Sec. 103. Equity Commission
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There is established in the Department of Agriculture the Equity Commission, the purposes of which are— to study historical and continuing discrimination by the Department of Agriculture against Black farmers and ranchers that is fostered or perpetuated by the laws, policies, or practices of the Department of Agriculture; and to recommend actions to end the systematic disparities in treatment of Black farmers and ranchers, particularly by the Department of Agriculture. The Commission shall be composed of 9 members, to be appointed by the Secretary, of whom— 3 shall be Black farmers or ranchers with not less than 10 years of experience in farming or ranching; 3 shall be employees or board members of nonprofit organizations that have not less than 7 years of experience providing meaningful agricultural, business assistance, legal assistance, or advocacy services to Black farmers or ranchers; and 3 shall be faculty or staff from 1890 Institutions (as defined in section 2 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 ( 7 U.S.C. 7601 )) or the University of the District of Columbia.
The appointments of the members of the Commission shall be made not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act. A member of the Commission shall be appointed for the life of the Commission. A vacancy in the Commission— shall not affect the powers of the Commission; and shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. Not later than 30 days after the date on which all members of the Commission have been appointed, the Commission shall hold the first meeting of the Commission.
The Commission shall meet at the call of the Chairperson. A majority of the members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may hold hearings. The Commission shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson from among the members of the Commission. The Commission shall study discrimination against Black farmers and ranchers by the Department of Agriculture, including by conducting investigations of— the prevalence of discrimination against Black farmers and ranchers in Department of Agriculture agencies and programs, including Farm Service Agency county committees; and the status of claimants who filed for relief under the settlement agreement and consent decree in Pigford v.
Glickman, 185 F.R.D. 82 (D.D.C. 1999) or the settlement agreement in Black Farmers Discrimination Litigation, Misc. No. 08–mc–0511 (PLF), with a particular focus on the status of claimants who did not receive payments. The Commission shall develop recommendations for— ending the systematic disparities in treatment of Black farmers and ranchers, particularly by the Department of Agriculture; improving the structure of Farm Service Agency county committees to better serve socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, including, if necessary, recommending the elimination and replacement of those committees; and addressing any mishandling of payments identified through studying the matters under paragraph (1)(B).
In studying the matters under paragraph
(1)and developing recommendations under paragraph (2), the Commission shall— consult with the Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Policy Research Center; and hold town hall meetings with socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, researchers, and civil rights advocates. Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall make publicly available a detailed report that describes— the findings of the study under paragraph (1); and the recommendations developed under paragraph (2). The Commission shall hold open, televised, and public hearings, during which the Commission may sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony, and receive such evidence as the Commission considers advisable to carry out this section. The Commission may secure directly from a Federal department or agency such information as the Commission considers necessary to carry out this section. On request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of the department or agency shall furnish the information to the Commission. The Commission may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and agencies of the Federal Government. The Commission may accept, use, and dispose of gifts or donations of services or property. A member of the Commission who is not an officer or employee of the Federal Government shall be compensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, for each day (including travel time) during which the member is engaged in the performance of the duties of the Commission. A member of the Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services for the Commission. The Chairperson of the Commission may, without regard to the civil service laws (including regulations), appoint and terminate an executive director and such other additional personnel as may be necessary to enable the Commission to perform its duties, except that the employment of an executive director shall be subject to confirmation by the Commission. The Chairperson of the Commission may fix the compensation of the executive director and other personnel without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, relating to classification of positions and General Schedule pay rates, except that the rate of pay for the executive director and other personnel may not exceed the rate payable for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of that title. A Federal Government employee may be detailed to the Commission without reimbursement, and such detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege. The Chairperson of the Commission may procure temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates for individuals that do not exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of that title. The Commission shall terminate on the date that is 30 days after the date on which the Commission makes publicly available the report under subsection (b)(4). There are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2030 such sums as are necessary to carry out this section.
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Sec. 103
Equity Commission
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