[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5203 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5203
To establish in the Department of Agriculture an Office of Agritourism,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 11, 2023
Ms. Wexton (for herself, Mr. Newhouse, Ms. Blunt Rochester, Mr.
Panetta, Mr. Valadao, Mr. Harder of California, and Mr. Rouzer)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish in the Department of Agriculture an Office of Agritourism,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Accelerating the Growth of Rural
Innovation and Tourism Opportunities to Uphold Rural Industries and
Sustainable Marketplaces Act'' or the ``AGRITOURISM Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) agritourism provides a range of unique experiences to
the public, including--
(A) education, such as school tours, garden and
nursery tours, winery tours, historical agricultural
exhibits, hops and microbrewery tours, and distillery
tours;
(B) outdoor recreation, such as river activities,
mountain biking, horseback riding, wildlife viewing and
photography, fee fishing and hunting, wagon and sleigh
rides, cross-country skiing, game preserves, and clay
bird shooting;
(C) entertainment, such as concerts and special
events, culinary experiences, festivals, fairs,
interaction with farm animals, and weddings;
(D) direct sales, such as on-farm sales, farm
stands, agriculture-related crafts and gifts, u-pick
operations, u-cut tree farms, wineries, breweries,
cideries, distilleries, and cut flowers;
(E) accommodations, such as bed-and-breakfast inns,
farm and ranch vacations, yurts, sheep wagons, and
guest ranches; and
(F) dining on a farm;
(2) agritourism has financial, educational, and social
benefits to communities; and
(3) agritourism continues--
(A) to offer educational opportunities for children
and families;
(B) to generate supplemental income for owners of
agricultural enterprises, which are often small or
family-run businesses;
(C) to spur economic development in rural
communities;
(D) to preserve agricultural heritage; and
(E) to help farms diversify.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, to
further realize the benefits of agritourism to communities, the
Secretary of Agriculture should incorporate agritourism into the
Department of Agriculture comprehensively.
SEC. 3. OFFICE OF AGRITOURISM.
(a) In General.--The Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act
of 1994 is amended by inserting after section 216 (7 U.S.C. 6916) the
following:
``SEC. 217. OFFICE OF AGRITOURISM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of
the Office of Agritourism described in subsection (c).
``(2) State.--The term `State' means--
``(A) each of the several States of the United
States;
``(B) the District of Columbia; and
``(C) any territory of the United States.
``(b) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish in the
Department an Office of Agritourism.
``(c) Director.--The Secretary shall appoint a senior official to
serve as the Director of the Office of Agritourism.
``(d) Duties.--The Director shall encourage and promote, in each
State, agritourism activities and agritourism businesses, including--
``(1) educational experiences;
``(2) outdoor recreation;
``(3) entertainment and special events;
``(4) direct sales;
``(5) accommodations; and
``(6) any other activity or business relating to
agritourism, as determined by the Secretary.
``(e) Means of Achieving.--In carrying out subsection (d), the
Director shall--
``(1) coordinate with the agencies and officials of the
Department;
``(2) advise the Secretary on issues relating to
agritourism;
``(3) ensure that the programs of the Department are
updated to address best agritourism practices;
``(4) conduct outreach to stakeholders and coordinate
external partnerships to share best practices, provide
mentorship, and offer technical assistance to agritourism
businesses;
``(5) facilitate interagency program coordination and
develop interagency tools for the promotion of agritourism
programs and resources;
``(6) review and improve farm enterprise development
programs that provide information about financial literacy,
business planning, and marketing for agritourism;
``(7) coordinate networks of agritourism businesses; and
``(8) collaborate with other Federal agencies, as
needed.''.
(b) Technical Amendment.--The Department of Agriculture
Reorganization Act of 1994 is amended by redesignating the first
section 225 (7 U.S.C. 6925) (relating to the Food Access Liaison) as
section 224A.
(c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 296(b) of the Department of
Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7014(b)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(11) The authority of the Secretary to carry out section
217.''.
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