section 1238N of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

23 3838N) is amended by adding at the end the following 

24 new subsection: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
21 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(d) ENROLLMENT OF CONSERVATION RESERVE

2 PROGRAM LAND.— 

3 ‘‘(1) ENROLLMENT AUTHORIZED.—Subject to 

4 the eligibility requirements of subsection (c) and all 

5 other requirements of this subchapter, land enrolled 

6 in the conservation reserve program may be enrolled 

7 in the grassland reserve program if the Secretary de8 termines that the land is of high ecological value and 

9 under significant threat of conversion to other uses. 

10 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM ENROLLMENT.—The enrollment 

11 of conservation reserve program land under this sub12 section shall not exceed 50 percent of the total num13 ber of acres enrolled in the grassland reserve pro14 gram in a given fiscal year. 

15 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON DUPLICATION OF PAY16 MENTS.—Land enrolled in the grassland reserve pro17 gram under this subsection shall no longer be eligi18 ble for payments under the conservation reserve pro19 gram.’’. 

20 (d) EQUITY FOR PASTURE-BASED OPERATIONS.— 

21 Section 1238N of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3838N) is further 

22 amended by inserting after subsection (d), as added by 

23 subsection (c), the following new subsection: 

24 ‘‘(e) EQUITY FOR PASTURE-BASED OPERATIONS.— 

25 Consistent with the other requirements of the program, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
22 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the Secretary shall implement the program in a manner 

2 that ensures that, to the greatest extent practicable, land3 owners operating pasture-based systems have an equal op4 portunity to enroll in the program.’’. 

5 (e) BIODIVERSITY.—Section 1238O of such Act (16 

6 U.S.C. 3838o) is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 

8 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub10 section: 

11 ‘‘(f) BIODIVERSITY.—In emphasizing support for bio12 diversity consistent with the requirements of subsection 

13 (c), the Secretary shall give priority to agreements and 

14 easements that protect and restore habitat for rare, 

15 threatened, endangered, and candidate species or further 

16 the goals and objectives of the State’s comprehensive wild17 life conservation strategy.’’. 

18 (f) SPECIAL GRASSLANDS RESERVE ENHANCEMENT

19 PROGRAM.—Section 1238P of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

20 3838p) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

21 subsection: 

22 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL GRASSLANDS RESERVE ENHANCE23 MENT AGREEMENTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary may enter 

25 into a special grasslands reserve enhancement agreeVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
23 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ment with a State under which the Secretary will 

2 make payments to the State or political subdivisions 

3 or agencies of the State to advance the purposes of 

4 the grassland reserve program in the State. 

5 ‘‘(2) PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.—Section 1305(d) 

6 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 

7 (7 U.S.C. 1308 note; Public Law 100–203) shall not 

8 apply to payments received by a State or political 

9 subdivision or agency thereof in connection with an 

10 agreement entered into under subsection (a).’’. 

11 SEC. 105. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY INCENTIVES PRO12 GRAM. 

13 (a) EXTENSION.— 

14 (1) FUNDING EXTENSION AND INCREASE.— 

15 Section 1241(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 

16 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)) is amended by striking para17 graph (6) and inserting the following new para18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(6) The environmental quality incentives pro20 gram under chapter 4, using, to the maximum ex21 tent practicable, $2,000,000,000 in each of fiscal 

22 years 2008 through 2013.’’. 

23 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

24 1240B of such Act is amended (16 U.S.C. 3839aa– 

25 2)— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
24 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking 

2 ‘‘2010’’ and inserting ‘‘2013’’; and 

3 (B) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘2007’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘2013’’. 

5 (b) PURPOSES.—Section 1240 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

6 3839aa) is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘, conserving 

8 energy,’’ after ‘‘resources’’; and 

9 (2) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘and con10 serve energy,’’ after ‘‘wildlife’’. 

11 (c) PREDATOR DETERRENCE.—Section 1240B(a) of 

12 such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2(a)) is amended by adding 

13 at the end the following paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(3) PREDATOR DETERRENCE.—A producer 

15 that implements practices or other measures as part 

16 of a system of proactive predator deterrence for 

17 large carnivores, including the use of range riders, 

18 removal of carcasses, and installation of electric 

19 fencing around calving areas, shall be eligible to re20 ceive cost-share or incentive payments under this 

21 chapter.’’. 

22 (d) BIDDING DOWN.—Subsection (c) of section 

23 1240B of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2) is amended to 

24 read as follows: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
25 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(c) BIDDING DOWN.—The Secretary shall not as2 sign a higher priority to any application because the appli3 cant is willing to accept a lower cost-share or incentive 

4 payment than the applicant would otherwise be entitled 

5 to receive. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed 

6 to relieve the Secretary of the obligation, when evaluating 

7 applications for cost-share payments and incentive pay8 ments, to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the proposed 

9 conservation practices, systems, and approaches described 

10 in the applications and to prioritize the most cost-effective 

11 applications, as required by section 1240C(1).’’. 

12 (e) EVALUATION OF APPLICATIONS FOR COST-SHARE

13 PAYMENTS AND INCENTIVE PAYMENTS.—Section 1240C 

14 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–3) is amended to read as 

15 follows: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 1240C. EVALUATION OF APPLICATIONS FOR COST17 SHARE PAYMENTS AND INCENTIVE PAY18 MENTS. 

19 ‘‘(a) EVALUATION PRIORITIES AND CRITERIA.—In 

20 evaluating applications for cost-share payments and incen21 tive payments, the Secretary shall— 

22 ‘‘(1) prioritize applications based on their over23 all level of cost-effectiveness to ensure that the con24 servation practices, systems, and approaches proVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
26 

•HR 1551 IH

1 posed are the most efficient means of achieving the 

2 anticipated environmental benefits of the project; 

3 ‘‘(2) prioritize applications based on how effec4 tively and comprehensively the project addresses the 

5 designated resource concern or resource concerns; 

6 ‘‘(3) reward higher levels of environmental per7 formance, such as advanced levels of management 

8 within land management practices; 

9 ‘‘(4) develop criteria for evaluating applications 

10 that will ensure that national, State, and local con11 servation priorities are effectively addressed; and 

12 ‘‘(5) prioritize applications that will improve en13 vironmental performance on existing operations. 

14 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULE FOR PROJECTS TO IMPROVE

15 WILDLIFE HABITAT.—In evaluating applications for cost16 share payments and incentive payments primarily to im17 prove wildlife habitat, in addition to meeting the require18 ments of subsection (a), the Secretary shall give priority 

19 to applications that— 

20 ‘‘(1) protect and restore habitat for rare, 

21 threatened, endangered, and candidate species; or 

22 ‘‘(2) further the goals and objectives of the 

23 State’s comprehensive wildlife conservation strat24 egy.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
27 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (f) CONSERVATION INNOVATION GRANTS.—Section 

2 1240H of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–8) is amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘may’’ and in4 serting ‘‘shall’’; 

5 (2) in subsection (b)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘shall’’; 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para9 graph (2); 

10 (C) by striking the period at the end of 

11 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

13 paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(4) include a plan for technology transfer.’’; 

15 and 

16 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub17 sections: 

18 ‘‘(d) TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER.—To the maximum 

19 extent practicable, the Secretary shall ensure efficient, ef20 fective transfer of innovative technologies and approaches 

21 demonstrated through projects that receive funding under 

22 this section. 

23 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—In addition to amounts made avail24 able under section 1241(a)(6) to carry out this chapter, 

25 the Secretary shall use funds of the Commodity Credit 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
28 

•HR 1551 IH

1 Corporation to carry out this section in the following 

2 amounts: 

3 ‘‘(1) 40,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. 

4 ‘‘(2) 50,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

5 ‘‘(3) 60,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

6 ‘‘(4) 75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 

7 through 2013.’’. 

8 (g) FUNDING UNDER GROUND AND SURFACE

9 WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAM.—Subsection (c) sec10 tion 1240I of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–9) is amended 

11 to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—The Secretary shall use 

13 $100,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit Cor14 poration to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 

15 2008 through 2013. These funds are in addition to 

16 amounts made available under section 1241(a)(6) to carry 

17 out this chapter.’’. 

18 (h) ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS.—Chapter 4 of subtitle 

19 D of title XII of such Act is amended by adding at the 

20 end the following new sections: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 1240J. PROMOTION OF FOREST STEWARDSHIP PRAC22 TICES. 

23 ‘‘(a) COST-SHARE PAYMENTS AND INCENTIVE PAY24 MENTS.—In carrying out the program under this chapter, 

25 the Secretary shall promote forest stewardship by proVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
29 

•HR 1551 IH

1 viding cost-share payments and incentive payments to 

2 non-industrial private forest owners to carry out eligible 

3 conservation activities, to— 

4 ‘‘(1) improve water quality; 

5 ‘‘(2) improve habitat for at-risk species; 

6 ‘‘(3) restore ecologically important forest types; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(4) control invasive species. 

9 ‘‘(b) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give priority to 

10 projects that involve multiple landowners implementing el11 igible conservation activities in a coordinated way to ad12 dress the purposes described in subsection (a). 

13 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.— 

14 ‘‘(1) AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall use funds 

15 of the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out 

16 this section in the following amounts: 

17 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

18 ‘‘(B) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; 

19 ‘‘(C) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 

20 ‘‘(D) $75,000,000 million for each of fiscal 

21 years 2011 and 2012; and 

22 ‘‘(E) $100 million for fiscal year 2013. 

23 ‘‘(2) RELATION TO OTHER FUNDS.—The funds 

24 made available under paragraph (1) are in addition 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
30 

•HR 1551 IH

1 to amounts made available under section 1241(a)(6) 

2 to carry out this chapter. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 1240K. ENHANCED NUTRIENT AND MANURE MANAGE4 MENT. 

5 ‘‘(a) DEMONSTRATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF

6 NUTRIENT AND MANURE MANAGEMENT CONSERVATION

7 PRACTICES.—In carrying out the program under this 

8 chapter, the Secretary shall provide cost-share, incentive 

9 payments, and technical assistance to agricultural pro10 ducers to demonstrate and implement innovative and ad11 vanced conservation measures that hold substantial prom12 ise for producing cost-effective improvements to air and 

13 water quality by reducing the loss of nutrients to the envi14 ronment. Such conservation measures may include: 

15 ‘‘(1) Manure processing and treatment tech16 nologies to permit more effective use and transport 

17 of manure nutrients, including energy production. 

18 ‘‘(2) Innovative land management practices for 

19 nutrient loss reduction, such as soil amendments, in20 novative cropping or grazing systems, precision nu21 trient application, on-farm analysis of nutrient 

22 needs, and performance-based incentive systems. 

23 ‘‘(3) Feed management. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
31 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(4) Other projects that demonstrate and 

2 transfer the most cost-effective measures and tech3 nologies to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses. 

4 ‘‘(b) PRIORITIES.—The Secretary shall give priority 

5 to projects that— 

6 ‘‘(1) involve multiple landowners implementing 

7 conservation measures described in subsection (a) in 

8 a coordinated way to address the purposes of this 

9 section; 

10 ‘‘(2) have a high likelihood of advancing or 

11 demonstrating advanced manure or nutrient man12 agement measures; and 

13 ‘‘(3) are anticipated to produce significant ben14 efits to air and water quality. 

15 ‘‘(c) LOCATIONS OF PROJECTS.—To be eligible to re16 ceive assistance under this section, a project must be lo17 cated in a watershed or subwatershed of a body of water 

18 impaired by nutrients in which either— 

19 ‘‘(1) the amount of nutrients contained in ma20 nure produced in the watershed or subwatershed ex21 ceeds the amount that can be applied to cropland at 

22 agronomic rates; or 

23 ‘‘(2) conventional nutrient management tech24 niques are inadequate to meet water quality stand25 ards. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
32 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(d) REGIONAL TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMIT2 TEES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es4 tablish regional technical advisory committees to as5 sist the Secretary in selecting projects for funding 

6 under this section. 

7 ‘‘(2) PARTICIPATION.—A regional technical ad8 visory committee shall include scientists and other 

9 persons with expertise related to innovative and ad10 vanced nutrient management, to be appointed from 

11 agencies within the Department of Agriculture, other 

12 Federal and State agencies, producer associations, 

13 environmental organizations, and other interested 

14 groups. 

15 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO STATE TECHNICAL

16 COMMITTEES.—Subtitle G, relating to State tech17 nical committees shall apply to a regional technical 

18 advisory committee, except that members of the 

19 committee shall be appointed on a regional basis 

20 consistent with paragraph (2). 

21 ‘‘(e) EQUAL TREATMENT.—In implementing this sec22 tion, the Secretary shall ensure that farms of all sizes are 

23 treated equitably. 

24 ‘‘(f) FUNDING.—In addition to amounts made avail25 able under section 1241(a)(6) to carry out this chapter, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
33 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the Secretary shall use funds of the Commodity Credit 

2 Corporation to carry out this section in the following 

3 amounts: 

4 ‘‘(1) $160,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. 

5 ‘‘(2) $175,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

6 ‘‘(3) $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

7 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 1240L. PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES FOR STATES. 

9 ‘‘(a) HIGH LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE BONUS.—For 

10 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013, 10 percent of the 

11 funds made available under this chapter shall be reserved 

12 by the Secretary for bonus allocations to States that dem13 onstrate a high level of performance in implementing the 

14 environmental quality incentives program. 

15 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS.—In evaluating 

16 State performance under subsection (a), the Secretary 

17 shall reward States that— 

18 ‘‘(1) consistently meet the requirements of sec19 tion 1240C in evaluating offers and payments; 

20 ‘‘(2) dedicate a portion of their annual environ21 mental quality incentives program allocation to 

22 multi-producer cooperative efforts to address specific 

23 resource concerns; 

24 ‘‘(3) collaborate with other Federal and State 

25 agencies, local governments, educational institutions, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
34 

•HR 1551 IH

1 and for-profit and nonprofit organizations to mon2 itor and evaluate the environmental outcomes associ3 ated with implementation of the environmental qual4 ity incentives program; 

5 ‘‘(4) demonstrate effective and efficient pro6 gram delivery, including the provision of adequate 

7 technical assistance to all program participants 

8 through appropriate staffing and through coopera9 tion with other Federal, State, Tribal, and local 

10 agencies, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and 

11 individuals with demonstrated expertise in the plan12 ning and implementation of conservation practices, 

13 systems, and approaches; 

14 ‘‘(5) support and encourage innovative ap15 proaches to addressing resource concerns; and 

16 ‘‘(6) demonstrate effective outreach and innova17 tive approaches to reaching and serving beginning 

18 farmers and ranchers, limited-resource producers, 

19 and operators with lower rates of historical partici20 pation in Federal farm and conservation programs.’’. 

21 SEC. 106. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED FUNDING 

22 FOR WILDLIFE HABITAT INCENTIVE PRO23 GRAM. 

24 (a) EXTENSION AND FUNDING.—Section 1241(a)(7) 

25 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(a)(7)) 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
35 

•HR 1551 IH

1 is amended by striking subparagraphs (A) through (D) 

2 and inserting the following new subparagraphs: 

3 ‘‘(A) $85,000,000 in fiscal year 2007; 

4 ‘‘(B) $100,000,000 in fiscal year 2008; 

5 ‘‘(C) $140,000,000 in fiscal year 2009; 

6 ‘‘(D) $200,000,000 in each of fiscal years 

7 2010 and 2011; and 

8 ‘‘(E) $300,000,000 in each of fiscal years 

9 2012 and 2013.’’. 

10 (b) FUNDING SET-ASIDE FOR LONG-TERM AGREE11 MENTS.—Section 1240N(b)(2) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

12 3839bb–1(b)(2)) is amended by striking subparagraph 

13 (B) and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(B) FUNDS FOR LONG-TERM AGREE15 MENTS.—To the maximum extent practicable, 

16 the Secretary shall use 25 percent of the funds 

17 made available under section 1241(a)(7) for a 

18 fiscal year to carry out during that fiscal year 

19 contracts and agreements described in subpara20 graph (A).’’. 

21 (c) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS AND PROGRAM PRIOR22 ITIES.—Section 1240N of such Act (16 U.S.C. 3839bb– 

23 1) is amended by adding at the end the following new sub24 section: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
36 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(d) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS AND PROGRAM PRIOR2 ITIES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) PRIORITIES.—In carrying out this section, 

4 the Secretary shall give priority to agreements and 

5 contracts that will— 

6 ‘‘(A) protect or restore habitat for a feder7 ally or State-listed rare, threatened, endan8 gered, and candidate species; or 

9 ‘‘(B) further the goals and objectives of a 

10 State’s comprehensive wildlife conservation 

11 strategy. 

12 ‘‘(2) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS FOR CERTAIN

13 AGREEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS.—In a case in 

14 which the Secretary enters into an agreement or 

15 contract described in paragraph (1), the Secretary 

16 may provide incentive payments to landowners under 

17 the agreement or contract, including the cost of 

18 management activities needed during the term of the 

19 agreement or contract.’’. 

20 (d) FISH HABITAT.—Section 1240N of such Act (16 

21 U.S.C. 3839bb–1) is further amended by inserting after 

22 subsection (d), as added by subsection (c), the following 

23 new subsection: 

24 ‘‘(e) DEVELOPMENT OF FISH HABITAT.— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
37 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(1) PURPOSES OF COST-SHARE PAYMENTS.— 

2 Subsection (b)(1)(D) authorizes the Secretary to 

3 make cost-share payments to landowners to develop 

4 fish habitat. The development of fish habitat using 

5 such cost-share payments may include activities— 

6 ‘‘(A) to protect streamside areas, including 

7 through the installation of riparian fencing and 

8 improved stream crossings; 

9 ‘‘(B) to repair in-stream habitat; 

10 ‘‘(C) to improve water flows and water 

11 quality, including through channel restoration; 

12 ‘‘(D) to initiate watershed management 

13 and planning in areas in which streams are in 

14 a degraded condition due to past agricultural or 

15 forestry practices; and 

16 ‘‘(E) to undertake other types of stream 

17 habitat improvement approved by the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY PROJECTS.—When considering 

19 applications describing projects to protect or restore 

20 fish habitat, the Secretary shall give priority to ap21 plicants who will use the cost-share payments to 

22 carry out a project— 

23 ‘‘(A) to remove a small dam or in-stream 

24 structure; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
38 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(B) to improve fish passage, including 

2 through culvert repair and maintenance; 

3 ‘‘(C) to protect streamside areas; 

4 ‘‘(D) to improve water flows, including 

5 through irrigation efficiency improvements; or 

6 ‘‘(E) to improve in-stream flow quality or 

7 timing or temperature regimes. 

8 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY FOR PROJECTS INCLUDING UP9 LAND IMPROVEMENTS.—In addition to the priority 

10 projects described in paragraph (2), to ensure that 

11 projects intended to protect or restore fish habitat 

12 also address the causes of stream habitat degrada13 tion, the Secretary shall give priority among applica14 tions describing such projects to applicants who 

15 demonstrate that upland improvements associated 

16 with the stream habitat improvement, including ero17 sion and nutrient management have been, or will be, 

18 carried out.’’. 

19 SEC. 107. COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION PARTNERSHIP 

20 INITIATIVE. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF GRANT PROGRAM.—Subtitle 

22 D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 is amend23 ed by adding at the end the following new chapter: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
39 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘CHAPTER 6—COOPERATIVE CONSERVA2 TION PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE 

3 ‘‘SEC. 1240W. COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION PARTNERSHIP 

4 INITIATIVE. 

5 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AND AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary 

6 shall make grants and enter into agreements for not short7 er than two-year or longer than five-year terms with eligi8 ble entities specified in subsection (c) to preferentially en9 roll producers in one or more of the programs specified 

10 in subsection (b) to carry out special projects and initia11 tives through which multiple producers and other inter12 ested persons cooperate to improve water quality or ad13 dress other specific resources of concern related to agricul14 tural production on a local, State, or regional scale. 

15 ‘‘(b) COVERED PROGRAMS.—The conservation pro16 grams referred to in subsection (a) are the following: 

17 ‘‘(1) Conservation reserve program, but only 

18 the continuous signup portion of the program. 

19 ‘‘(2) Conservation reserve enhancement pro20 gram. 

21 ‘‘(3) Environmental quality incentives program. 

22 ‘‘(4) Farmland protection program. 

23 ‘‘(5) Grassland reserve program. 

24 ‘‘(6) Ground and surface water conservation 

25 program. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
40 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(7) Wetland reserve program. 

2 ‘‘(8) Wildlife habitat incentive program. 

3 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE PARTNERS.—Agreements may be en4 tered into under this section with any of the following (or 

5 a combination thereof): 

6 ‘‘(1) States and agencies of States. 

7 ‘‘(2) Political subdivisions of States, including 

8 State-sponsored conservation districts. 

9 ‘‘(3) Indian tribes. 

10 ‘‘(4) Nongovernmental organizations and asso11 ciations, including conservation organizations and 

12 producer associations and cooperatives. 

13 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) COMPETITIVE PROCESS.—The Secretary 

15 shall establish a competitive process for considering 

16 applications for agreements under this section con17 sistent with the evaluation criteria listed in sub18 section (e). 

19 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM ALLOCATION.—Applications 

20 shall include— 

21 ‘‘(A) specification of the amount of fund22 ing or acres of one or more covered programs 

23 specified in subsection (b) proposed to be allo24 cated to carry out the special project or initia25 tive; and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
41 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(B) a schedule for utilization of funding 

2 or acres over the life of the proposed project or 

3 initiative. 

4 ‘‘(e) EVALUATION CRITERIA.—In evaluating applica5 tions for agreements under this section the Secretary shall 

6 consider the extent to which— 

7 ‘‘(1) preferential enrollment in the covered pro8 grams specified in the application will effectively ad9 dress the environmental objectives established for 

10 the special project or initiative; and 

11 ‘‘(2) the special project or initiative covered by 

12 the application— 

13 ‘‘(A) enjoys broad local and regional sup14 port from producers and other interested per15 sons, including governmental and nongovern16 mental organizations with appropriate expertise 

17 on the issues the project or initiative seeks to 

18 address; 

19 ‘‘(B) includes clear environmental objec20 tives and a high likelihood of success; 

21 ‘‘(C) includes a well defined project or ini22 tiative plan that identifies sensitive areas re23 quiring treatment and prioritizes conservation 

24 systems, practices, and activities needed to 

25 achieve environmental objectives; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
42 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(D) promises adequate and coordinated 

2 participation to achieve the objectives of the 

3 project or initiative; 

4 ‘‘(E) coordinates integration of local, 

5 State, and Federal efforts to make the best use 

6 of available resources and maximize cost-effec7 tive investments; 

8 ‘‘(F) leverages financial and technical re9 sources from sources other than the programs 

10 authorized by this subtitle, including financial 

11 and technical resources provided by Federal 

12 and State agencies, local governments, non13 governmental organizations and associations, 

14 and other private sector entities; 

15 ‘‘(G) describes how all necessary technical 

16 assistance will be provided to each producer 

17 participating in the project or initiative, includ18 ing cost estimates for technical assistance and 

19 whether such assistance will be provided by 

20 technical service providers; 

21 ‘‘(H) addresses a local, State, regional, or 

22 national environmental priority or priorities, 

23 with particular emphasis on any priority for 

24 which there is an existing State or federally apVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
43 

•HR 1551 IH

1 proved plan in place for addressing that pri2 ority; 

3 ‘‘(I) links environmental and conservation 

4 objectives with other objectives, such as spur5 ring rural economic development through in6 creased opportunities in the project area for 

7 recreation, value-added enterprises, or direct 

8 marketing of agricultural products, and assist9 ing beginning, limited resource, tribal, and 

10 other producers maintain the viability of their 

11 operations; 

12 ‘‘(J) includes a plan to evaluate progress 

13 and measure results; and 

14 ‘‘(K) clearly demonstrates that enrollment 

15 of producers in covered programs will be con16 sistent with the purposes and policies of each 

17 individual program, as established in statute, 

18 rules and regulations, and program guidance 

19 promulgated by implementing agencies. 

20 ‘‘(f) PRIORITIES.—To the maximum extent prac21 ticable, consistent with the requirements of subsection (d), 

22 the Secretary shall ensure that, each fiscal year, grants 

23 are awarded and agreements are entered into under this 

24 section to support projects and initiatives that collectively 

25 address the full range of resource concerns facing proVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
44 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ducers, ranchers, and small private forest landowners, in2 cluding specifically projects and initiatives that are de3 signed— 

4 ‘‘(1) to achieve improvements in water quality 

5 in watersheds impacted by agriculture, particularly 

6 by increasing the participation of producers in im7 plementing best management practices in a water8 shed or developing environmentally and economically 

9 viable alternative uses for manure and litter; 

10 ‘‘(2) to achieve improvements in air quality in 

11 a geographical area where agricultural operations 

12 impact air quality, especially an area that, as deter13 mined by the Administrator of the Environmental 

14 Protection Agency, is a nonattainment area with re15 spect to any of the national ambient air quality 

16 standards promulgated by the Administrator under 

17 section 109 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7409); 

18 ‘‘(3) to conserve water for environmental pur19 poses such as enhanced in stream flows or aquifer 

20 recharge in regions, States, or local areas where 

21 water quantity is a concern; 

22 ‘‘(4) to assist in the recovery of Federal or 

23 State-listed endangered species or species of special 

24 concern or to further the goals and objectives of a 

25 State’s comprehensive wildlife conservation plan 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
45 

•HR 1551 IH

1 through the cooperative efforts of multiple pro2 ducers; 

3 ‘‘(5) to control invasive species on rangeland or 

4 other agricultural land through the cooperative ef5 forts of multiple producers in a geographical area; 

6 ‘‘(6) to address a specific resource of concern or 

7 set of concerns on private, non-industrial forest land; 

8 ‘‘(7) to reduce losses of pesticides to the envi9 ronment by engaging multiple producers in a geo10 graphic area in adoption of integrated pest manage11 ment practices and approaches; and 

12 ‘‘(8) to keep working farms and ranches facing 

13 development pressures in agricultural use. 

14 ‘‘(g) COST SHARE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) MAXIMUM; EXCEPTIONS.—The Secretary 

16 shall not require more than 25 percent of the cost 

17 of a project or initiative supported under an agree18 ment entered into under this section to come from 

19 non-Federal sources. However, the Secretary may 

20 award more points to projects or initiatives offering 

21 to cover a higher percentage of the cost of the 

22 project or initiative from non-Federal sources. 

23 ‘‘(2) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—If the Sec24 retary establishes a cost-share requirement for a 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
46 

•HR 1551 IH

1 project or initiative, the Secretary shall allow the use 

2 of in-kind contributions to meet that requirement. 

3 ‘‘(h) FUNDING.— 

4 ‘‘(1) SET-ASIDE.—Of the funds provided each 

5 fiscal year to implement the programs specified in 

6 subsection (b), the Secretary shall use 20 percent to 

7 provide funds under agreements entered into under 

8 this section. 

9 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION TO STATES.—The Secretary 

10 shall allocate to States 60 percent of the funds re11 served under paragraph (1) to allow State Conserva12 tionists, with the advice of State technical commit13 tees, to select projects and initiatives for funding 

14 under this section at the State level. 

15 ‘‘(3) WATER QUALITY.—To the maximum ex16 tent practicable and consistent with the other re17 quirements of this section, the Secretary shall ensure 

18 that 50 percent of the funds awarded each year 

19 under this section are awarded to projects and ini20 tiatives that will improve water quality.’’. 

21 (b) CONFORMING REPEAL.—Section 1243 of the 

22 Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3843) is amended 

23 by striking subsection (f). 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
47 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 108. REGIONAL EQUITY IN FUNDING OF CERTAIN DE2 PARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVA3 TION PROGRAMS. 

4 Subsection (d) of section 1241 of the Food Security 

5 Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841) is amended to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(d) MINIMUM BASE ALLOCATION TO STATES FOR

8 CERTAIN CONSERVATION PROGRAMS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) MINIMUM ALLOCATION.—In allocating 

10 funds to States to implement the conservation pro11 grams under this subtitle D, other than the pro12 grams excluded by paragraph (2), the Secretary 

13 shall ensure that each State receives, at a minimum, 

14 $15,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2007 

15 through 2013. Funds provided as part of a cooper16 ative conservation partnership initiative under chap17 ter 6 to a project in a State or in a State adjacent 

18 to that State shall not be counted as part of the 

19 minimum base allocation to that State under this 

20 subsection. 

21 ‘‘(2) CERTAIN PROGRAMS EXCLUDED.—Para22 graph (1) does not apply to the following programs: 

23 ‘‘(A) The conservation reserve program 

24 under subchapter B of chapter 1. 

25 ‘‘(B) The wetlands reserve program under 

26 subchapter C of chapter 1. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
48 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(C) The conservation security program 

2 under subchapter A of chapter 2. 

3 ‘‘(D) The grassland reserve program under 

4 subchapter C of chapter 2.’’. 

5 SEC. 109. EXCLUSION OF PAYMENTS UNDER DEPARTMENT 

6 OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION PRO7 GRAMS FROM ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME 

8 LIMITATION. 

9 (a) EXCLUSION.—Subsection (b)(2) of section 1001D 

10 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308–3a) is 

11 amended by striking subparagraph (C). 

12 (b) DURATION OF ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME LIMI13 TATION.—Such section is further amended by striking 

14 subsection (e). 

15 SEC. 110. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND ADDITIONAL FUND16 ING FOR AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT AS17 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

18 (a) REAUTHORIZATION.—Subsection (b)(4)(B) of 

19 section 524 of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 

20 1524) is amended— 

21 (1) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2003 

22 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 

23 through 2013’’; and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
49 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (2) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2004 

2 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 

3 through 2013’’. 

4 (b) FUNDING LEVELS.—Such subsection is further 

5 amended— 

6 (1) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘$20,000,000’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘$40,000,000’’; and 

8 (2) in clause (iii)— 

9 (A) in subclause (I), by striking 

10 ‘‘$14,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$28,000,000’’; 

11 (B) in subclause (II), by striking 

12 ‘‘$1,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$2,000,000’’; and 

13 (C) in subclause (III), by striking 

14 ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$10,000,000’’. 

15 SEC. 111. COMMUNITY FORESTS AND OPEN SPACE CON16 SERVATION PROGRAM. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find18 ings: 

19 (1) The United States Forest Service projects 

20 that 44 million acres of privately owned forested 

21 land will be developed in the United States by 2030, 

22 including many of the most important remaining 

23 forested parcels within and adjacent to communities. 

24 (2) There is an urgent need to assist local gov25 ernments in raising the funds necessary to purchase 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
50 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the most important of these parcels of privately 

2 owned forested land as they come up for sale. 

3 (3) The breakup of forested land into smaller 

4 parcels has resulted in an increasing number of own5 ers of privately owned forested land, but many of 

6 these owners have little or no experience in forest 

7 stewardship. 

8 (4) In fast growing communities of all sizes 

9 across the United States, the remaining parcels of 

10 privately owned forested land play an essential role 

11 in protecting public water supplies, which has lead 

12 many local governments to purchase these lands for 

13 municipal or county ownership. 

14 (5) Rising rates of obesity and other public 

15 health problems related to inactivity have been 

16 shown to be ameliorated by improving public access 

17 to safe and pleasing areas for outdoor recreation, 

18 which has lead many local governments to purchase 

19 lands for recreational purposes under municipal or 

20 county ownership. 

21 (6) Across the United States, many commu22 nities of diverse types and sizes are deriving signifi23 cant financial benefit from owning and managing 

24 municipal or county forestlands as a source of local 

25 revenue that also contributes significantly to the 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
51 

•HR 1551 IH

1 health of the forest products economy at the local 

2 and national levels. 

3 (7) The access to privately owned forested land 

4 for hunting, fishing, and trapping has declined, and 

5 the number of persons participating in these activi6 ties has likewise declined, as these lands are divided 

7 into smaller parcels and more owners of privately 

8 owned forested land post their land against public 

9 use, which has lead many local governments to pur10 chase forestlands to guarantee access for hunting, 

11 fishing, and trapping. 

12 (8) There is a national interest and an urgent 

13 need to assist local governments in raising the funds 

14 necessary to purchase important privately owned for15 ested land that will maintain the diverse public bene16 fits of forestlands close to or within all manner of 

17 communities nationwide, from close-knit rural com18 munities to fast growing suburban and exurban 

19 areas. 

20 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—The Coopera21 tive Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2101 et 

22 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

23 section: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
52 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 21. COMMUNITY FORESTS AND OPEN SPACE CON2 SERVATION PROGRAM. 

3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSE.—The Sec4 retary of Agriculture shall establish within the Forest 

5 Service a program to be known as the ‘Community Forests 

6 and Open Space Conservation Program’ (in this section 

7 referred to as the ‘Program’) for the purpose of assisting 

8 local governments in a State selected to participate in the 

9 Program to acquire forested land that— 

10 ‘‘(1) is economically, culturally, and environ11 mentally important to the locality in which the land 

12 is located; 

13 ‘‘(2) is threatened by conversion to non-forest 

14 uses; and 

15 ‘‘(3) will conserve public access to and benefit 

16 from the land for a wide variety of public purposes, 

17 including model forest stewardship, sustainable tim18 ber production, forest-based educational and cultural 

19 activities, wildlife habitat protection, watershed pro20 tection, or outdoor recreation, including hunting and 

21 fishing. 

22 ‘‘(b) SELECTION OF PARTICIPATING STATES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) SELECTION.—Not later than one year 

24 after the date of the enactment of this section, the 

25 Secretary shall select at least one State in each of 

26 the New England, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, South, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
53 

•HR 1551 IH

1 West, and Pacific Northwest regions of the United 

2 States to participate in the Program. The Secretary 

3 shall make the selections from among applications 

4 submitted by willing States. No State shall be com5 pelled to participate in the Program. 

6 ‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION.—Authority for imple7 mentation of the Program in a participating State 

8 shall lie with the State forester, equivalent State of9 ficial, or other appropriate State natural resource 

10 management agency designated by the Governor of 

11 the State. 

12 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBILITY AND RANKING CRITERIA.— 

13 ‘‘(1) STATE ASSESSMENT OF NEED.—Each par14 ticipating State shall prepare an assessment of need 

15 that identifies the geographic areas within the State 

16 that will be the focus of land acquisition activities 

17 under the Program and priority objectives for con18 servation, based on conditions and public needs in 

19 the State. This requirement may be satisfied by in20 clusion of the assessment as part of an integrated 

21 State-wide forest planning process for application of 

22 Federal programs in the State. 

23 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF CRITERIA.—Not later 

24 than one year after the date of the enactment of this 

25 section, the Secretary shall establish eligibility and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
54 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ranking criteria for the selection of land acquisition 

2 proposals to receive funding under the Program. The 

3 Secretary shall establish the criteria in consultation 

4 with State Forest Stewardship Advisory Committees, 

5 State Urban and Community Forestry Advisory 

6 Committees, and similar organizations. 

7 ‘‘(3) PRIORITIES.—In establishing the eligibility 

8 and ranking criteria under paragraph (2), the Sec9 retary shall give priority to the acquisition of lands 

10 that— 

11 ‘‘(A) meet identified local open space and 

12 natural resource needs, as expressed in town 

13 plans, regional plans, or other relevant local 

14 planning documents; 

15 ‘‘(B) can be effectively managed to model 

16 good forest stewardship for private landowners 

17 and support forest-based educational programs, 

18 including vocational education in forestry; 

19 ‘‘(C) provide significant protection of pub20 lic water supplies or other waterways; 

21 ‘‘(D) can offer long-term economic benefit 

22 to communities through forestry; 

23 ‘‘(E) contain important wildlife habitat; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
55 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(F) provide convenient public access for 

2 outdoor recreation, including hunting and fish3 ing; and 

4 ‘‘(G) are most threatened with conversion 

5 to non-forest uses. 

6 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION AND RANKING OF PROPOSALS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) PREPARATION AND CONTENTS.—A local 

8 government in a participating State may prepare an 

9 application for assistance under the Program in the 

10 acquisition of forested land within the geographic 

11 program focus area in the State identified under 

12 subsection (c)(1). The application shall include cer13 tification by the appropriate unit or units of local 

14 government that the proposed land acquisition is 

15 consistent with any comprehensive plans for develop16 ment adopted by the unit of local government and 

17 include such other information as the Secretary may 

18 prescribe. 

19 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION.—Participating States shall 

20 rank all applications according to priority and sub21 mit the applications to the Secretary at such times 

22 and in such form as the Secretary may prescribe. 

23 ‘‘(3) NATIONAL LIST.—The Secretary shall 

24 maintain a national list of all submitted applications, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
56 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ranked according to the criteria established pursuant 

2 to subsection (c). 

3 ‘‘(e) OWNERSHIP OF LAND.— 

4 ‘‘(1) GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP.—Except as 

5 provided in paragraph (2), all land acquired in whole 

6 or in part using funds provided under the Program 

7 shall be owned in fee simple by a local government, 

8 such as a municipality or county. 

9 ‘‘(2) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION OWNERSHIP.— 

10 Upon the request of a participating State, des11 ignated nonprofit organizations operating within 

12 that State may also own land acquired using funds 

13 provided under the Program, subject to the condi14 tion that the land is open for public access con15 sistent with the purposes and criteria of the Pro16 gram. 

17 ‘‘(3) EFFECT OF VIOLATION.—If the owner of 

18 land acquired in whole or in part using funds pro19 vided under the Program sells the land, the owner 

20 shall reimburse the Secretary for the full amount of 

21 the funds provided under the Program, plus a pen22 alty equal to 50 percent of the sale price or ap23 praised value of the land at the time of the sale, 

24 whichever is greater. The local government or des25 ignated nonprofit organization that sold the land 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
57 

•HR 1551 IH

1 shall no longer be eligible for assistance under the 

2 Program. 

3 ‘‘(f) DUTIES OF OWNERS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) USE AND PROHIBITION ON CONVERSION.— 

5 The owner of land acquired in whole or in part using 

6 funds provided under the Program shall manage the 

7 land in a manner that is consistent with the pur8 poses for which the land was purchased under the 

9 Program and shall not convert the property to other 

10 non-forest uses. Public access for compatible rec11 reational uses, as determined by the owner, shall be 

12 required. 

13 ‘‘(2) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—Not later than two 

14 years after the closing date on the purchase of land 

15 using funds under the Program, the owner of the 

16 land shall complete a management plan for the land, 

17 which shall be subject to the approval of the respon18 sible State agency. Management plans shall be cre19 ated through a public process that allows for com20 munity participation and input. 

21 ‘‘(g) COST SHARING REQUIREMENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) COST SHARING.—In accordance with such 

23 terms and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, 

24 costs for the acquisition of land under the Program, 

25 and other costs associated with the Program, shall 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
58 

•HR 1551 IH

1 be shared among participating entities, including 

2 State, county, municipal, and other governmental 

3 units, landowners, corporations, or private organiza4 tions. Such costs may include costs associated with 

5 planning, administration, property acquisition, and 

6 property management. The Secretary may authorize 

7 in-kind contributions. 

8 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL COST SHARE.—The Federal 

9 share of the cost to acquire land under the Program 

10 shall not exceed 50 percent of the total cost to ac11 quire the land. Payments under this section shall be 

12 made in accordance with Federal appraisal and ac13 quisition standards and procedures. 

14 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION AND TECHNICAL ASSIST15 ANCE.—In order to assist local governments in 

16 achieving model stewardship of land acquired under 

17 the Program, 10 percent of all funds appropriated 

18 for a fiscal year for the Program shall be allocated 

19 to the responsible State agencies in participating 

20 States to administer the Program and to provide 

21 technical assistance to local governments for forest 

22 stewardship, including development and implementa23 tion of management plans required by subsection 

24 (f)(2). 

25 ‘‘(h) PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTIONS.— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
59 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(1) ACCESS.—Nothing in this section— 

2 ‘‘(A) requires a private property owner to 

3 permit public access (including Federal, State, 

4 or local government access) to private property; 

5 or 

6 ‘‘(B) modifies any provision of Federal, 

7 State, or local law with regard to public access 

8 to, or use of, private land. 

9 ‘‘(2) LIABILITY.—Nothing in this section cre10 ates any liability, or has any effect on liability under 

11 any other law, of a private property owner with re12 spect to any persons injured on the private property. 

13 ‘‘(3) RECOGNITION OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL

14 LAND USE.—Nothing in this section modifies any 

15 authority of Federal, State, or local governments to 

16 regulate land use. 

17 ‘‘(4) PARTICIPATION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY

18 OWNERS.—Nothing in this section requires a private 

19 property owner to participate in the Program. 

20 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

22 out the Program $50,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 

23 2008 through 2013.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
60 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 112. FARMLAND PROTECTION AND FARM VIABILITY 

2 PROGRAMS. 

3 Paragraph (4) of subsection (a) of section 1241 of 

4 the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(4) The farmland protection program under 

7 subchapter B of chapter 2, using $300,000,000 in 

8 each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012.’’. 

9 SEC. 113. HEALTHY FORESTS RESERVE PROGRAM. 

10 (a) METHODS OF ENROLLMENT.—Section 

11 502(f)(1)of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 

12 (16 U.S.C. 6572(f)(1)) is amended by striking subpara13 graph (C) and inserting the following new subparagraph: 

14 ‘‘(C) a permanent easement.’’. 

15 (b) FUNDING.—Section 508 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 6578) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 508. FUNDING FOR HEALTHY FORESTS RESERVE 

18 PROGRAM. 

19 ‘‘(a) FUNDING SOURCE.—For each of fiscal years 

20 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use the funds, fa21 cilities, and authorities of the Commodity Credit Corpora22 tion to carry out the healthy forests reserve program, in23 cluding the provision of technical assistance under the pro24 gram. 

25 ‘‘(b) SECTION 11 CAP.—The use of Commodity Cred26 it Corporation funds under subsection (a) to provide techVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
61 

•HR 1551 IH

1 nical assistance under the healthy forests reserve program 

2 shall not be considered an allotment or fund transfer from 

3 the Commodity Credit Corporation for purposes of the 

4 limitation on expenditures for technical assistance imposed 

5 by section 11 of the Commodity Credit Corporation Char6 ter Act (15 U.S.C. 714i).’’. 

7 SEC. 114. INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE. 

8 (a) INITIATIVE REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Agri9 culture shall implement an integrated pest management 

10 initiative in priority areas identified by the Secretary pur11 suant to subsection (b) for the purpose of assisting agri12 cultural producers operating in a priority area to comply 

13 with pest management regulations and alleviate the need 

14 for additional regulations regarding pest management ac15 tivities. 

16 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF PRIORITY AREAS.— 

17 (1) IDENTIFICATION.—The Secretary of Agri18 culture shall identify priority areas where the adop19 tion by agricultural producers of integrated pest 

20 management practices and approaches offers the 

21 greatest potential benefit to producers seeking to 

22 comply with pest management regulations and allevi23 ate the need for additional regulations regarding 

24 pest management activities. At a minimum, priority 

25 areas shall include agricultural lands dominated by 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
62 

•HR 1551 IH

1 the production of specialty crops and agricultural 

2 lands where agricultural pest management activities 

3 are regulated for the purpose of mitigating specific 

4 impacts to human health or the environment, such 

5 as an area in which pollutants exceed authorized 

6 total maximum daily load or an air quality non-at7 tainment area. 

8 (2) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall iden9 tify priority areas in consultation with the Environ10 mental Protection Agency, the United States Geo11 logical Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife 

12 Service, agricultural producers, appropriated State 

13 agencies, and other interested persons. 

14 (c) ACTIVITIES IN PRIORITY AREAS.— 

15 (1) EXPEDITED APPROVAL OF MANAGEMENT

16 PRACTICES.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall de17 velop the best-available integrated pest management 

18 practices for the primary agricultural commodities 

19 and significant pests in each priority area identified 

20 under subsection (b) and expedite approval of these 

21 practices for implementation by agricultural pro22 ducers. 

23 (2) IMPROVED EVALUATION OF MANAGEMENT

24 PLANS.—The Secretary shall develop and make 

25 available criteria to enable staff of the Natural ReVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
63 

•HR 1551 IH

1 sources Conservation Service and agricultural pro2 ducers operating in priority areas identified under 

3 subsection (b) to effectively compare pest manage4 ment plans, considering relative risks and potential 

5 benefits to multiple resources of concern, including 

6 air, surface water, ground water, bees and other pol7 linators, wildlife, and worker safety. 

8 (3) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

9 may enter in cooperative agreements, memorandums 

10 of understanding, and contracts for services with 

11 technical service providers, other agencies, and non12 Federal organizations, as necessary, to assist in pro13 viding technical assistance regarding integrated pest 

14 management planning and implementation to pro15 ducers operating in priority areas identified under 

16 subsection (b). 

17 (4) MARKETING.—The Secretary may market 

18 the availability of integrated pest management tools 

19 and training to agricultural producers in the priority 

20 areas identified under subsection (b). 

21 (5) PROGRAM INTEGRATION.—The Secretary 

22 shall set goals for integrating the integrated pest 

23 management initiative with the environmental qual24 ity incentives program established under chapter 4 

25 of subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
64 

•HR 1551 IH

1 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa et seq.) and other con2 servation programs in each priority area identified 

3 under subsection (b), including indicators of the ex4 tent to which these programs fund integrated pest 

5 management practices and the extent to which sup6 ported integrated pest management practices reduce 

7 pesticide use and risk. 

8 (d) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

9 shall submit to Congress an annual report on the inte10 grated pest management initiative, including progress in 

11 meeting the program integration goals set under sub12 section (c)(5). 

13 (e) FUNDING.—The Secretary of Agriculture may use 

14 funds provided for the conservation security program and 

15 environmental quality incentives program under subtitle D 

16 of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

17 3830 et seq.) to implement the integrated pest manage18 ment initiative. 

19 SEC. 115. CONSERVATION ACCESS INITIATIVE TO ENCOUR20 AGE GREATER PARTICIPATION BY SOCIALLY 

21 DISADVANTAGED FARMERS AND RANCHERS 

22 IN CONSERVATION PROGRAMS. 

23 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 (1) SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED GROUP.—The 

25 term ‘‘socially disadvantaged group’’ means a group 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
65 

•HR 1551 IH

1 of persons whose members have been subjected to 

2 racial or ethnic prejudice because of their identity as 

3 members of a group without regard to their indi4 vidual qualities. 

5 (2) SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED FARMER OR

6 RANCHER.—The term ‘‘socially disadvantaged farm7 er or rancher’’ means a farmer or rancher who is a 

8 member of a socially disadvantaged group. 

9 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti10 ty’’ means any of the following: 

11 (A) Any community-based organization, 

12 network, or coalition of community-based orga13 nizations that— 

14 (i) has demonstrated experience in 

15 providing agricultural education or other 

16 agriculturally related services to socially 

17 disadvantaged farmers or ranchers; 

18 (ii) has provided to the Secretary of 

19 Agriculture documentary evidence of work 

20 with socially disadvantaged farmers or 

21 ranchers for not less than a five-year pe22 riod preceding the submission of an appli23 cation for assistance under this section; 

24 and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
66 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (iii) does not engage in activities pro2 hibited under section 501(c)(3) of the In3 ternal Revenue Code of 1986. 

4 (B) An Indian tribe (as defined in section 

5 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu6 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b)) or a 

7 national tribal organization that has dem8 onstrated experience in providing agriculture 

9 education or other agriculturally related serv10 ices to socially disadvantaged farmers or ranch11 ers in a region. 

12 (C) An 1890 institution or 1994 institu13 tion (as defined in section 2 of the Agricultural 

14 Research, Extension, and Education Reform 

15 Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7601)), including West 

16 Virginia State College. 

17 (D) An Indian tribal community college or 

18 an Alaska Native cooperative college. 

19 (E) An Hispanic-serving institution (as de20 fined in section 1404 of the National Agricul21 tural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy 

22 Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3103)). 

23 (F) Any other institution of higher edu24 cation (as defined in section 101 of the Higher 

25 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) that 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
67 

•HR 1551 IH

1 has demonstrated experience in providing agri2 culture education or other agriculturally related 

3 services to socially disadvantaged farmers or 

4 ranchers in a region. 

5 (b) INITIATIVE.—With respect to all programs au6 thorized or amended by this title, the Secretary of Agri7 culture shall establish a conservation initiative for socially 

8 disadvantaged farmers or ranchers. With respect to such 

9 programs that serve an Indian tribe, the Secretary shall 

10 be required to pay the costs of office space to carry out 

11 conservation functions authorized under this section. 

12 (c) SPECIAL RULE FOR COST-SHARE PAYMENTS.— 

13 Notwithstanding the actual cost sharing requirements im14 posed by a program authorized or amended by this title, 

15 the Secretary of Agriculture may pay up to 100 percent 

16 of the costs incurred by a socially disadvantaged farmer 

17 or rancher to participate in the program. 

18 (d) OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of 

19 Agriculture shall carry out an outreach and technical as20 sistance program to encourage and assist socially dis21 advantaged farmers or ranchers to participate equitably 

22 in the full range of agricultural programs authorized or 

23 amended by this title. 

24 (e) GRANTS AND CONTRACTS.—The Secretary of Ag25 riculture may make grants to, and enter into contracts 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
68 

•HR 1551 IH

1 and other agreements with, an eligible entity to provide 

2 information and technical assistance to socially disadvan3 taged farmers or ranchers so that they can participate eq4 uitably in the full range of agricultural programs author5 ized or amended by this title. 

6 (f) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW.—The authority 

7 to carry out this section shall be in addition to any other 

8 authority provided in this or any other Act. 

9 (g) FUNDING.—The Secretary of Agriculture may re10 serve up to 10 percent of the funds provided for a fiscal 

11 year for financial assistance under the conservation pro12 grams under subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security 

13 Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3830 et seq.) to carry out this 

14 section. 

15 SEC. 116. CONSERVATION LOAN GUARANTEE PROGRAM. 

16 Subtitle A of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De17 velopment Act (7 U.S.C. 1921–1936a) is amended by in18 serting after section 304 the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 304A. CONSERVATION LOAN GUARANTEE PROGRAM. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide a 

21 loan guarantee, an interest subsidy, or both, to enable an 

22 eligible borrower to obtain a qualified conservation loan. 

23 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE BORROWER.—The term ‘eligible 

25 borrower’ means a farmer, rancher, farm cooperaVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
69 

•HR 1551 IH

1 tive, private domestic corporation, partnership, joint 

2 operation, trust, or limited liability company, that is 

3 engaged primarily and directly in agricultural pro4 duction in the United States. 

5 ‘‘(2) QUALIFIED CONSERVATION LOAN.—The 

6 term ‘qualified conservation loan’ means a loan that 

7 meets the following requirements: 

8 ‘‘(A) PURPOSE.—The loan proceeds are re9 quired to be used to cover the costs to the bor10 rower of carrying out a qualified conservation 

11 project. 

12 ‘‘(B) PRINCIPAL AMOUNT.—The principal 

13 amount of the loan is not more than 

14 $1,000,000. 

15 ‘‘(C) REPAYMENT PERIOD.—The loan re16 payment period shall not exceed 10 years. 

17 ‘‘(D) NO REPAYMENT REQUIRED IN FIRST

18 YEAR.—The lender is prohibited from requiring 

19 any part of the loan to be repaid in the 1-year 

20 period that begins with the date of the closing 

21 of the loan. 

22 ‘‘(E) NO LOAN FORGIVENESS.—The lender 

23 is prohibited from forgiving any part of the 

24 loan. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
70 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(F) LIMITED PROCESSING FEE.—The 

2 total of all processing fees charged with respect 

3 to the loan does not exceed such amount as 

4 shall be prescribed by the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED CONSERVATION PROJECT.— 

6 The term ‘eligible conservation project’ means, with 

7 respect to an eligible borrower, conservation meas8 ures included in a conservation plan for a farming 

9 or ranching operation of the borrower, including— 

10 ‘‘(A) the installation of conservation struc11 tures, including terraces, sod waterways, per12 manently vegetated stream borders and filter 

13 strips, windbreaks (tree or grass), shelter belts, 

14 and living snow fences, if all plantings consist 

15 of vegetation appropriate to the locale; 

16 ‘‘(B) the establishment of forest cover for 

17 sustained yield timber management, erosion 

18 control, or shelter belt purposes, if the forest 

19 cover is appropriate to the locale; 

20 ‘‘(C) the installation of water conservation 

21 measures; 

22 ‘‘(D) the installation of waste management 

23 systems; 

24 ‘‘(E) the establishment or improvement of 

25 permanent pasture; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
71 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(F) the payment of costs of complying 

2 with section 1212 of the Food Security Act of 

3 1985; 

4 ‘‘(G) other purposes consistent with the 

5 conservation plan; 

6 ‘‘(H) any conservation project or practice, 

7 as described by technical guides and handbooks 

8 issues by the Natural Resources Conservation 

9 Service; or 

10 ‘‘(I) emerging conservation practices, tech11 niques, or technologies, as approved by the Sec12 retary. 

13 ‘‘(c) LIMITATIONS APPLICABLE TO LOAN GUARAN14 TEES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF GUAR16 ANTEE.—The portion of a loan that the Secretary 

17 may guarantee under this section shall be not less 

18 than 80 percent and not more than 90 percent of 

19 the principal amount of the loan. 

20 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON TOTAL AMOUNT OUT21 STANDING.—The aggregate principal amount of out22 standing loans guaranteed by the Secretary under 

23 this section shall not exceed $1,000,000,000. 

24 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF INTEREST SUB25 SIDY.—The interest subsidy which the Secretary may proVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
72 

•HR 1551 IH

1 vide under this section with respect to a loan shall result 

2 in a reduction of the interest rate agreed upon by the bor3 rower and the lender (but to not less than zero) by— 

4 ‘‘(1) 500 basis points, if the principal amount 

5 of the loan is less than $100,000; 

6 ‘‘(2) 400 basis points, if the principal amount 

7 of the loan is not less than $100,000 and is less 

8 than $500,000; and 

9 ‘‘(3) 300 basis points, in any other case. 

10 ‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY TO COLLECT PROCESSING

12 FEE.—The Secretary may assess a fee to cover the 

13 cost of processing an application under this section 

14 equal to not more than 1 percent of the principal 

15 amount of the loan sought by the applicant, as de16 scribed in the application. 

17 ‘‘(2) PROVISION OF FINANCIAL INFORMA18 TION.—An applicant for a loan guarantee or interest 

19 subsidy under this section shall provide the Sec20 retary with such financial information as may be re21 quired by the Secretary, in the manner generally re22 quired by commercial agricultural lenders in the geo23 graphical area where the farming or ranching oper24 ation of the applicant is located. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
73 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(3) APPRAISAL.—The Secretary may require 

2 that an appraisal made in connection with an appli3 cation for a loan guarantee or interest subsidy under 

4 this section be conducted by a specialized appraiser 

5 that uses standards similar to the standards used 

6 for similar purposes in the private sector, as deter7 mined by the Secretary. 

8 ‘‘(4) APPROVAL OF APPLICATION.—The Sec9 retary shall not approve an application submitted 

10 pursuant to this section, unless the Natural Re11 sources Conservation Service has determined that— 

12 ‘‘(A) the loan sought by the applicant, as 

13 described in the application, would be a quali14 fied conservation loan; and 

15 ‘‘(B) the project for which the loan is 

16 sought is likely to result in a net benefit to the 

17 environment. 

18 ‘‘(5) DEADLINE FOR DECISION ON APPLICA19 TION.—Within 45 business days after the receipt of 

20 an application for assistance under this section, the 

21 Secretary shall transmit to the applicant the decision 

22 of the Secretary to approve or disapprove the appli23 cation, to the extent practicable. 

24 ‘‘(6) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF LOAN

25 GUARANTEES AND INTEREST SUBSIDIES.— The SecVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
74 

•HR 1551 IH

1 retary shall ensure that loan guarantees and interest 

2 subsidies under this section are equitably distributed 

3 among agricultural producers according to the scale 

4 of the operations of the producers. 

5 ‘‘(f) RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER CONSERVATION

6 PROGRAMS.—Neither the application for, nor the receipt 

7 of, a loan guarantee or an interest subsidy under this sec8 tion shall affect the eligibility of the recipient for assist9 ance under title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 

10 or the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act. 

11 ‘‘(g) APPROPRIATIONS.—For each of fiscal years 

12 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use such funds 

13 of the Commodity Credit Corporation as are necessary to 

14 carry out this section.’’. 

15 SEC. 117. PILOT PROGRAM FOR COMPREHENSIVE CON16 SERVATION PLANNING. 

17 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary of 

18 Agriculture shall establish a pilot program to evaluate the 

19 feasibility of assisting producers, before they apply for as20 sistance under any conservation program under subtitle 

21 D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

22 3830 et seq.), by making a comprehensive assessment of 

23 the resource concerns, needs, and alternative solutions for 

24 the producer’s entire operation, as determined by the Sec25 retary, following the procedures in the conservation planVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
75 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ning manual of the Natural Resources Conservation Serv2 ice. 

3 (b) LOCATIONS.—The pilot program shall be under4 taken in the following locations: 

5 (1) The Chesapeake Bay watershed. 

6 (2) The Great Lakes Basin. 

7 (3) The Connecticut River watershed. 

8 (4) The Highlands Region, as defined in section 

9 3 of the Highlands Conservation Act (Public Law 

10 108–421; 118 Stat. 2375). 

11 (5) The Upper Mississippi River Basin. 

12 (c) PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE.—The assistance to 

13 producers shall be provided by the Secretary directly or 

14 through third-party providers certified by the Secretary, 

15 and shall be provided without charge to the producer. The 

16 results of the comprehensive conservation planning shall 

17 be provided to the producer to enable informed choices on 

18 the type of financial assistance available through conserva19 tion programs administered by the Secretary that would 

20 most effectively address the resource needs of the farmer’s 

21 operation consistent with the environmental goals for the 

22 area in which the operation is located. 

23 (d) FUNDING.—The Secretary shall use funds of the 

24 Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out the pilot pro25 gram in the amount of $40,000,000 for each of fiscal 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
76 

•HR 1551 IH

1 years 2008 through 2013. The funds shall be equally di2 vided, to the maximum extent practicable, between each 

3 of the four pilot program locations. 

4 (e) ASSESSMENT AND REPORT.—The Secretary shall 

5 conduct an assessment of the effectiveness of the pilot pro6 gram and publish a report, to be available to the public, 

7 of the results of the assessment. An assessment and report 

8 shall be undertaken in the second year and the fifth year 

9 of the pilot program. 

10 SEC. 118. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UNDER DEPARTMENT 

11 OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION PRO12 GRAMS. 

13 (a) USE OF THIRD-PARTY PROVIDERS.—Section 

14 1242 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3842) 

15 is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (2) 

17 and inserting the following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(2) at the option of the producer, through an 

19 approved third party, if available.’’; and 

20 (2) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert22 ing the following new paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(1) SYSTEM FOR EVALUATION OF PRO24 VIDERS.—The Secretary shall establish, by regula25 tion, a system for approving individuals and entities 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
77 

•HR 1551 IH

1 to provide technical assistance to carry out programs 

2 under this chapter, including criteria for the evalua3 tion of providers or potential providers of technical 

4 assistance.’’; 

5 (B) by striking paragraph (3) and insert6 ing the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(3) COMPETITIVE BIDDING.—The Secretary 

8 may accept bids from approved third parties to pro9 vide technical assistance to producers eligible for 

10 that assistance.’’; and 

11 (C) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘may re12 quest’’ and inserting ‘‘shall request, to the max13 imum extent practicable,’’. 

14 (b) COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION EDUCATIONAL AS15 SISTANCE PROGRAM.—Such section is further amended by 

16 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

17 ‘‘(c) COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION EDUCATIONAL

18 ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall establish a 

19 cooperative conservation educational assistance program 

20 through which a student at an institution of higher edu21 cation, in a field of study such as agronomy, conservation 

22 biology, engineering, and other subject relevant to the pro23 vision of technical assistance under this section, may re24 ceive educational assistance in exchange for a commitment 

25 of service to the Natural Resources Conservation Service 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
78 

•HR 1551 IH

1 or other agency within the Department of Agriculture in2 volved in providing such assistance. Establishment of the 

3 program shall be carried out by rulemaking, and the final 

4 rule shall be issued not later than 180 days after the date 

5 of the enactment of this subsection.’’. 

6 TITLE II—ENERGY 

7 SEC. 201. DEFINITION OF BIOMASS. 

8 Section 9001(3)(B)(i) of the Farm Security and 

9 Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8101(3)(B)(i)) 

10 is amended by inserting ‘‘and crop waste’’ after ‘‘agricul11 tural crops’’. 

12 SEC. 202. SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT OF BIOREFIN13 ERIES. 

14 (a) ASSISTANCE METHODS.—Subsection (c) of sec15 tion 9003 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act 

16 of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8103) to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(c) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall award grants 

18 and make loans and loan guarantees to eligible entities 

19 to assist in covering the cost of development and construc20 tion of biorefineries or for the construction or deployment 

21 of methane digesters used to capture the methane gas 

22 from livestock manure for use as a fuel source for biofuel 

23 production to carry out projects to demonstrate the com24 mercial viability of 1 or more processes for converting bio25 mass to fuels or chemicals.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
79 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (b) ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS.—Subsection (e)(2) of 

2 such section is amended— 

3 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (i); 

4 (2) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); 

5 and 

6 (3) by inserting after clause (i) the following 

7 new clause: 

8 ‘‘(ii) shall select projects based upon 

9 the extent to which the projects meet envi10 ronmental goals for feed stocks and refin11 eries, including goals related to reductions 

12 in greenhouse gas emissions and improve13 ment in water quality and wildlife habitat, 

14 developed by the Secretary in consultation 

15 with the Secretary of the Interior, the Sec16 retary of Energy, and the National Acad17 emy of Sciences; and’’. 

18 (c) COST SHARING.—Subsection (f) of such section 

19 is amended to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(f) COST SHARING AND INTEREST RATES.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The combined amount of a 

22 grant and loan made or guaranteed under this sec23 tion shall not exceed 50 percent of the cost of the 

24 project. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
80 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(2) FORM OF RECIPIENT SHARE.—The recipi2 ent share of the cost of a project may be made in 

3 the form of cash or the provision of services, mate4 rial, or other in-kind contributions. The amount of 

5 the recipient share made in the form of the provision 

6 of services, material, or other in-kind contributions 

7 shall not exceed 25 percent of the amount of the 

8 share determined under paragraph (1). 

9 ‘‘(3) INTEREST RATE.—A loan made under sub10 section (c) shall bear interest at the rate equivalent 

11 to the rate of interest charged on Treasury securities 

12 of comparable maturity on the date the loan is ap13 proved. The interest rate shall remain in effect for 

14 the term of the loan.’’. 

15 (d) ENERGY RESERVE PROGRAM.—Such section is 

16 further amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 

18 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol20 lowing new subsection: 

21 ‘‘(g) ENERGY RESERVE PROGRAM.— 

22 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Until December 

23 31, 2013, the Secretary shall carry out an energy re24 serve program under which not more than 100,000 

25 acres of land may be enrolled through the use of 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
81 

•HR 1551 IH

1 five-year contracts to assist owners and operators 

2 with the production of feed stocks for the projects 

3 carried out pursuant to this section. 

4 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE LANDS.—The Secretary may in5 clude any land, regardless of a cropping history, so 

6 long as the feed stock is produced and harvested 

7 consistent with the needs of the environment, as pro8 vided in paragraph (3). 

9 ‘‘(3) DUTIES OF OWNERS AND OPERATORS.— 

10 Under a contract entered into under this subsection, 

11 an owner or operator of land shall implement a feed 

12 stock conservation plan to ensure that lands enrolled 

13 are managed consistent with the needs of the envi14 ronment, including the needs of wildlife. Paragraphs 

15 (5) and (6) of section 1232(a) of the Food Security 

16 Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3832(a)) shall apply to the 

17 contracts 

18 ‘‘(4) PAYMENTS.—The Secretary shall provide 

19 annual rental payments to owners and operators of 

20 lands of amounts not greater than $25,000 for any 

21 fiscal year, and shall establish the amounts of pay22 ments through— 

23 ‘‘(A) the submission of bids for such con24 tracts by owners and operators in such manner 

25 as the Secretary may prescribe; or 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
82 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(B) such other means as the Secretary 

2 determines are appropriate.’’. 

3 (e) FUNDING.—Subsection (i) of such section, as 

4 amended by subsection (d)(1), is amended to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘(i) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

7 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall make available to 

8 carry out this section $100,000,000 for each of fiscal 

9 years 2008 through 2013.’’. 

10 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Such section is 

11 further amended— 

12 (1) in the section heading, by striking 

13 ‘‘GRANTS’’; 

14 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘a grant’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘assistance’’; and 

16 (3) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘grants’’ both 

17 places it appears and inserting ‘‘assistance’’. 

18 SEC. 203. REAUTHORIZATION OF ENERGY AUDIT AND RE19 NEWABLE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT PRO20 GRAM. 

21 Section 9005(i) of the Farm Security and Rural In22 vestment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8105(f)) is amended by 

23 striking ‘‘fiscal years 2002 through 2007’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘fiscal years 2008 through 2013’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
83 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 204. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED FUNDING 

2 FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS AND EN3 ERGY EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS PRO4 GRAM. 

5 (a) PRIORITIES.—Section 9006 of the Farm Security 

6 and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8106) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) through (f) 

9 as subsection (d) through (g), respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol11 lowing new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall establish a sys13 tem to rank applications for loans, loan guarantees, and 

14 grants under this section that considers the extent to 

15 which the proposed project— 

16 ‘‘(1) will produce environmental benefits, in17 cluding reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, 

18 other improvements in air quality, and improve19 ments in water quality; and 

20 ‘‘(2) fosters community or cooperative ap21 proaches to renewable energy development.’’. 

22 (b) FUNDING.—Subsection (f) of section 9006 of the 

23 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 

24 U.S.C. 8106) is amended to read as follows: 

25 ‘‘(f) FUNDING.— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
84 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(1) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Of the funds 

2 of the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary 

3 shall make available to carry out this section the fol4 lowing amounts: 

5 ‘‘(A) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. 

6 ‘‘(B) $90,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 

7 ‘‘(C) $130,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

8 ‘‘(D) $180,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

9 ‘‘(E) $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

10 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—Funds made available under 

11 paragraph (1) shall remain available until ex12 pended.’’. 

13 SEC. 205. REAUTHORIZATION OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRI14 CULTURE BIOENERGY PROGRAM. 

15 Subsection (c) of section 9010 of the Farm Security 

16 and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8108) is 

17 amended: 

18 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

19 Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use to carry out 

20 this section not more than $150,000,000 for each of fiscal 

21 years 2008 through 2013.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
85 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 206. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED FUNDING 

2 FOR BIOMASS RESEARCH AND DEVELOP3 MENT. 

4 Section 310 of the Biomass Research and Develop5 ment Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 7624 note; Public Law 106– 

6 224) is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 310. FUNDING. 

8 ‘‘(a) FUNDING.—Of funds of the Commodity Credit 

9 Corporation, the Secretary shall make available to carry 

10 out this title— 

11 ‘‘(1) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and 

12 ‘‘(2) $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 

13 through 2013. 

14 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In ad15 dition to amounts transferred under subsection (a), there 

16 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 

17 $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2015. 

18 ‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts made 

19 available under subsection (a) or appropriated pursuant 

20 to the authorization of appropriations in subsection (b) 

21 shall remain available until expended.’’. 

22 SEC. 207. REAUTHORIZATION OF CARBON CYCLE RE23 SEARCH. 

24 (a) RESEARCH CONDUCTED THROUGH CONSORTIUM

25 FOR AGRICULTURAL SOILS MITIGATION OF GREENHOUSE

26 GASES.— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
86 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (1) PARTICIPANTS IN CONSORTIUM.—Sub2 section (b) of section 221 of the Agricultural Risk 

3 Protection Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 6711) is amended 

4 by striking ‘‘are’’ in the matter preceding paragraph 

5 (1) and inserting ‘‘include’’. 

6 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

7 Subsection (g) of such section is amended by strik8 ing ‘‘fiscal years 2002 through 2007’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 2012’’. 

10 (b) COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROJECTS.—Sub11 section (d)(4) of such section is amended by striking ‘‘fis12 cal years 2002 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 

13 2008 through 2013’’. 

14 (c) EXTENSION PROJECTS.—Subsection (e)(3) of 

15 such section is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2002 

16 through 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 through 

17 2013’’. 

18 TITLE III—HEALTHY FOOD 

19 CHOICES 

20 SEC. 301. REAUTHORIZATION OF AND INCREASED FUNDING 

21 FOR COMMUNITY FOOD PROJECT COMPETI22 TIVE GRANTS. 

23 (a) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE.—Section 

24 25(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2034(b)) 

25 is amended— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
87 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘From 

2 amounts made available to carry out this Act, the 

3 Secretary may’’ and inserting ‘‘The Secretary shall’’; 

4 and 

5 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(2) FUNDING AMOUNTS.—From amounts 

8 made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary 

9 shall use $60,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

10 through 2013 to make grants under this section.’’. 

11 (b) PREFERENCE FOR CERTAIN PROJECTS.—Section 

12 25(d) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2034(d)) 

13 is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

15 end; 

16 (2) in paragraph (4) by striking the period at 

17 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’ ; and 

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

19 ‘‘(5) serve special project needs in areas of— 

20 ‘‘(A) transportation and processing for ex21 panding institutional and emergency food serv22 ice demand for local food; 

23 ‘‘(B) retail access to healthy foods in un24 derserved markets; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
88 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(C) integration of urban and metro-area 

2 food production in food projects; and 

3 ‘‘(D) technical assistance for youth, so4 cially disadvantaged individuals, and limited re5 source groups.’’. 

6 (c) MATCHING FUNDS REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

7 25(e)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 

8 2034(e)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘50’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘75’’. 

10 (d) TERM OF GRANT.—Section 25(f)(2) of the Food 

11 Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2034(f)(2)) is amended by 

12 striking ‘‘3’’ and inserting ‘‘5’’. 

13 (e) FUNDING.—Section 25(h)(4) of the Food Stamp 

14 Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2034(h)(4)) is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2003 through 

16 2007’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2008 through 

17 2013’’; and 

18 (2) by striking ‘‘$200,000’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘$500,000’’. 

20 SEC. 302. EXPANSION OF FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLE 

21 PROGRAM. 

22 Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School 

23 Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended in subsection 

24 (g)— 

25 (1) in paragraph (1)— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
89 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

2 (A), by striking ‘‘July 2004’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘July 2007’’; and 

4 (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

5 and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) 100 elementary or secondary schools 

7 in each State; 

8 ‘‘(B) additional elementary or secondary 

9 schools in each State in proportion to the stu10 dent population of the State; and’’; 

11 (2) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘paragraph 

12 (1)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; 

13 (3) in paragraph (5), in each of subparagraphs 

14 (A) and (B), by striking ‘‘2008’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘2011’’; and 

16 (4) in paragraph (6)(B)(i)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘October 1, 2004,’’ and in18 serting ‘‘October 1, 2007,’’; and 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘$9,000,000’’ and insert20 ing ‘‘$300,000,000’’. 

21 SEC. 303. AUTHORIZATION LEVEL FOR FARM-TO-CAFE22 TERIA ACTIVITIES. 

23 Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School 

24 Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended in subsection 

25 (i)(2) by striking ‘‘such sums as are necessary’’ and all 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
90 

•HR 1551 IH

1 that follows through the period at the end and inserting 

2 ‘‘to carry out this subsection $20,000,000 for each of fis3 cal years 2008 through 2013.’’. 

4 SEC. 304. EXTENSION OF WIC FARMER’S MARKET NUTRI5 TION PROGRAM. 

6 Section 17(m)(9)(A) of the Child Nutrition Act of 

7 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(m)(9)(A)) is amended— 

8 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘2009’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘2013’’; and 

10 (2) by striking clause (ii) and inserting the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(ii) MANDATORY FUNDING.—Of the 

13 funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora14 tion, the Secretary shall make available to 

15 carry out this subsection $20,000,000 for 

16 fiscal year 2008, $30,000,000 for fiscal 

17 year 2009, $45,000,000 for fiscal year 

18 2010, $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, 

19 and not less than $75,000,000 for fiscal 

20 year 2012 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

21 Such funds shall remain available until ex22 pended.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
91 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 305. SENIOR FARMERS’ MARKET NUTRITION PRO2 GRAM. 

3 Section 4402 of the Farm Security and Rural Invest4 ment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 3007) is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘$5,000,000’’ 

6 and all that follows through ‘‘2007’’, and inserting 

7 ‘‘$20,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, $30,000,000 for 

8 fiscal year 2009, $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, 

9 $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, and not less than 

10 $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal 

11 year thereafter’’; 

12 (2) in subsection (b)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

14 the end, 

15 (B) in paragraph (3) by striking the period 

16 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and 

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

18 ‘‘(4) to promote the transition to organic and 

19 other environmentally beneficial food production sys20 tems.’’; and 

21 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub22 section: 

23 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS; BENEFIT LEVELS.— 

24 The regulations required by subsection (c)— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
92 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(1) shall allow for participation by farmers 

2 markets, and roadside stands, community supported 

3 agriculture programs; and 

4 ‘‘(2) shall not limit the ability of State or re5 gional programs to set benefit levels per individual 

6 senior.’’. 

7 SEC. 306. FARMERS’ MARKET PROMOTION PROGRAM. 

8 Section 6 of the Farmer-to-Consumer Direct Mar9 keting Act of 1976 (7 U.S.C. 3005) is amended by strik10 ing subsections (d) and (e) and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(d) CRITERIA AND GUIDELINES.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab13 lish criteria and guidelines for the submission, eval14 uation, and funding of proposed projects under the 

15 Program. 

16 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall prioritize 

17 for funding projects that will support, encourage, or 

18 promote the transition to organic and other environ19 mentally beneficial forms of agricultural production. 

20 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—The Secretary shall use 

21 $25,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora22 tion to carry out this section in each of the fiscal years 

23 2008 through 2013, of which $5,000,000 shall be used 

24 to support the use of electronic benefit transfers at farm25 ers’ markets.’’. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
93 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 307. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND DEPARTMENT OF 

2 AGRICULTURE PROCUREMENT OF LOCALLY 

3 PRODUCED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS. 

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

5 (1) Locally procured agricultural products, as 

6 compared to products transported from distant 

7 sources— 

8 (A) are often harvested closer to full ripe9 ness and can have higher nutritional quality; 

10 (B) can have improved ripeness, taste, or 

11 selection, which can increase rates of consump12 tion of agricultural products; and 

13 (C) are more efficient to store, distribute, 

14 and package. 

15 (2) Use of local produce— 

16 (A) reduces dependence upon foreign oil by 

17 reducing fuel consumption rates associated with 

18 the production or transportation of agricultural 

19 products; 

20 (B) can help to improve the ability of those 

21 using the procurement system to provide edu22 cation on nutrition, farming, sustainability, en23 ergy efficiency, and the importance of local pur24 chases to the local economy; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
94 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (C) helps to maintain a robust logistics 

2 network for agricultural product procurement; 

3 and 

4 (D) promotes farm, business, and economic 

5 development by accessing local markets. 

6 (3) Section 9(j) of the Richard B. Russell Na7 tional School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(j)) directs 

8 the Secretary of Agriculture to encourage institu9 tions participating in the school lunch program es10 tablished under that Act and the school breakfast 

11 program established by section 4 of the Child Nutri12 tion Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773) to purchase, in 

13 addition to other food purchases, locally produced 

14 foods, to the maximum extent practicable and appro15 priate. 

16 (b) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE GEOGRAPHIC PRO17 CUREMENT PREFERENCE.—Notwithstanding any other 

18 provision of law, the Department of Defense may use a 

19 geographic preference to purchase locally produced agri20 cultural products for— 

21 (1) the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia; 

22 (2) the Department of Defense Farm to School 

23 Program; 

24 (3) the Department of Defense Fresh Fruit and 

25 Vegetable Program; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
95 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (4) the service academies; 

2 (5) Department of Defense domestic dependant 

3 schools; 

4 (6) other Department of Defense schools under 

5 chapter 108 of title 10, United States Code; 

6 (7) commissary and exchange stores; and 

7 (8) morale, welfare, and recreation facilities op8 erated by the Department of Defense 

9 (c) DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND RELATED

10 ENTITIES GEOGRAPHIC PROCUREMENT PREFERENCE.— 

11 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Depart12 ment of Agriculture, schools, local educational agencies, 

13 and other entities may use a geographic preference to pur14 chase locally produced agricultural products for— 

15 (1) the school breakfast program established by 

16 section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 

17 U.S.C. 1773); 

18 (2) the school lunch program established under 

19 the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act 

20 (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); 

21 (3) the summer food service program for chil22 dren established under section 13 of the Richard B. 

23 Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 

24 1761); and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
96 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (4) the child and adult care food program es2 tablished under section 17 of the Richard B. Russell 

3 National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766). 

4 (d) ADDITION OF GEOGRAPHIC PREFERENCE.—In 

5 the case of the purchase of agricultural products for a pro6 gram or entity described in subsection (b) or (c), the local 

7 food service director or other entity making the purchase 

8 may include the geographic preference provided by such 

9 subsections in bid specifications and may select a bid in10 volving locally produced agricultural products, even if that 

11 bid is not the lowest bid. 

12 (e) REPORTING.—A school, local educational agency, 

13 or other entity participating in one or more of the pro14 grams described in subsection (c) shall report to the Sec15 retary of Agriculture if the school, local educational agen16 cy, or other entity pays more than 10 percent more than 

17 the lowest bid to purchase locally produced agricultural 

18 products in accordance with this section. 

19 (f) REVIEW.—The Secretary of Defense and the Sec20 retary of Agriculture shall periodically review the use of 

21 the geographic preference provided by this section to pre22 vent fraud or abuse. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
97 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 308. FRUIT AND VEGETABLE NUTRITION PROMOTION 

2 PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, act4 ing through the Administrator of the Agricultural Mar5 keting Service, shall establish and carry out a program 

6 to provide assistance to eligible trade organizations de7 scribed in subsection (c) to increase the consumption of 

8 fruits and vegetables in the United States to meet Federal 

9 health guidelines. 

10 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATION.—To be eli11 gible for assistance under this section, an organization 

12 shall— 

13 (1) be an eligible trade organization; 

14 (2) prepare and submit a plan to increase the 

15 consumption of fruits and vegetables in the United 

16 States to the Administrator of the Agricultural Mar17 keting Service that meets any guidelines governing 

18 such plans established by the Administrator; and 

19 (3) meet any other requirements established by 

20 the Administrator. 

21 (c) ELIGIBLE TRADE ORGANIZATIONS.—An eligible 

22 trade organization under this section shall be— 

23 (1) a nonprofit fruit and vegetable trade organi24 zations in the United States; 

25 (2) a nonprofit State or regional fruit and vege26 table organization; 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
98 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (3) a fruit and vegetable agricultural coopera2 tive in the United States; 

3 (4) a commodity board or commission in the 

4 United States; or 

5 (5) a small business engaged in the fruit and 

6 vegetable industry in the United States. 

7 (d) MATCHING FUNDS.—Assistance provided under 

8 this section shall not exceed— 

9 (1) in the case of an organization described in 

10 paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (c), 90 

11 percent of the cost of the plan to increase the con12 sumption of fruits and vegetables in the United 

13 States submitted under subsection (b)(2); and 

14 (2) in the case of an organization described in 

15 subsection (c)(5), 50 percent of the cost of the plan 

16 to increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables 

17 in the United States submitted under subsection 

18 (b)(2). 

19 (e) FUNDING.—Of the funds available to the Com20 modity Credit Corporation, the Administrator of the Agri21 cultural Marketing Service shall use $100,000,000 in each 

22 of fiscal years 2008 through 2011 to carry out this sec23 tion. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
99 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 309. USE OF ‘‘DIETARY GUIDELINES FOR AMERICANS’’

2 IN SPECIAL NUTRITION PROGRAMS AND 

3 SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAMS. 

4 Section 9(a) of the Richard B. Russell National 

5 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(a)) is amended by add6 ing at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(5) ALLOCATIONS TO BE BASED ON DIETARY

8 GUIDELINES.—For the school year beginning in July 

9 2007 and each school year thereafter, the Secretary 

10 shall ensure that allocations of food and food ingre11 dients offered in school nutrition programs under 

12 this Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 

13 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.) are based on the most recent 

14 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.’’. 

15 SEC. 310. SECTION 32 SPECIALTY CROP PURCHASES. 

16 (a) MINIMUM LEVEL OF PURCHASES.—Section 32 of 

17 the Act of August 24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c) is amended 

18 in the sixth sentence by inserting after ‘‘and their prod19 ucts’’ the following: ‘‘, and, for each of fiscal years 2008 

20 through 2012, the Secretary of Agriculture shall devote 

21 not less than $400,000,000 of sums appropriated under 

22 this section to purchases of non-basic agricultural com23 modities, such as fruits, vegetables, and other specialty 

24 food crops’’. 

25 (b) EXPANSION OF DOD FRESH PROGRAM.—Such 

26 section is further amended by inserting after the sixth senVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
100 

•HR 1551 IH

1 tence, as amended by subsection (a), the following new 

2 sentence: ‘‘Of the funds specified in the preceding sen3 tence, the Secretary of Agriculture shall expend not less 

4 than $150,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 

5 2012 for the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables for 

6 distribution to schools and service institutions in accord7 ance with section 6(a) of the Richard B. Russell National 

8 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1755(a)).’’. 

9 SEC. 311. AMENDMENTS TO THE FOOD STAMP PROGRAM. 

10 (a) DEFINITION.— Section 3 of the Food Stamp Act 

11 of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2012) is amended by adding at the end 

12 the following 

13 ‘‘(v) ‘Food stamp nutrition education’ means direct 

14 education, group activities, community health promotion, 

15 and comprehensive public health approaches (including 

16 but not limited to, social marketing, mass media, public17 private partnerships, policy, systems and environmental 

18 changes, and evaluation) that promote healthy eating and 

19 make healthy food and physical activity choices more de20 sired, affordable, and accessible. To serve all those poten21 tially eligible for food stamps, nutrition education pro22 grams should be designed to reach large numbers of low23 income individuals. Programs shall support behavior 

24 change consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for AmeriVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00100 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
101 

•HR 1551 IH

1 cans, including a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and 

2 whole grains.’’. 

3 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—Section 11(e)(1)(A) of the 

4 Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2020(e)(1)(A) is 

5 amended by inserting ‘‘, and provide food stamp nutrition 

6 education’’ after ‘‘program’’. 

7 SEC. 312. FOOD STAMP FRUIT AND VEGETABLE ELEC8 TRONIC BENEFIT TRANSFER PILOT PROJECT. 

9 (a) FINDING.—The Congress finds that increased 

10 consumption of fruits and vegetables by participants in the 

11 food stamp program will significantly improve the overall 

12 dietary habits of such participants. 

13 (b) PILOT PROJECT.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

14 shall establish and carry out a pilot project that will pro15 vide to each participant in the food stamp program who 

16 receives benefits in the form of an electronic benefit trans17 fer, financial incentives for each dollar of such benefits 

18 expended by such recipient to facilitate the purchase of 

19 fresh fruits and vegetables. 

20 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

21 authorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 for each of 5 

22 fiscal years to carry out this section. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
102 

•HR 1551 IH

1 TITLE IV—PROMOTION OF NEW 

2 MARKETS AND FARM VIABILITY 

3 SEC. 401. FARM VIABILITY PROGRAM. 

4 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Subsection (a) of section 

5 1238J of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

6 3838j) is amended by striking ‘‘The Secretary may’’ and 

7 inserting ‘‘Using amounts made available under sub8 section (b), the Secretary shall’’. 

9 (b) FUNDING.—Subsection (b) of such section is 

10 amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(b) FUNDING.—In addition to other funds made 

12 available to carry out this subchapter for each of fiscal 

13 years 2008 through 2013, the Secretary shall use 

14 $50,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Corpora15 tion each fiscal year to make grants to eligible entities 

16 under subsection (a).’’. 

17 SEC. 402. NATIONAL ORGANIC CERTIFICATION AND TRAN18 SITION COST SHARE PROGRAM. 

19 Section 10606 of the Farm Security and Rural In20 vestment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 6523) is amended to read 

21 as follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 10606. NATIONAL ORGANIC CERTIFICATION AND 

23 TRANSITION COST SHARE PROGRAM. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Of the funds of the Commodity 

25 Credit Corporation, the Secretary of Agriculture (acting 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
103 

•HR 1551 IH

1 through the Natural Resources Conservation Service) shall 

2 use $80,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 

3 2013 to establish a national organic certification and tran4 sition cost-share program to assist producers and handlers 

5 of agricultural products in obtaining certification under 

6 the national organic production program established under 

7 the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 

8 et seq.) and to assist producers and handlers in making 

9 the transition to organic production under the such pro10 gram. 

11 ‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION COSTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pay 

13 under this section a portion of the costs incurred by 

14 a producer or handler in obtaining certification 

15 under the national organic production program, as 

16 certified to and approved by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a 

18 payment made to a producer or handler for certifi19 cation under this section shall be $750 per year. 

20 ‘‘(3) FUNDING.—Of the funds made available 

21 under subsection (a), the Secretary (acting through 

22 the Agricultural Marketing Service) shall use 

23 $25,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 

24 through 2013 to share up to 75 percent of the cost 

25 of certification. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
104 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(c) ACCREDITATION AND ENFORCEMENT COSTS.— 

2 Of the funds made available under subsection (a), the Sec3 retary (acting through the Agricultural Marketing Serv4 ice) shall use $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 

5 through 2013 to fund the accreditation and enforcement 

6 programs operated by the National Organic Program to 

7 implement the accreditation and enforcement provisions of 

8 the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. 

9 ‘‘(d) REIMBURSEMENTS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE NEC10 ESSARY TO IMPLEMENT ORGANIC PRACTICE STAND11 ARDS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 

13 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

14 Secretary shall establish a program to reimburse 

15 producers and handlers for the costs of transition to 

16 organic production. 

17 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM.—Under the program estab18 lished under paragraph (1), the Secretary (acting 

19 through the Natural Resources Conservation Serv20 ice) shall use $50,000,000 for each of the fiscal 

21 years 2008 through 2013 to assist producers and 

22 handlers developing and implementing infrastructure 

23 and practices necessary to transition land and ani24 mals to meet the requirements of the Organic Food 

25 Production Act of 1990. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
105 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(3) PLAN SUBMISSION.—The Secretary may 

2 only reimburse a producer or handler under this sec3 tion if the producer or handler submits to the Sec4 retary an organic transition plan that contains the 

5 expected costs for infrastructure and practices, the 

6 environmental and economic benefits derived from 

7 the infrastructure or implementing organic practice 

8 standards, and a demonstration of the existence of 

9 a market or the reasonable expectation of a future 

10 market for the products to be produced or handled. 

11 ‘‘(4) APPROPRIATE INFRASTRUCTURE AND

12 PRACTICE STANDARDS.—The Secretary shall only re13 imburse producers and handlers under this sub14 section for the costs of the following: 

15 ‘‘(A) Organic practices and activities dur16 ing transition to certified organic production 

17 consistent with an approved plan to transition 

18 to certified organic production. 

19 ‘‘(B) Farm infrastructure necessary to im20 plement organic practice standards, including 

21 livestock watering facilities and fencing, so long 

22 as such infrastructure is consistent with an ap23 proved plan to transition to certified organic 

24 production. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
106 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(C) Organic livestock welfare measures, 

2 so long as such infrastructure or practices and 

3 activities are necessary to implement an organic 

4 practice standard and are consistent with an 

5 approved plan to transition to certified organic 

6 production. 

7 ‘‘(D) Advanced organic practices consistent 

8 with approved certified organic production. 

9 ‘‘(E) Technical assistance, including the 

10 costs of developing an approved transition plan 

11 under this section. 

12 ‘‘(F) Other measures the Secretary, after 

13 consultation with the National Organic Stand14 ards Board, determines are appropriate. 

15 ‘‘(5) ORGANIC TRANSITION TECHNICAL AD16 VICE.—The Secretary shall consult with the Na17 tional Organic Standards Board regarding the ele18 ments of an approved organic transition plan and to 

19 identify and recommend ways that the Secretary 

20 may generally use the resources provided for pro21 grams under subtitle D of title XII of the Food Se22 curity Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3830 et seq.) to facili23 tate transition to organic production, including the 

24 resources provided by the Environmental Quality InVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:07 Mar 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00106 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1551.IH H1551

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
107 

•HR 1551 IH

1 centives Program and the Conservation Security 

2 Program. 

3 ‘‘(6) MAXIMUM AMOUNT FOR TRANSITION RE4 IMBURSEMENT.—Except as provided in (A) and (B), 

5 the maximum amount of reimbursement paid to a 

6 producer or handler for transition to organic produc7 tion under this section shall be $10,000 per fiscal 

8 year. 

9 ‘‘(A) SPECIALTY CROPS.—In the case of an 

10 individual or entity who annually produces 

11 three or more types of specialty crops, the indi12 vidual or entity may not receive, directly or in13 directly, cost-share or incentive payments under 

14 this section that, in the aggregate, exceed 

15 $20,000 per year, for a period not to exceed 

16 four years. 

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

18 or entity whose principal farming enterprise is 

19 dairy, the individual or entity may not receive, 

20 directly or indirectly, cost-share or incentive 

21 payments under this section that, in the aggre22 gate, exceed $20,000 per year, for a period not 

23 to exceed four years. 

24 ‘‘(7) ELIGIBLE FISCAL YEARS.—A producer or 

25 handler may only receive payments— 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
108 

•HR 1551 IH

1 ‘‘(A) in four fiscal years; and 

2 ‘‘(B) after the first payment, in the fiscal 

3 year in which such payment was made and the 

4 three subsequent fiscal years. 

5 ‘‘(8) TRANSITION REIMBURSEMENTS.—A cer6 tified organic producer or handler under the national 

7 organic production program shall be eligible for re8 imbursements to make the transition to organic pro9 duction for new lands and livestock. 

10 ‘‘(9) SUSPENSION AUTHORITY.—To ensure or11 derly and continued growth in organic farming— 

12 ‘‘(A) prior to each fiscal year and no later 

13 than October 1st of each year, the Secretary 

14 shall publish organic commodity specific assess15 ments analyzing the domestic production and 

16 consumption, import and export organic market 

17 demand and growth potential for each organic 

18 commodity and the anticipated number and 

19 total amount of new reimbursements for the fol20 lowing year affecting each commodity; and 

21 ‘‘(B) the Secretary shall not enroll new 

22 producers under this subsection if, for any par23 ticular agricultural commodity, any new pro24 ducers would produce an increased amount of 

25 that agricultural commodity that the Secretary 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
109 

•HR 1551 IH

1 finds is reasonably anticipated to affect the con2 tinuing economic viability of farmers currently 

3 certified under the national organic production 

4 program or would create unreasonable geo5 graphic disparities in the distribution of reim6 bursements provided under this section. 

7 ‘‘(10) APPEALS.—An applicant seeking transi8 tion assistance under this section has the right to 

9 appeal an adverse decision by Secretary with regard 

10 to an application for assistance, as provided in sec11 tion 275 of the Department of Agriculture Reorga12 nization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6995). 

13 ‘‘(e) TECHNICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.— 

14 Of the funds made available under subsection (a) for a 

15 fiscal year, the Secretary shall use not less than 

16 $15,000,000 to provide technical and educational assist17 ance to producers and handlers to carry out this section, 

18 including entering into cooperative agreements with quali19 fied entities to implement the transition to organic produc20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(f) REPORTING.—Not later than March 1 of each 

22 year, the Secretary shall submit to Congress and the Na23 tional Organic Standards Board a report detailing State24 by-State expenditures on certification, including the num25 ber of producers and handlers served by the program, and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
110 

•HR 1551 IH

1 State-by-State expenditures on transition assistance, in2 cluding the number of producers and handlers served by 

3 the program, the practices implemented, an assessment of 

4 the impacts of the program on organic production, and 

5 recommended reforms, if any.’’. 

6 SEC. 402a. NATIONAL ORGANIC TECHNICAL COMMITTEE. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 

8 a National Organic Technical Committee to oversee devel9 opment and implementation of the Organic Certification 

10 and Transition Program and to improve the organic agri11 culture interface with all other conservation programs and 

12 activities administered by the NRCS, including 

13 developoment of criteria for the approval of qualified or14 ganic technical advisors. 

15 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The membership of the National 

16 Organic Technical Committee shall be comprised of— 

17 (1) three organic farmers; 

18 (2) two organic certifying agents; 

19 (3) two organic inspectors; 

20 (4) one representative of an environmental or21 ganization knowledgeable about organic agriculture; 

22 and 

23 (5) one scientist with expertise in conservation 

24 planning. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
111 

•HR 1551 IH

1 SEC. 403. ORGANIC AGRICULTURE RESEARCH AND EXTEN2 SION INITIATIVE. 

3 Section 1672B(e) of the Food, Agriculture, Conserva4 tion, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5925b(e)) is 

5 amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—Of the funds available to the Com7 modity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use 

8 $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013 

9 to carry out this section.’’. 

10 SEC. 404. FUNDING FOR EDUCATION GRANTS PROGRAMS 

11 FOR HISPANIC-SERVING INSTITUTIONS. 

12 Subsection (c) of section 1455 of the National Agri13 cultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 

14 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3241) is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—Of the funds available to the Com16 modity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use 

17 $25,000,000 for each fiscal year to carry out this sec18 tion.’’. 

19 SEC. 405. EXTENSION AND FUNDING INCREASE FOR THE 

20 VALUE-ADDED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT 

21 MARKET DEVELOPMENT GRANT PROGRAM. 

22 Section 231(b)(4) of the Agricultural Risk Protection 

23 Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 1621 note; Public Law 106–224) 

24 is amended— 

25 (1) by striking ‘‘through October 1, 2006’’; and 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS
112 

•HR 1551 IH

1 (2) by striking ‘‘$40,000,000’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘$60,000,000’’. 

Æ 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with BILLS