Sec. 103. Urban agricultural land easements
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/bill/116/hr/5266/ih/section-103A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
The Secretary shall facilitate and provide funding for— the purchase by eligible entities of urban agricultural land easements in eligible land; and technical assistance to provide for the conservation of natural resources pursuant to an urban agricultural land easement plan. The Secretary shall protect the agricultural use, including grazing, and related conservation and food security values of eligible land through cost-share assistance to eligible entities for purchasing urban agricultural land easements. An agreement described in paragraph
(4)shall provide for a Federal share determined by the Secretary of an amount not to exceed 75 percent of the fair market value of the urban agricultural land easement, as determined by the Secretary using— the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice; an areawide market analysis or survey; or another industry-approved method. Under the agreement, the eligible entity shall provide a share that is at least 25 percent of the fair market value of the urban agricultural land easement in accordance with subparagraph (A). An eligible entity may include as part of its share under clause
(i)a charitable donation or qualified conservation contribution (as defined by section 170(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) from the private landowner if the eligible entity contributes its own cash resources in an amount that is at least 25 percent of the amount contributed by the Secretary. For purposes of subparagraph (B)(ii), the Secretary may waive any portion of the eligible entity cash contribution requirement for projects of special significance, subject to an increase in the private landowner donation that is equal to the amount of the waiver, if the donation is voluntary and the property is in active agricultural production. The Secretary shall establish evaluation and ranking criteria to maximize the benefit of Federal investment under the program. In establishing the criteria, the Secretary shall emphasize support for— improving community food security; and facilitating improved access to cropland for beginning and socially disadvantaged producers and producer groups. If the Secretary determines that 2 or more applications for cost-share assistance are comparable in achieving the purpose of the program, the Secretary shall not assign a higher priority to any of those applications solely on the basis of lesser cost to the program. The Secretary shall enter into agreements with eligible entities to stipulate the terms and conditions under which the eligible entity is permitted to use cost-share assistance provided under this section. An agreement shall be for a term that is— in the case of an eligible entity certified under the process described in paragraph (5), a minimum of 5 years; and for all other eligible entities, at least 3, but not more than 5 years. An eligible entity shall be authorized to use its own terms and conditions for urban agricultural land easements so long as the Secretary determines such terms and conditions— are consistent with the purposes of the program; permit effective enforcement of the purposes of such easements; include a right of enforcement for the Secretary, that may be used only if the terms of the easement are not enforced by the holder of the easement; subject the land in which an interest is purchased to an urban agricultural land easement plan that describes the activities which promote the long-term viability of the land to meet the purposes for which the easement was acquired; and do not limit the generation of profit through agricultural activities on the land. An agreement shall allow, upon mutual agreement of the parties, substitution of qualified projects that are identified at the time of the proposed substitution. If a violation occurs of a term or condition of an agreement under this subsection— the Secretary may terminate the agreement; and the Secretary may require the eligible entity to refund all or part of any payments received by the entity under the program, with interest on the payments as determined appropriate by the Secretary. The Secretary shall establish a process under which the Secretary may— directly certify eligible entities that meet established criteria; enter into long-term agreements with certified eligible entities; and accept proposals for cost-share assistance for the purchase of urban agricultural land easements throughout the duration of such agreements. In order to be certified, an eligible entity shall demonstrate to the Secretary that the entity will maintain, at a minimum, for the duration of the agreement— a plan for administering easements that is consistent with the purpose of the program; the capacity and resources to monitor and enforce urban agricultural land easements; and policies and procedures to ensure— the long-term integrity of urban agricultural land easements on eligible land; timely completion of acquisitions of such easements; and timely and complete evaluation and reporting to the Secretary on the use of funds provided under the program. The Secretary shall conduct a review of eligible entities certified under subparagraph
(A)every three years to ensure that such entities are meeting the criteria established under subparagraph (B). If the Secretary finds that a certified eligible entity no longer meets the criteria established under subparagraph (B), the Secretary may— allow the certified eligible entity a specified period of time, at a minimum 180 days, in which to take such actions as may be necessary to meet the criteria; and revoke the certification of the eligible entity, if, after the specified period of time, the certified eligible entity does not meet such criteria. The Secretary shall enroll eligible land under this section through the use of— permanent easements; or easements for the maximum duration allowed under applicable State laws. The Secretary may provide technical assistance, if requested, to assist in— compliance with the terms and conditions of easements; and implementation of an urban agricultural land easement plan. Of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use to carry out this title $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter. There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter.