Sec. 2703. Regional conservation partnerships
1,342 words·~6 min read·
/bill/118/s/5335/is/section-2703A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Section 1271B of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3871b ) is amended— in subsection (b)— by striking paragraph
(1)and inserting the following: A partnership agreement shall be for a period not to exceed 5 years, subject to renewal or extension. ; in paragraph (2), by inserting not more than one time after renewed under subsection (e)(5) ; in paragraph (3), by striking of a partnership agreement and all that follows through 12 months, and inserting thereof, may each be extended under subsection (e)(6) not more than 2 times for a period of not longer than 24 months each, ; and by adding at the end the following: A partnership agreement entered into on or after the date of enactment of the Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act of 2024 shall not affect, modify, or interfere with any partnership agreement in effect on the day before that date of enactment. To implement the amendments made to this subsection by the Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act of 2024 — the signatories to a partnership agreement in effect on the day before the date of enactment of that Act may mutually agree to a modification of the length of, and options for renewals and extensions available for, that partnership agreement; and the Secretary shall provide an opportunity for the signatories to a partnership agreement described in clause
(i)to modify the partnership agreement pursuant to that clause without requiring the renegotiation of any other provision of the partnership agreement. ; in subsection (c)— in paragraph (1)— in the paragraph heading, by striking and inserting In general ; and Mandatory duties in subparagraph (E)— in clause (i), by striking each conservation benefit and all that follows through ; and and inserting the conservation benefits of the partnership agreement; ; by redesignating clause
(ii)as clause (iii); by inserting after clause
(i)the following: any barriers that prevented the project from achieving the conservation benefits of the partnership agreement; and ; and in clause
(iii)(as so redesignated), by striking project and inserting project and lessons learned through the implementation of the project ; by redesignating paragraph
(2)as paragraph (3); by inserting after paragraph
(1)the following: Under a partnership agreement, the eligible partner may— provide technical and financial assistance to producers to design, implement, and monitor eligible activities on eligible land; and contract or establish sub-agreements or grants for financial or technical assistance, including performance-based payments, with producers or other entities to carry out the project. ; and in paragraph
(3)(as so redesignated)— by striking subparagraph
(A)and inserting the following: An eligible partner shall provide a significant contribution towards the implementation of the project that is the subject of the agreement entered into under subsection (a), as determined by the Secretary. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a contribution of an eligible partner under this paragraph may be used to meet matching or cost participation requirements under other Federal programs (other than Department of Agriculture programs) and non-Federal programs. ; and in subparagraph (B)— in clause (ii), by striking or at the end; by redesignating clause
(iii)as clause (iv); by inserting after clause
(ii)the following: project financing that helps expedite project implementation; or ; and in clause
(iv)(as so redesignated) by striking and in-kind support and inserting , in-kind support, or financing ; in subsection (d)— in paragraph (1), by striking subparagraphs
(A)through
(C)and inserting the following: finalizing the partnership agreement not later than 180 days after the date on which the Secretary announces the awarding of the partnership agreement; finalizing renewal or extension agreements not later than 120 days after the date of approval of the renewal or extension; reimbursing eligible partners not later than 30 days after the date of submission of a complete reimbursement request; in the case of a partnership agreement that is funded through an alternative funding arrangement or grant agreement under section 1271C(b), reimbursing eligible partners not later than 30 days after the date of a complete submission of receipts for the payments made to producers by the eligible partner for carrying out eligible activities; in the case of a project focused on delivering eligible activities described in section 1271A(3)(B), identifying appropriate timelines to finalize partnership agreements, renewals, and extensions based on the innovative nature of the eligible activities proposed for the project while ensuring that review of agreements, renewals, and extensions takes place as soon as practicable; providing payments to an eligible partner for goods and services that support program implementation, as identified by the Secretary; and in the case of a cost-share agreement with an eligible entity (as defined in section 1265A) in an approved project area, provide payments to the eligible entity to assist with the purchase of an easement on eligible land with a producer; ; by striking paragraphs
(4)and (5); by redesignating paragraph
(3)as paragraph (4); by inserting after paragraph
(2)the following: make covered program authorities, such as entity certification under section 1265B(b)(5), available, but not required, in the implementation of a partnership agreement; ; in paragraph
(4)(as so redesignated), by striking guidance and inserting guidance, including suggested quantification models, ; and by adding at the end the following: make funding available to not-for-profit entities and land-grant colleges and universities (as defined in section 1404 of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 ( 7 U.S.C. 3103 )) to make assessment tools more broadly available to eligible partners; and publish public-facing reports submitted by the eligible partner under subsection (c)(1)(F) not later than 90 days after the date of expiration of the term of the partnership agreement. ; in subsection (e)— in paragraph (3)(B), by striking project's objectives and inserting objectives, including the conservation benefits, of the project ; in paragraph (4)— by striking subparagraphs (B), (C), and (E); by redesignating subparagraphs (D), (F), (G), and
(H)as subparagraphs (B), (D), (E), and (F), respectively; in subparagraph
(B)(as so redesignated), by inserting Tribal, after State, ; by inserting after subparagraph
(B)(as so redesignated) the following: demonstrate that a significant number of historically underserved producers will benefit from the project; ; in subparagraph
(D)(as so redesignated), by striking area restoration plans and inserting area-wide plans ; and in subparagraph
(F)(as so redesignated), by inserting emerging before factors ; and by adding at the end the following: If the Secretary determines that a project that is the subject of a partnership agreement has made substantial progress towards meeting the objectives of the project, the Secretary may extend the partnership agreement if the 1 or more eligible partners that are parties to the partnership agreement request the extension in order to continue to implement the project under an extension of the partnership agreement. The granting of an extension under paragraph
(6)does not preclude the subsequent granting of a renewal under paragraph (5), and vice versa. ; by redesignating subsection
(f)as subsection (h); and by inserting after subsection
(e)the following: Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall not provide more than $25,000,000 under a partnership agreement. In the case of a partnership agreement renewed under subsection (e)(5), the Secretary may provide not more than an additional $25,000,000 under the partnership agreement. Subject to paragraph (2), a producer party to a contract entered into under this subtitle may— subject to section 1235(j), enroll the land enrolled under the contract in the conservation reserve program established under subchapter B of chapter 1 of subtitle D; subject to section 1240B(d)(6), enroll the land enrolled under the contract in the environmental quality incentives program established under subchapter A of chapter 4 of subtitle D; or both enroll land in accordance with subparagraph
(A)and receive a cost-share assistance in accordance with subparagraph (B). A producer shall not be eligible for payments for practices on eligible land under the program if the producer receives payments or other benefits for the same practice on the same land under another program under this title. .
Connectionstraces to 2
Traces to 2 documents
Citation graph
cites case law
Cites 2Cited by 0 across 0 sources