Sec. 1404. Duties of the Secretary

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Section 1238G(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(a) ) is amended to read as follows: To achieve the conservation goals of a contract under the conservation stewardship program, the Secretary shall— make the program available to eligible producers on a continuous enrollment basis with 1 or more ranking periods, one of which shall occur in the first third of each fiscal year; identify priority resource concerns in a particular watershed or other appropriate region or area within a State; for any region or area that includes any part of a nutrient-impacted watershed (as determined by the Secretary), ensure that one of the priority resource concerns identified under paragraph

(2)is water pollution caused by excess nutrient loads; develop reliable conservation measurement tools for purposes of carrying out the program; and ensure that conservation measurement tools are transparent and available to producers by— making interactive, user-friendly conservation measurement tools publically available online; making conservation activity natural resource and environmental benefit scores available in an easy to understand format for study both before and during application; and taking other similar steps, as determined by the Secretary. . Section 1238G(b) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(b) ) is amended— in paragraph (1), by striking primarily ; and in paragraph (2), in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking also . Section 1238G(d) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(d) ) is amended— in paragraph (1), by striking 12,769,000 and inserting 10,000,000 ; and in paragraph (2), by striking $18 and inserting $23 . Section 1238G(e)(1)(B) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(e)(1)(B) ) is amended by striking at the operation of the producer and inserting on the agricultural operation of the producer . Section 1238G(e)(2) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(e)(2) ) is amended to read as follows: The amount of the conservation stewardship payment shall be determined by the Secretary and based, to the maximum extent practicable, on the following factors: Costs incurred by the producer associated with planning, design, materials, installation, labor, management, maintenance, or training. Income forgone by the producer. Expected natural resource and environmental benefits resulting from existing and proposed conservation treatment, based to the maximum extent possible on conservation measurement tools. In applying subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall, where applicable, differentiate between— improving, maintaining, and managing conservation activities in place on the agricultural operation at the time the contract offer is accepted by the Secretary; and installing and adopting additional conservation activities on the agricultural operation. . Section 1238G(e) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(e) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: A payment to a producer under this subsection shall be not less than $1,500 per year. If a contract requires a comprehensive conservation plan the implementation of which will, by the end of the contract term, meet or exceed the stewardship threshold for all priority resource concerns, the minimum payment shall be not less than $3,000. . Section 1238G(f) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(f) ) is amended to read as follows: The Secretary shall provide additional payments to producers that, in participating in the program, agree to— improve, maintain, and manage, or adopt and maintain— resource-conserving crop rotations; or managed intensive rotational grazing; or transition to organic crop or livestock systems. In this subsection, the term resource-conserving crop rotation means a crop rotation that— includes at least 1 resource conserving crop (as defined by the Secretary); reduces erosion; improves water quality; improves soil fertility and tilth; interrupts pest cycles; and in applicable areas, reduces depletion of soil moisture or otherwise reduces the need for irrigation. In this subsection, the term managed intensive rotational grazing means a system in which animals are regularly and systematically moved to fresh pasture in such a way as to— maximize the quantity and quality of forage growth; improve manure distribution and nutrient cycling; increase carbon sequestration from greater forage harvest; improve the quantity and quality of cover for wildlife; provide permanent cover to protect the soil from erosion; and improve water quality. In this subsection, the term transition to organic crop or livestock systems means adoption of conservation activities for certified organic production on land or for herds not previously certified organic that meet all the requirements of the program and that are consistent with the regulations promulgated under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.). . Section 1238G(g) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(g) ) is amended to read as follows: A person or legal entity may not receive, directly or indirectly, payments under this subchapter that, in the aggregate, exceed $200,000 for all contracts entered into during any 5-year period, excluding funding arrangements with federally recognized Indian tribes or Alaska Native corporations, regardless of the number of contracts entered into under the program by the person or entity. Any acres enrolled in the program that will not receive payments due to the limitation in paragraph

(1)shall not be counted toward the acreage limitation in subsection (d)(1). . Section 1238G(h) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(h) ) is amended by redesignating paragraphs

(1)and

(2)as paragraphs

(2)and (3), respectively, and by inserting before paragraph

(2)(as so redesignated) the following new paragraph: require participants in the program to be actively engaged in farming or ranching; . Section 1238G(i) of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g(i) ) is amended to read as follows: The Secretary shall maintain detailed and segmented data on contracts and payments under the program to allow, at a minimum, with respect to each contract— quantification of the type and extent of conservation activities for which payments were made; quantification of the amount of payments made for— the installation and adoption of additional conservation activities and improvements to conservation activities in place on the operation of a producer at the time the conservation stewardship offer is accepted by the Secretary; and the maintenance of existing conservation activities; and identification of the watershed and county in which the agricultural operation receiving payments is located. . Section 1238G of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g ) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: The Secretary shall provide payments for conservation activities related to organic production. As a condition for receiving payments under the program, a producer shall agree to develop and implement conservation activities for certified organic production that are consistent with the regulations promulgated under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) and the purposes of the program. The Secretary shall provide planning assistance to producers transitioning to certified organic production consistent with the requirements of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.) and the purposes of this subchapter. The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, eliminate duplication of planning activities for a producer participating in a contract under this subchapter and initiating or maintaining organic certification consistent with the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.). . Section 1238G of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3838g ), as amended by subsection (i), is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: The Secretary shall provide technical and financial assistance to producers under the program to develop a comprehensive conservation plan for the agricultural operation of the producer. .

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U.S. Code

Purposes
§ 6501

11 references not yet in our index

16 USC 3838g(a)
16 USC 3838g(b)
16 USC 3838g(d)
16 USC 3838g(e)(1)(B)
16 USC 3838g(e)(2)
16 USC 3838g(e)
16 USC 3838g(f)
16 USC 3838g(g)
16 USC 3838g(h)
16 USC 3838g(i)
16 USC 3838g

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cites case law

Sec. 1404

Duties of the Secretary

U.S.C.§ 6501

Cite16 USC 3838g(a)

Cite16 USC 3838g(b)

Cite16 USC 3838g(d)

Cite16 USC 3838g(e)(1)(B)

Cite16 USC 3838g(e)(2)

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