[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6287 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6287
To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to improve
the Rural Energy for America Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 21, 2025
Mr. Vindman (for himself and Mr. Valadao) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to improve
the Rural Energy for America Program, 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 ``Rural Energy for America Program
Modernization Act of 2025'' or the ``REAP Modernization Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. RURAL ENERGY FOR AMERICA PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Section 9007 of the Farm Security and Rural
Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8107) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as
subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and indenting
appropriately;
(B) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) (as so
redesignated), by striking ``The Secretary'' and
inserting the following:
``(1) In general.--The Secretary'';
(C) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), in the
matter preceding subparagraph (A) (as so redesignated),
by inserting ``(referred to in this section as the
`Program')'' after ``Program''; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Climate benefits.--In carrying out the Program, the
Secretary shall promote the reduction of greenhouse gas
emissions as a result of carrying out projects funded by grants
and other financial assistance under the Program.'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (D), by striking
``and'' at the end;
(ii) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as
subparagraph (G); and
(iii) by inserting after subparagraph (D)
the following:
``(E) a producer cooperative;
``(F) a nongovernmental organization; and'';
(B) in paragraph (3)--
(i) in subparagraph (E), by striking
``and'' at the end;
(ii) in subparagraph (F), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(G) the potential of the proposed program to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide other
climate benefits.''; and
(C) in paragraph (4)--
(i) in subparagraph (B), by redesignating
clauses (i) and (ii) as subclauses (I) and
(II), respectively, and indenting
appropriately;
(ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and
(B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively, and
indenting appropriately;
(iii) in the matter preceding clause (i)
(as so redesignated), by striking ``A
recipient'' and inserting the following:
``(A) In general.--A recipient''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Grant options.--A grant awarded under
paragraph (1) may be used to carry out 1 or more of the
activities described in subparagraph (A).'';
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (1)(A), by adding after and below
the end the following:
``The Secretary may, on a limited case-by-case basis,
provide financial assistance described in this
subparagraph to agricultural producer cooperatives and
rural electric cooperatives that do not otherwise
qualify for the assistance.'';
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (F), by striking
``and'' at the end;
(ii) by redesignating subparagraph (G) as
subparagraph (H); and
(iii) by inserting after subparagraph (F)
the following:
``(G) the potential of the renewable energy system
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and result in other
climate benefits; and''; and
(C) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ``25 percent''
and inserting ``50 percent'';
(4) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), and (f) as
subsections (e), (f), and (i), respectively;
(5) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
``(d) Streamlined Application Process.--The Secretary shall develop
a streamlined application process, including within each tier described
in subsection (c)(4), under which an entity may apply for a grant under
subsection (b), financial assistance under subsection (c), or a bundled
application for a project with components eligible under clauses (i)
and (ii) of subsection (c)(1)(A).'';
(6) in subsection (e) (as so redesignated)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking
``Outreach'' and inserting ``Outreach, Technical
Assistance, and Education'';
(B) by striking ``that adequate'' and inserting the
following: ``that--
``(1) adequate'';
(C) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), by
striking the period at the end and inserting a
semicolon; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) technical assistance is provided to entities seeking
to apply for a grant or financial assistance under the Program;
and
``(3) outreach, technical assistance, and education is
provided to recipients of grants and other financial assistance
under the Program relating to integrating renewable energy
projects on land shared with crops or livestock.'';
(7) in subsection (f) (as so redesignated), in paragraph
(1), by striking ``$20,000'' and inserting ``$50,000'';
(8) by inserting after subsection (f) (as so redesignated)
the following:
``(g) Study.--
``(1) Definition of dual-use energy system.--In this
subsection, the term `dual-use energy system' means a system
under which renewable energy production and agricultural
production, including crop or animal production, occur together
on the same piece of land.
``(2) Study.--The Secretary shall carry out a study on
dual-use energy systems.
``(3) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of the REAP Modernization Act of 2025, the Secretary
shall submit to Congress, and make publicly available online, a
report on the results of the study carried out under paragraph
(2), which shall include a recommendation as to whether the
scope of grants and other financial assistance under the
Program should be expanded to cover projects that generate more
energy without significantly impacting farm operations or
leading to the conversion of existing farm land.
``(h) Energy Generated.--In the case of a project funded by a grant
or other financial assistance provided under the Program that takes
place on a property on which a residence is closely associated with and
shares an energy metering device with an agricultural operation or
rural small business to be served by the project, there shall not be
any requirement imposed relating to the quantity of energy generated by
the project that must be used by the agricultural operation or rural
small business.''; and
(9) in subsection (i) (as so redesignated), by adding at
the end the following:
``(4) Outreach, technical assistance, and education.--Of
the funds made available to carry out this section for a fiscal
year, the Secretary shall use not more than 8 percent to carry
out subsection (e).
``(5) Reserve fund.--
``(A) In general.--There is established a reserve
fund (referred to in this paragraph as the `reserve
fund'), into which, each fiscal year, not less than 15
percent of the funds made available under paragraphs
(1) and (3) to carry out this section for that fiscal
year shall be transferred.
``(B) Use of reserve fund.--After all other funds
for the Program are obligated for a fiscal year, the
Secretary may use amounts in the reserve fund to
provide grants and other financial assistance under the
Program for projects using underutilized renewable
energy technologies.
``(C) Unused funds.--If there are remaining funds
in the reserve fund at the end of a fiscal year, the
Secretary shall use those remaining funds to provide
grants and other financial assistance under the Program
without regard to whether the grants or financial
assistance relate to underutilized renewable energy
technologies.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 9007 of the Farm Security and
Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8107) is amended by striking
``subsection (f)'' each place it appears and inserting ``subsection
(i)''.
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