Title: Collaborative Water and Soil Enhancement Act of 2018
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Collaborative Water and Soil Enhancement Act of 2018
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to establish requirements for Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation programs regarding: (1) nutrient and soil health management, and (2) source water protection.
In carrying out the Conservation Stewardship Program and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, USDA must:
USDA must also provide a streamlined certification process for third-party technical service providers that have certain certifications from the American Society of Agronomy.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4892 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4892

  To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 with respect to nutrient and 
   soil health management and source water protection, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 29, 2018

  Ms. Fudge introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                        Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 with respect to nutrient and 
   soil health management and source water protection, 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 ``Collaborative Water and Soil 
Enhancement Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. NUTRIENT AND SOIL HEALTH MANAGEMENT.

    (a) In General.--Section 1244 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 
U.S.C. 3844) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(m) Nutrient and Soil Health Management.--In carrying out the 
conservation stewardship program and the environmental quality 
incentives program, the Secretary shall enroll not less than 5 million 
acres annually, in watersheds where nutrient delivery to hypoxic zones 
is highest, to provide payments to producers for conservation 
activities or practices that promote nutrient and soil health 
management, as determined by the Secretary.''.
    (b) Technical Assistance.--Section 1242(e) of the Food Security Act 
of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3842(e)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(4) Certified crop advisors.--The Secretary shall provide 
        a streamlined certification process under this subsection for 
        third-party providers that have a 4R Nutrient Management 
        Specialty Certification or a Sustainability Specialty 
        Certification from the American Society of Agronomy.''.

SEC. 3. SOURCE WATER PROTECTION THROUGH TARGETING OF AGRICULTURE 
              PRACTICES.

    Section 1244 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3844), as 
amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(n) Source Water Protection.--
            ``(1) In general.--In carrying out the conservation 
        stewardship program and the environmental quality incentives 
        program, the Secretary shall encourage practices that relate to 
        water quality or water quantity that protect source waters for 
        drinking water (including protecting against public health 
        threats) while also benefitting agricultural producers.
            ``(2) Collaboration with drinking water utilities and 
        increased incentives.--In encouraging practices under paragraph 
        (1), the Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) work collaboratively with community water 
                systems and State technical committees established 
                under section 1261 to identify, in each State, local 
                priority areas for the protection of source waters for 
                drinking water; and
                    ``(B) for practices that relate to water quality or 
                water quantity that result in benefits that primarily 
                occur outside of the land on which the practices are 
                implemented, offer increased incentives and higher 
                cost-share rates to producers than are otherwise 
                statutorily authorized through the conservation 
                stewardship program and the environmental quality 
                incentives program.
            ``(3) Reservation of funds and acres.--In each of fiscal 
        years 2019 through 2023, the Secretary shall use not less than 
        10 percent of any funds or acres available with respect to the 
        conservation stewardship program and the environmental quality 
        incentives program, in carrying out this subsection, to target 
        the most effective practices for improving the quality or 
        quantity of source water.
            ``(4) Priority.--In carrying out this subsection, the 
        Secretary shall give priority--
                    ``(A) to practices determined by the Secretary, 
                using the Conservation Practices Physical Effects 
                matrix developed by the Secretary, to be the most 
                effective; and
                    ``(B) to practices implemented in local priority 
                areas identified under paragraph (2)(A).''.
                                 <all>