Farmers Fighting Climate Change Act
Bill: H.R.2456 | Sponsor: Rep. Underwood, Lauren (D-IL)
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Farmers Fighting Climate Change Act
This bill expands the Conservation Stewardship Program of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide for the establishment of climate change mitigation bundles. Climate change mitigation bundle is defined as a group of conservation activities carried out together to achieve substantial progress toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions or increasing carbon sequestration and improving soil health.
Specifically, USDA must make state- or region-specific climate change mitigation bundles available to producers in all regions of the country to promote agricultural practices that increase carbon sequestration and reduce green gas emissions, including by making available bundles that are appropriate for cropland, pastureland, rangeland, and forestland.

To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to provide for the establishment 
     of climate change mitigation bundles, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Farmers Fighting Climate Change 
Act''.

SEC. 2. CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION BUNDLES.

    (a) Definitions.--Section 1240I(2)(B)(v) of the Food Security Act 
of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa-21(2)(B)(v)) is amended by inserting 
``climate change and'' before ``increasing weather volatility''.
    (b) Ranking of Applications.--Section 1240K(b)(1)(A) of the Food 
Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa-23(b)(1)(A)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (ii), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
        semicolon;
            (2) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); and
            (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following:
                            ``(iii) the degree to which the combination 
                        of the benefits described in clauses (i) and 
                        (ii) effectively target increases in carbon 
                        sequestration or net reductions in greenhouse 
                        gas emissions; and''.
    (c) In General.--Section 1240L of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 
U.S.C. 3839aa-24) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(m) Establishment of Climate Change Mitigation Bundles.--
            ``(1) Availability.--In entering into conservation 
        stewardship contracts under section 1240K, the Secretary shall 
        make State- or region-specific climate change mitigation 
        bundles available to producers in all regions of the country, 
        including by making available climate change mitigation bundles 
        appropriate to cropland, pastureland, rangeland, and forest 
        land.
            ``(2) Flexibility.--In designing climate change mitigation 
        bundles under this subsection, the Secretary shall, to the 
        maximum extent practicable, allow producers to select from 
        among conservation activities meeting the requirements of 
        paragraph (3)(A) in order to tailor a climate change mitigation 
        bundle to the site-specific needs of the producer.
            ``(3) Climate change mitigation bundle defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term `climate change mitigation bundle' means a 
        grouping of conservation activities determined by the 
        Secretary, based on the best available science, to achieve 
        substantial progress, when carried out together, toward--
                    ``(A) providing a net reduction of greenhouse gas 
                emissions; or
                    ``(B) increasing carbon sequestration and improving 
                soil health.''.
    (d) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the first 
        date on which climate change bundles are made available to 
        producers pursuant to section 1240L(m) of the Food Security Act 
        of 1985 (as added by this Act), the Secretary of Agriculture 
        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 on the activities carried 
        out under such section.
            (2) Contents.--The Secretary shall include in the report 
        submitted under paragraph (1)--
                    (A) a summary of feedback, from producers that have 
                adopted climate change mitigation bundles pursuant to 
                such section 1240L(m), regarding barriers to adoption 
                of such bundles, the makeup of such bundles, payment 
                rates for such bundles, technical assistance relating 
                to such bundles, and other relevant information;
                    (B) data on such producers, disaggregated by 
                gender, race, age, and congressional district;
                    (C) an assessment of barriers to the adoption by 
                producers of climate change mitigation bundles, as 
                identified by the Secretary; and
                    (D) recommendations on steps to increase the 
                adoption of climate change mitigation bundles by 
                producers, including recommendations for any statutory 
                changes necessary to implement such steps.
                                 <all>