Farm Subsidy Transparency Act

Bill: 117-hr-3794
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Rush, Bobby L. [D-IL-1]
Introduced: 2021-06-08
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Agricultural insurance

Agricultural prices, subsidies, credit

Congressional oversight

Consumer credit

Government information and archives

Minority and disadvantaged businesses

Small business

Women in business
Latest action: action_date: 2021-06-08
text: Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-06-08
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Farm Subsidy Transparency Act</strong></p> <p>This bill requires the collection and disclosure of demographic and other information about recipients of agricultural benefits.</p> <p>Specifically, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) must collect and make publicly available (1) the race and gender of individuals who directly or indirectly received or applied for certain benefits, such as grants or other funding under USDA's commodity, conservation, research, extension, and education programs; and (2) the farm or ranch acreage of the recipients of such benefits.</p> <p>USDA must also collect and track the race and gender of individuals who register for the USDA service center information management system (a repository of participants in programs offered by USDA's Farm Service Agency, Natural Resource and Conservation Service, and rural development agencies).</p> <p>Additionally, the Commodity Credit Corporation must collect and disclose (1) the race and gender of individuals who receive or apply for benefits from the corporation, and (2) the farm or ranch acreage of the recipients of such benefits. </p> <p>The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation must collect and disclose (1) the name, race, gender, and farm or ranch acreage of individuals who receive federally subsidized insurance for crops, livestock, or forage; and (2) the premium subsidy amount for each recipient. </p> <p>The bill also requires financial institutions to gather demographic information in response to loan applications for farms and ranches that are minority-owned or women-owned. (Currently, institutions must gather that information in response to loan applications from women-owned and minority-owned small businesses.)</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3794 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES June 8, 2021 Mr. Rush introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture , and in addition to the Committee on Financial Services , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to track the distribution of all farm subsidies by race, gender, and size of the farm operation and to make such information about farm subsidies available to the public.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Farm Subsidy Transparency Act . 2. Data on receipt of benefits under Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 Subtitle G of title I of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 ( Public Law 115–334 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: 1708. Data on those receiving benefits As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this section and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall— (1) track— (A) the benefits provided, directly or indirectly, to individuals and entities under this title, title II, and title VII and the amendments made by those titles, including— (i) the race and gender of the individuals directly or indirectly receiving the benefits; (ii) the race and gender of individual receiving the benefits through an entity and the race and gender of all individuals who comprise such entity; and (iii) the rented, owned, or controlled acreage of the farm or ranch of the recipient; and (B) the race and gender of individuals who applied for the benefits described in subparagraph (A) and did not receive such benefits; (2) annually make the information tracked pursuant to paragraph (1) publicly available on the website of the Department of Agriculture; and (3) annually submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate, a report that includes the information tracked pursuant to paragraph (1). . 3. Disclosure of certain information relating to individuals and entities that obtained Federal crop insurance (a) In general Section 506(m) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1506(m) ) is amended— (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (5); and (2) by inserting after paragraph (3), the following: (4) Collection and release of information in the public interest (A) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, except as provided in subparagraph (C), the Corporation shall on an annual basis shall require the collection of— (i) the name, race, and gender of each individual or each individual that comprises an entity that directly or indirectly obtained a federally subsidized crop insurance, livestock, or forage policy or plan of insurance during the previous reinsurance year or had a substantial beneficial interest in such entity; (ii) the rented, owned, or controlled acreage of the farm or ranch attributable to individuals disclosed under clause (i); and (iii) the amount of premium subsidy received, directly or indirectly, by an individual or entity from the Corporation, including individuals receiving benefits through an entity, and the race and gender of each such individual or each individual that comprises such an entity. (B) Release of information Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Corporation shall annually release to the public the information described in subparagraph (A) by individual, entity, and agricultural operation. . (b) Conforming amendment Section 502(c)(2) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1502(c)(2) ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (C) Mandatory disclosure The Corporation shall disclose information to the public described in section 506(m)(4). . 4. Benefits under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act Section 5 ( 15 U.S.C. 714c ) of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act is amended by adding at the end the following: The Secretary shall track the benefits provided, directly or indirectly, to individuals and entities under this section, including the race and gender of the individuals directly receiving the benefits or receiving the benefits through an entity, and the rented, owned, or controlled acreage of the farm or ranch of the recipient. The Secretary shall also track the race and gender of the individuals who applied for the benefits described in the preceding sentence and did not receive such benefits. The Secretary shall annually make the information tracked pursuant to the preceding two sentences publicly available on the website of the Department of Agriculture and annually submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate, a report that includes such information. . 5. Farm credit transparency Section 704B(b) of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act ( 15 U.S.C. 1691c–2(b) ) is amended by inserting farm or ranch, after minority-owned, both places it appears. 6. Service center information management system The Secretary of Agriculture shall collect and track the race and gender of any individual, or in the case of an entity, the individuals comprising such entity, that registers on the service center information management system of the Department of Agriculture.