Title: Homegrown Organic Act of 2017
Policy area: Agriculture and Food

Summary:
Homegrown Organic Act of 2017
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to modify several Department of Agriculture conservation programs to authorize additional assistance for farmers who are transitioning to organic farming. The bill modifies the Conservation Reserve Program, the Conservation Stewardship Program, and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2215 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2215

   To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to better assist producers 
  desiring to voluntarily transition into organic production systems.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 11, 2017

   Mr. Casey introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to better assist producers 
  desiring to voluntarily transition into organic production systems.

    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 ``Homegrown Organic Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. PROGRAMS FOR PRODUCERS TRANSITIONING TO ORGANIC PRODUCTION 
              SYSTEMS.

    (a) Payments Under the Conservation Reserve Program.--Section 
1234(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3834(c)) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and indenting 
        appropriately;
            (2) by inserting after ``(c) Incentive Payments.--'' the 
        following:
            ``(1) Thinning and other practices promoting forest 
        management and wildlife habitat.--'';
            (3) in paragraph (1)(B) (as redesignated), by striking 
        ``paragraph (1)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (A)''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Organic farming and ranching.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall offer an 
                incentive payment to an owner or operator of eligible 
                land in an amount that the Secretary determines is 
                sufficient to encourage the voluntary transition of the 
                eligible land to organic farming or ranching 
                immediately following the termination of the contract 
                under this subchapter that covers the eligible land.
                    ``(B) Organic certification process.--In carrying 
                out subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall allow the 
                owner or operator to begin the organic certification 
                process under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 
                (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) beginning on the date that is 1 
                year before the date of termination of the contract 
                under this subchapter.
                    ``(C) Terms of payment.--The Secretary--
                            ``(i) shall make payments under 
                        subparagraph (A) for a period of not less than 
                        2 years beginning on the date of termination of 
                        the contract under this subchapter; and
                            ``(ii) may establish an annual limitation 
                        on the number of acres of eligible land for 
                        which an incentive payment is made under 
                        subparagraph (A) if the Secretary determines 
                        that the limitation is necessary to mitigate 
                        significant erosion of organic commodity 
                        premiums.''.
    (b) Coordination With Organic Certification Under the Conservation 
Stewardship Program.--Section 1238G(h) of the Food Security Act of 1985 
(16 U.S.C. 3838g(h)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(h) Coordination With Organic 
        Certification.--The Secretary'' and inserting the following:
    ``(h) Organic Certification.--
            ``(1) Coordination.--The Secretary''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Transition.--The Secretary shall establish suites of 
        organic transition conservation activities to be available 
        through the program for cropping systems and grazing 
        systems.''.
    (c) Removal of Payment Limitations Under the Environmental Quality 
Incentives Program.--Section 1240B(i) of the Food Security Act of 1985 
(16 U.S.C. 3839aa-2(i)) is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (3); and
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as paragraphs 
        (3) and (4), respectively.

SEC. 3. FUNDING AND ADMINISTRATION.

    Section 1241(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 
3841(a)) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
        ``2018'' and inserting ``2023''; and
            (2) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A)--
                            (i) by striking ``section 1234(c)'' and 
                        inserting ``section 1234(c)(1)''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``and'' at the end;
                    (B) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as 
                subparagraph (C); and
                    (C) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the 
                following:
                    ``(B) $50,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 
                2019 through 2023 to provide payments under section 
                1234(c)(2); and''.
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