Veterans' Agricultural Apprenticeship Act of 2017

To establish a Department of Agriculture loan program to support mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities for veterans of the Armed Forces to become farmers or ranchers. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Veterans’ Agricultural Apprenticeship Act of 2017 2. Mentorship and apprenticeship program for veterans of the Armed Forces to become farmers and ranchers (a) Program required The Secretary of Agriculture shall establish a program to make direct loans to farmers and ranchers who will provide mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities for veterans of the Armed Forces to learn the skills necessary to become a successful farmer or rancher. (b) Agreements with States The Secretary of Agriculture shall carry out the mentorship and apprenticeship program through agreements with State departments of agriculture that will— (1) select veterans to participate in the program; (2) secure established farmers and ranchers to provide the mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities; and (3) make and administer direct loans to support the resulting mentorship and apprenticeship. (c) Active involvement As a condition of a loan under the mentorship and apprenticeship program, a participating veteran must be allowed to materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch providing the mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities. (d) Terms of loans (1) Interest rate A loan under the mentorship and apprenticeship program shall be made without interest. (2) Term and repayment The term of a loan under the program may not exceed one year and the loan shall be repaid after the harvest season in such installments as the Secretary may require. (e) Source of funds Of the amounts appropriated for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023 to fund operation of the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary shall use $1,000,000 each of such fiscal years to carry out this section. (f) Comptroller general report Not later than March 1, 2022, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report evaluating the effectiveness of the mentorship and apprenticeship program in assisting veterans who participate in the program in becoming farmers and ranchers. (g) Veteran defined In this section, the term veteran

Summary: Veterans' Agricultural Apprenticeship Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a program to make direct loans to farmers and ranchers who will provide mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities for veterans to learn the skills necessary to become successful farmers or ranchers. USDA must carry out the program through agreements with state departments of agriculture that will: select veterans to participate in the program, secure established farmers and ranchers to provide the mentorship and apprenticeship opportunities, and make and administer direct loans to support the resulting mentorship and apprenticeship. The loans must be made without interest and may not exceed a term of one year. Of the amounts appropriated for FY2019-FY2023 for the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture, USDA must use $1 million for each of the fiscal years for the program.