I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5226
To respond to recent natural disasters adversely affecting agricultural 
producers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 6, 2004
Mr. NEUGEBAUER (for himself, Mr. BURNS, Mrs. MUSGRAVE, Mr. ROGERS of 
Alabama, Mr. MORAN of Kansas, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. OSBORNE, Mr. 
REHBERG, Mr. THORNBERRY, Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma, Mr. BOEHNER, 
Mr. TERRY, Mr. EVERETT, Mr. SIMPSON, and Mr. ALEXANDER) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agri-
culture 
A BILL 
To respond to recent natural disasters adversely affecting 
agricultural producers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. CROP DISASTER ASSISTANCE. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) ADDITIONAL COVERAGE.—The term ‘‘addi-
tional coverage’’ has the meaning given the term in 
section 502(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
U.S.C. 1502(b)).
(2) INSURABLE COMMODITY.—The term ‘‘insur-
able commodity’’ means an agricultural commodity 
(excluding livestock) for which the producers on a 
farm are eligible to obtain a policy or plan of insur-
ance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
U.S.C. 1501 et seq.). 
(3) NONINSURABLE
COMMODITY.—The term 
‘‘noninsurable commodity’’ means an agricultural 
commodity for which the producers on a farm are el-
igible to obtain assistance under section 196 of the 
Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 
1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333). 
(b) EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—Notwith-
standing section 508(b)(7) of the Federal Crop Insurance 
Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(b)(7)), the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall use such sums as are necessary of funds of the Com-
modity Credit Corporation to make emergency financial 
assistance authorized under this section available to pro-
ducers on a farm that have incurred qualifying crop or 
quality losses for the 2003 or 2004 crop (as elected by 
a producer), but not both crops, due to damaging weather 
or related condition, as determined by the Secretary. 
(c) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall make as-
sistance available under this section in the same manner 
as provided under section 815 of the Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Re-
lated Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 
106–387; 114 Stat. 1549A–55), including using the same 
loss thresholds for the quantity and quality losses as were 
used in administering that section. 
(d) INELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE.—Except as pro-
vided in subsection (e), the producers on a farm shall not 
be eligible for assistance under this section with respect 
to losses to an insurable commodity or noninsurable com-
modity if the producers on the farm—
(1) in the case of an insurable commodity, did 
not obtain a policy or plan of insurance for the in-
surable commodity under the Federal Crop Insur-
ance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) for the crop incur-
ring the losses; and 
(2) in the case of a noninsurable commodity, 
did not file the required paperwork, and pay the ad-
ministrative fee by the applicable State filing dead-
line, for the noninsurable commodity under section 
196 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and 
Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333) for the crop 
incurring the losses. 
(e) CONTRACT WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive 
subsection (d) with respect to the producers on a farm
if the producers enter into a contract with the Secretary 
under which the producers agree—
(1) in the case of an insurable commodity, to 
obtain a policy or plan of insurance under the Fed-
eral Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) 
providing additional coverage for the insurable com-
modity for each of the next 2 crops; and 
(2) in the case of a noninsurable commodity, to 
file the required paperwork and pay the administra-
tive fee by the applicable State filing deadline, for 
the noninsurable commodity for each of the next 2 
crops under section 196 of the Federal Agriculture 
Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 
7333). 
(f) EFFECT OF VIOLATION.—In the event of the vio-
lation of a contract under subsection (e) by a producer, 
the producer shall reimburse the Secretary for the full 
amount of the assistance provided to the producer under 
this section. 
(g) PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.—
(1) LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—As-
sistance provided under this section to a producer 
for losses to a crop, together with the amounts speci-
fied in paragraph (2) applicable to the same crop, 
may not exceed 95 percent of what the value of the
crop would have been in the absence of the losses, 
as estimated by the Secretary. 
(2) OTHER PAYMENTS.—In applying the limita-
tion in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall include the 
following: 
(A) Any crop insurance payment made 
under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) or payment under section 
196 of the Federal Agricultural Improvement 
and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333) that 
the producer receives for losses to the same 
crop. 
(B) The value of the crop that was not lost 
(if any), as estimated by the Secretary. 
(3) EFFECT
OF
FLORIDA
DISASTER
PRO-
GRAMS.—The amount of assistance that a producer 
would otherwise receive under this section shall be 
reduced by the amount of assistance that the pro-
ducer receives for the same loss under the Florida 
Disaster Programs carried out pursuant to the 
Farm Service Agency notice (DAP–203) released 
October 4, 2004. 
SEC. 2. LIVESTOCK ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
(a) EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The Sec-
retary of Agriculture shall use such sums as are necessary
of funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation to make 
and administer payments for livestock losses to producers 
for 2003 or 2004 losses (as elected by a producer), but 
not both, in a county that has received an emergency des-
ignation by the President or the Secretary after January 
1, 2003, of which an amount determined by the Secretary 
shall be made available for the American Indian livestock 
program under section 806 of the Agriculture, Rural De-
velopment, Food and Drug Administration, and Related 
Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–387; 
114 Stat. 1549A–51). 
(b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall make as-
sistance available under this section in the same manner 
as provided under section 806 of the Agriculture, Rural 
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Re-
lated Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 
106–387; 114 Stat. 1549A–51). 
(c) MITIGATION.—In determining the eligibility for or 
amount of payments for which a producer is eligible under 
the livestock assistance program, the Secretary shall not 
penalize a producer that takes actions (recognizing dis-
aster conditions) that reduce the average number of live-
stock the producer owned for grazing during the produc-
tion year for which assistance is being provided.
SEC. 3. TREE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
(a) EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary of Ag-
riculture shall use such sums as are necessary of the funds 
of the Commodity Credit Corporation to provide assist-
ance under the tree assistance program established under 
sections 10201 through 10204 of the Farm Security and 
Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8201 et seq.) 
to producers who suffered tree losses during the period 
beginning on December 1, 2003, and ending on December 
31, 2004. 
(b) ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE.—In addition to pro-
viding assistance to eligible orchardists under the tree as-
sistance program, the Secretary shall use an additional 
$15,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit Cor-
poration to provide reimbursement under section 10203 
of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 
(7 U.S.C. 8203) to eligible forest land owners who produce 
periodic crops of timber from trees for commercial pur-
poses and who have suffered tree losses during the period 
specified in subsection (a). 
SEC. 4. EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM. 
The Secretary of Agriculture shall use an additional 
$50,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit Cor-
poration to provide assistance under the Emergency Con-
servation Program under title IV of the Agriculture Credit 
Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.). Participants in the
Emergency Conservation Program shall receive the max-
imum cost share percentage allowed under section 701.26 
of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations. 
SEC. 5. COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION. 
The Secretary of Agriculture shall use the funds, fa-
cilities, and authorities of the Commodity Credit Corpora-
tion to carry out this Act. 
SEC. 6. REGULATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture may 
promulgate such regulations as are necessary to imple-
ment this Act. 
(b) PROCEDURE.—The promulgation of the regula-
tions and administration of this Act shall be made without 
regard to—
(1) the notice and comment provisions of sec-
tion 553 of title 5, United States Code; 
(2) the Statement of Policy of the Secretary of 
Agriculture effective July 24, 1971 (36 Fed. Reg. 
13804), relating to notices of proposed rulemaking 
and public participation in rulemaking; and 
(3) chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code 
(commonly known as the ‘‘Paperwork Reduction 
Act’’). 
(c) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW
OF AGENCY RULE-
MAKING.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall
use the authority provided under section 808 of title 5, 
United States Code. 
SEC. 7. OFFSET. 
Section 1241(a)(3) of the Food Security Act of 1985 
(16 U.S.C. 3841(a)(3)) is amended by inserting before the 
period at the end the following: ‘‘, using not more than 
$6,037,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2005 
through 2014’’.
Æ