Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.5992 | Sponsor: Rep. Axne, Cynthia (D-IA)
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 2021
This bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to take various actions to address transparency in pricing and contract terms in the cattle industry.
Among these requirements, USDA must (1) establish regional minimum percentages of cattle that meat packers must procure through negotiated purchases or negotiated grid purchases (i.e., transactions where the price is known and negotiated at the time of the transaction), and (2) maintain a publicly available catalog of contracts offered by meat packers to livestock producers for the purchase of fed cattle.

To amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to establish a cattle 
               contract library, 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 ``Cattle Price Discovery and 
Transparency Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 212 of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 
1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635a) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ``cattle,'' and inserting 
        ``cattle (including fed cattle),'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), 
        (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), and (14) as paragraphs (5), (6), 
        (7), (8), (10), (11), (12), (13), (15), (16), and (17), 
        respectively;
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
            ``(4) Fed cattle.--The term `fed cattle' means a steer or 
        heifer that has been finished on a ration of roughage and feed 
        concentrates, such as grains, protein meal, grass (forage), and 
        other nutrient-rich feeds, prior to slaughter.'';
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (8) (as so redesignated) 
        the following:
            ``(9) Negotiated grid purchase.--The term `negotiated grid 
        purchase' means a purchase of fed cattle by a packer from a 
        producer under which--
                    ``(A) the buyer-seller interaction results in a 
                negotiated base price, which may be adjusted by 
                premiums and discounts; and
                    ``(B) the fed cattle are scheduled for delivery to 
                the packer not more than 14 days after the date on 
                which the agreement for purchase is made.''; and
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (13) (as so redesignated) 
        the following:
            ``(14) Regional mandatory minimum.--The term `regional 
        mandatory minimum' means, for each reporting region (as 
        designated by the Agricultural Marketing Service), of the 
        quantity of cattle purchased for slaughter by a packer (as 
        defined in section 259(a)) in that region each current 
        slaughter week, the minimum percentage of such cattle that are 
        required to be purchased through negotiated purchases or 
        negotiated grid purchases from producers.''.
    (b) Cattle Reporting Definitions.--Section 221 of the Agricultural 
Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635d) is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
            ``(3) Formula marketing arrangement.--The term `formula 
        marketing arrangement' means the advance commitment of cattle 
        for slaughter--
                    ``(A) by any means other than through a negotiated 
                purchase, negotiated grid purchase, or forward 
                contract; and
                    ``(B) using a method for calculating price--
                            ``(i) under which the price is determined 
                        at a future date; and
                            ``(ii) the basis of which is a price 
                        established for a specified market, which may 
                        be based on any publicly reported price, 
                        including plant average price, regional price, 
                        downstream price, or some other mutually 
                        agreeable price source.'';
            (2) in paragraph (8)(B), by striking ``market'' and 
        inserting ``marketing'';
            (3) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), 
        and (8) as paragraphs (4), (5), (7), (8), (10), and (12), 
        respectively;
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
            ``(3) Contract.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `contract' means any 
                agreement, written or oral, between a packer and a 
                producer for the purchase of fed cattle for slaughter.
                    ``(B) Exclusion.--The term `contract' does not 
                include a contract for a negotiated purchase.'';
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (5) (as so redesignated) 
        the following:
            ``(6) Heifer.--The term `heifer' means a bovine female that 
        has not given birth to a calf.'';
            (6) by inserting after paragraph (8) (as so redesignated) 
        the following:
            ``(9) Steer.--The term `steer' means a bovine male 
        castrated before reaching sexual maturity.''; and
            (7) by inserting after paragraph (10) (as so redesignated) 
        the following:
            ``(11) Type of contract.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `type of contract' 
                means the classification of a contract for the purchase 
                of cattle--
                            ``(i) into 1 of the categories described in 
                        subparagraph (B); and
                            ``(ii) by determining the base price of the 
                        cattle.
                    ``(B) Categories.--The categories for 
                classification of a type of contract are the following:
                            ``(i) Formula marketing arrangement.
                            ``(ii) Forward contract.
                            ``(iii) Negotiated grid purchase 
                        contract.''.

SEC. 3. 14-DAY CATTLE SLAUGHTER.

    (a) Definition of Cattle Committed.--Section 221(1) of the 
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635d(1)) is amended by 
striking ``7-day'' and inserting ``14-day''.
    (b) Mandatory Reporting for Live Cattle.--Section 222(c) of the 
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635e(c)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C); and
                    (B) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as 
                subparagraph (B);
            (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``the information'' and 
        inserting ``information reported under this subsection'';
            (3) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) Prior day reporting.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The corporate officers or 
                officially designated representatives of each packer 
                processing plant shall report to the Secretary, for 
                each business day of the packer processing plant, not 
                later than 10:00 a.m. Central Time on each reporting 
                day, the information from the prior business day 
                described in subparagraph (B).
                    ``(B) Information required.--The information 
                required under subparagraph (A) shall be, with respect 
                to the prior business day, the number of cattle, 
                organized by cattle type, scheduled for delivery to a 
                packer processing plant for slaughter for each of the 
                next 14 calendar days.''.

SEC. 4. DAILY FORMULA BASE PRICE REPORTING.

    Section 222(c)(1)(A) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 
U.S.C. 1635e(c)(1)(A)) is amended in the matter preceding clause (i) by 
inserting ``(including base price information for cattle purchased 
through a formula marketing arrangement)'' after ``day''.

SEC. 5. EXPEDITED CARCASS WEIGHTS REPORTING.

    Section 222 of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 
1635e) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f) Expedited Carcass Weights.--
            ``(1) Determination.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        date of enactment of the Cattle Price Discovery and 
        Transparency Act of 2021, the Secretary shall determine the 
        minimum amount of time needed by the Secretary to publicly 
        report the daily average carcass weight of cattle slaughtered 
        by packer processing plants.
            ``(2) Reporting.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        Secretary has made a determination under paragraph (1), the 
        Secretary shall begin publicly reporting the information 
        described in that paragraph within the time determined under 
        that paragraph.''.

SEC. 6. CATTLE CONTRACT LIBRARY.

    Chapter 2 of subtitle B of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 223 (7 U.S.C. 1635f) as 
        section 224; and
            (2) by inserting after section 222 (7 U.S.C. 1635e) the 
        following:

``SEC. 223. CATTLE CONTRACT LIBRARY.

    ``(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations to 
carry out this section, the Secretary shall establish and maintain, 
through the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting program, a library or 
catalog of each type of contract offered by packers to producers for 
the purchase of all or part of the production of the producers of fed 
cattle (including cattle that are purchased or committed for delivery), 
including any schedules of premiums or discounts associated with the 
contract.
    ``(b) Information Collection.--
            ``(1) In general.--To maintain the library or catalog 
        established under subsection (a), the Secretary shall obtain 
        information from each packer on each type of existing contract 
        of the packer by requiring a filing or other form of 
        information submission from each packer.
            ``(2) Contracted cattle information.--Information submitted 
        to the Secretary by a packer under paragraph (1) shall include, 
        with respect to each existing contract of a packer--
                    ``(A) the type of contract;
                    ``(B) the duration of the contract;
                    ``(C) a summary of the contract terms;
                    ``(D) provisions in the contract that may affect 
                the price of cattle covered by the contract, including 
                schedules, premiums and discounts, and transportation 
                arrangements;
                    ``(E) the total number of cattle covered by the 
                contract solely committed to the packer each week 
                within the 6-month and 12-month periods following the 
                date of the contract, organized by reporting region;
                    ``(F) in the case of a contract in which a specific 
                number of cattle are not solely committed to the 
                packer--
                            ``(i) an indication that the contract is an 
                        open commitment; and
                            ``(ii) any weekly, monthly, annual, or 
                        other limitations on the number of cattle that 
                        may be delivered to the packer under the 
                        contract; and
                    ``(G) a description of the provisions in the 
                contract that provide for expansion in the numbers of 
                fed cattle to be delivered under the contract for the 
                6-month and 12-month periods following the date of the 
                contract.
    ``(c) Availability of Information.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall make publicly 
        available to producers and other interested persons information 
        (including the information described in subsection (b)(2)), in 
        a user-friendly format, on the types of contracts in the 
        library or catalog established under subsection (a), including 
        notice (on a real-time basis, if practicable) of the types of 
        contracts that are being offered by packers to, and are open to 
        acceptance by, producers for the purchase of fed cattle.
            ``(2) Monthly report.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Beginning 30 days after the 
                library or catalog is established under subsection (a), 
                the Secretary shall make the information obtained each 
                month in the library or catalog available in a monthly 
                report to producers and other interested persons.
                    ``(B) Contents.--The monthly report described in 
                subparagraph (A) shall include--
                            ``(i) based on the information collected 
                        under subsection (b)(2)(E), an estimate by the 
                        Secretary of the total number of fed cattle 
                        committed under contracts for delivery to 
                        packers within the 6-month and 12-month periods 
                        following the date of the report, organized by 
                        reporting region and type of contract;
                            ``(ii) based on the information collected 
                        under subsection (b)(2)(F), the number of 
                        contracts with an open commitment and any 
                        weekly, monthly, annual, or other limitations 
                        on the number of cattle that may be delivered 
                        under such contracts; and
                            ``(iii) based on the information collected 
                        under subsection (b)(2)(G), an estimate by the 
                        Secretary of the total maximum number of fed 
                        cattle that may be delivered within the 6-month 
                        and 12-month periods following the date of the 
                        report, organized by reporting region and type 
                        of contract.
    ``(d) Maintenance of Library or Catalog.--Information in the 
library or catalog established under subsection (a) about types of 
contracts that are no longer offered or in use shall be removed from 
the library or catalog.
    ``(e) Confidentiality.--The reporting requirements for packers 
under this section shall be subject to the confidentiality protections 
provided under section 251.
    ``(f) Violations.--It shall be unlawful and a violation of this Act 
for any packer to willfully fail or refuse--
            ``(1) to provide to the Secretary accurate information 
        required under this section; or
            ``(2) to comply with any other requirement of this section.
    ``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary such sums as are necessary to carry out 
this section.''.

SEC. 7. PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.

    Section 251(a) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 
1636(a)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and indenting 
        appropriately;
            (2) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) (as so 
        redesignated), by striking ``The Secretary shall make available 
        to the public information'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall make available to 
        the public all information''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Effect.--Nothing in this section permits the 
        Secretary, or any officer or employee of the Secretary, to 
        withhold from the public the information, statistics, and 
        documents described in paragraph (1).''.

SEC. 8. CASH MARKET ACQUISITION OF CATTLE.

    (a) Sense of the House of Representatives.--It is the sense of the 
House of Representatives that--
            (1) all participants in the fed cattle market have a 
        responsibility to contribute to regionally sufficient levels of 
        negotiated trade of fed cattle in all cattle feeding regions in 
        order to achieve robust price discovery; and
            (2) the Department of Agriculture should examine existing 
        academic literature regarding minimum levels of cash 
        transactions necessary to achieve robust price discovery and 
        enhance cattle producer leverage in the marketplace in each of 
        the cattle marketing regions.
    (b) Amendment.--Chapter 5 of subtitle B of the Agricultural 
Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1636 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating sections 259 and 260 as sections 260 
        and 261, respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after section 258 the following:

``SEC. 259. REGIONAL MANDATORY MINIMUMS FOR NEGOTIATED PURCHASES AND 
              NEGOTIATED GRID PURCHASES.

    ``(a) Definition of Packer.--
            ``(1) In general.--In this section, the term `packer' has 
        the meaning given the term in section 221.
            ``(2) Exclusion.--In this section, the term `packer' does 
        not include a packer that slaughters cattle at only 1 livestock 
        processing plant.
    ``(b) Establishment.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
        enactment of the Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 
        2021, the Secretary, in consultation with the Chief Economist, 
        shall establish--
                    ``(A) regional mandatory minimums for the purpose 
                of enhancing price discovery, transparency, and cattle 
                producer leverage for cattle market participants; and
                    ``(B) methods for establishing those regional 
                mandatory minimums, which shall be publicly available.
            ``(2) Purchases.--A packer shall, with respect to a packer 
        processing plant, purchase by negotiated purchase or negotiated 
        grid purchase the percentage of cattle required by the regional 
        mandatory minimum established for the region in which the 
        packer processing plant is located.
    ``(c) Public Input.--In carrying out subsection (b), the Secretary 
shall make all proposed regional mandatory minimums and proposed 
methods for establishing those minimums subject to a notice and comment 
period.
    ``(d) Duration.--Regional mandatory minimums established for each 
reporting region under subsection (b)(1) shall be applicable for not 
more than a 24-month period.
    ``(e) Considerations.--In carrying out subsection (b) for each 
reporting region, the Secretary, in consultation with the Chief 
Economist, shall consider the following factors:
            ``(1) The number of packers in the reporting region.
            ``(2) The availability of cattle in the reporting region.
            ``(3) Pre-existing contractual arrangements of packers in 
        the reporting region.
            ``(4) The number of pricing transactions (pens of cattle 
        sold) in the reporting region.
    ``(f) Initial Requirement.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the initial 
        regional mandatory minimums established for each reporting 
        region under subsection (b)(1) shall be not less than the 
        average percentage of negotiated purchases and negotiated grid 
        purchases in that region from the preceding 18 months.
            ``(2) Requirement.--No initial regional mandatory minimum 
        established for a reporting region under paragraph (1) shall 
        exceed 300 percent of the lowest initial regional mandatory 
        minimum established under that paragraph for a region that has 
        publicly reported a majority of weekly market information 
        during the previous 18 months.
    ``(g) Biannual Review.--On establishing regional mandatory minimums 
under subsection (b)(1), the Secretary--
            ``(1) shall review the regional mandatory minimums not less 
        frequently than once every 2 years; and
            ``(2) shall, in consultation with the Chief Economist--
                    ``(A) maintain existing regional mandatory 
                minimums; or
                    ``(B) modify the regional mandatory minimums 
                after--
                            ``(i) consulting with representatives of 
                        the United States cattle and beef industry; and
                            ``(ii) making the proposed modification 
                        subject to a notice and comment period.
    ``(h) Enforcement.--On establishing regional mandatory minimums 
under subsection (b)(1), the Secretary shall--
            ``(1) regularly monitor compliance by packers with those 
        regional mandatory minimums; and
            ``(2) enforce this section in accordance with section 203 
        of the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 (7 U.S.C. 193).
    ``(i) Cost-Benefit Analysis.--Not later than 2 years after 
establishing regional mandatory minimums under subsection (b)(1), the 
Secretary, in consultation with the Chief Economist, shall conduct a 
quantifiable, data-driven cost-benefit analysis regarding the operation 
and effect of those regional mandatory minimums.
    ``(j) Application.--This section shall apply only with respect to 
the reporting regions designated by the Agricultural Marketing 
Service.''.

SEC. 9. MAXIMUM PENALTY AMOUNT.

    The Secretary of Agriculture shall revise section 3.91(b)(1)(lvi) 
of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation), to 
establish a maximum civil penalty of $86,156, which shall be adjusted 
for inflation in the same manner and to the same extent as civil 
monetary penalties under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 
Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note).
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