Farmer-Informed WOTUS Act of 2023

To establish an advisory committee to inform Congress of the impact of Waters of the United States regulations on United States agriculture, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Farmer-Informed WOTUS Act of 2023 2. Advisory committee for Waters of the United States regulations (a) Definitions In this section: (1) Advisory committee The term advisory committee (2) Covered commodity The term covered commodity 7 U.S.C. 9011 (3) Livestock The term livestock 7 U.S.C. 182(a) (4) Poultry The term poultry 7 U.S.C. 182(a) (5) Secretary The term Secretary (6) Specialty crop The term specialty crop 7 U.S.C. 1621 Public Law 108–465 (7) WOTUS regulations The term WOTUS regulations waters of the United States 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq. (b) Establishment The Secretary, in coordination with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, shall establish an advisory committee broadly representative of the United States farming and ranching sectors to study and develop recommendations to address the impact of WOTUS regulations on United States agriculture and environmental protection. (c) Membership (1) Composition The advisory committee shall be composed of 32 members, all of whom are farmers or ranchers, to be appointed as follows: (A) Farmer association-nominated appointees (i) In general 16 members shall be appointed by the Secretary from a list of candidates nominated under clause (ii). (ii) Nominations (I) In general The Secretary shall select 16 entities described in subclause (II), each of which shall nominate 1 candidate for membership in the advisory committee. (II) Nominating entities The entities referred to in subclause (I) are the following: (aa) 2 national farmer trade associations representing farmers and ranchers from all 50 States and the internal policy of which is developed using a member-driven process. (bb) 4 national covered commodity trade associations. (cc) 3 national specialty crop trade associations. (dd) 3 national livestock trade associations. (ee) 3 national poultry trade associations. (ff) 1 national trade association representing State departments of agriculture. (B) Senate-nominated appointees (i) In general 8 members shall be appointed by the Secretary from a list of candidates nominated under clause (ii). (ii) Nominations The Senate shall nominate 8 regionally diverse candidates for membership in the advisory committee, of whom— (I) 4 shall be nominated by the majority leader of the Senate, in consultation with the chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate; and (II) 4 shall be nominated by the minority leader of the Senate, in consultation with the ranking member of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate. (C) House of Representatives-nominated appointees (i) In general 8 members shall be appointed by the Secretary from a list of candidates nominated under clause (ii). (ii) Nominations The House of Representatives shall nominate 8 regionally diverse candidates for membership in the advisory committee, of whom— (I) 4 shall be nominated by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the chairperson of the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives; and (II) 4 shall be nominated by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the ranking member of the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives. (2) Date Initial appointments to the advisory committee under paragraph (1) shall be made not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. (3) Period of appointment; Vacancies (A) In general A member of the advisory committee shall be appointed for the life of the advisory committee. (B) Vacancies Any vacancy in the advisory committee— (i) shall not affect the powers or duties of the advisory committee; and (ii) shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. (4) Chairperson and Vice Chairperson The advisory committee shall select a chairperson and vice chairperson from among the members of the advisory committee. (d) Meetings (1) Initial meeting Not later than 30 days after the date on which all members of the advisory committee have been appointed, the advisory committee shall hold the first meeting of the advisory committee. (2) Frequency The advisory committee shall meet not less than 4 times per year. (3) Quorum A majority of the members of the advisory committee shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may hold hearings. (e) Duties (1) Study and recommendations required (A) In general The advisory committee shall conduct a thorough study and develop recommendations to address the impact of WOTUS regulations on United States agriculture. (B) Matters studied The advisory committee shall study and develop recommendations to address— (i) the impact of the prior-converted farmland exemption on agricultural operations; (ii) common agricultural practices that are not exempted from WOTUS regulations under the activity-based permitting exemptions of the Environmental Protection Agency; (iii) instances in which the Corps of Engineers came to conflicting rulings for the same or similarly situated tracts of land; (iv) the impact of WOTUS regulations on secure food supply chains and rural infrastructure; (v) how WOTUS regulations can be structured to provide a clear, objective eyesight (vi) how safe harbor conditions can be developed for farmers who observe common, voluntary conservation practices on their farms. (2) Report Not later than 1 year after the date on which all members of the advisory committee have been appointed, the advisory committee shall— (A) submit a report with detailed findings and recommendations addressing the matters described in paragraph (1)(B) to— (i) the Secretary; (ii) the Committee of Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate; (iii) the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate; (iv) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives; (v) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives; (vi) the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality; (vii) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget; (viii) the Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council; (ix) the White House Chief of Staff; (x) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; and (xi) the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works; (B) publish in the Federal Register the report under subparagraph (A); and (C) present the findings and recommendations of the advisory committee in a meeting to— (i) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; (ii) the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works; and (iii) the Science Advisory Board of the Environmental Protection Agency. (f) Powers (1) Hearings The advisory committee may hold such hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony, and receive such evidence as the advisory committee considers advisable to carry out this section. (2) Information from Federal agencies (A) In general The advisory committee may secure directly from any Federal department or agency such information as the advisory committee considers necessary to carry out this section. (B) Furnishing information On request of the chairperson of the advisory committee, the head of a department or agency shall furnish any requested information to the advisory committee. (3) Postal services The advisory committee may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and agencies of the Federal Government. (4) Gifts The advisory committee may accept, use, and dispose of gifts or donations of services or property. (5) Procurement of temporary and intermittent services The chairperson of the advisory committee may procure temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of that title. (g) Compensation (1) Federal members A member of the advisory committee who is an officer or employee of the United States shall serve without compensation in addition to that received for service as an officer or employee of the United States, and such detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege. (2) Travel expenses A member of the advisory committee shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 (h) Sunset The advisory committee shall terminate 90 days after the date on which the advisory committee completes the reporting requirements under subsection (e)(2). (i) Funding (1) Unobligated funding available Of the unobligated amounts appropriated by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ( Public Law 117–2 (2) Authorization of appropriations In the event that the funds described in paragraph (1) may not be made available to carry out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section.

Summary: Farmer-Informed WOTUS Act of 2023 This bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish an advisory committee that is representative of the U.S. farming and ranching sectors to make recommendations on the impact of waters of the United States (WOTUS) regulations on U.S. agriculture and environmental protection. (The Clean Water Act [CWA] protects navigable waters, which the statute defines as WOTUS. Because the CWA does not further define this term, the agencies that implement the CWA have defined WOTUS in regulations.) Specifically, USDA must establish an advisory committee to study and develop recommendations to address matters such as the impact of the prior-converted farmland exemption on agricultural operations, the impact of WOTUS regulations on secure food supply chains and rural infrastructure, and how to develop safe harbor conditions for farmers who observe certain conservation practices. Federal agencies must provide to the committee any information requested by the committee chair. The advisory committee terminates 90 days after completing reporting requirements.