[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 904 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 904
To improve disaster assistance programs of the Department of
Agriculture, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 6, 2025
Mr. Thune (for himself and Mr. Lujan) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture,
Nutrition, and Forestry
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve disaster assistance programs of the Department of
Agriculture, 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 ``Livestock Disaster Assistance
Improvement Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM IMPROVEMENTS.
(a) Additional Requirements.--Title IV of the Agricultural Credit
Act of 1978 is amended by inserting after section 402B (16 U.S.C.
2202b) the following:
``SEC. 402C. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR EMERGENCY CONSERVATION
PROGRAM.
``(a) Eligibility of Federal, State, and Local Land Users.--
``(1) In general.--An agricultural producer eligible to
receive payments under sections 401 and 402 includes a person
that--
``(A) holds a permit from the Federal Government to
conduct agricultural production or grazing on Federal
land; or
``(B) leases land from a State or unit of local
government to conduct agricultural production or
grazing on that land.
``(2) Effect.--Nothing in this subsection authorizes the
Secretary to make a payment under section 401 or 402 to a State
or unit of local government.
``(b) Permanent Improvements.--Emergency measures eligible for
payments under sections 401 and 402 include--
``(1) new permanent measures, including permanent water
wells and pipelines; and
``(2) replacement or restoration of existing emergency
measures with permanent measures, including permanent water
wells and pipelines.
``(c) Streamlining Application Process.--
``(1) Waiver of public comment.--During a drought
emergency, as determined by the Secretary, the 30-day public
comment period required under the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) shall be waived with
respect to an application to carry out emergency measures under
section 401 or 402 on land administered by the Secretary of the
Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land
Management (referred to in this subsection as the `Secretary of
the Interior').
``(2) Acceptance of nrcs reviews.--With respect to an
application to carry out emergency measures under section 401
or 402 on land administered by the Secretary of the Interior,
the Secretary of the Interior may accept--
``(A) during a drought emergency, as determined by
the Secretary, an archeological review conducted by the
Secretary, acting through the Chief of the Natural
Resources Conservation Service, for purposes of an
archeological review required to be conducted;
``(B) an environmental review under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.) conducted by the Secretary, acting through the
Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service,
for purposes of such an environmental review required
to be conducted; and
``(C) a review under the Endangered Species Act of
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) conducted by the
Secretary, acting through the Chief of the Natural
Resources Conservation Service, for purposes of such a
review required to be conducted.''.
(b) Emergency Forest Restoration Program.--Section 407 of the
Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2206) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (3) as
paragraphs (3) through (5), respectively;
(B) by inserting before paragraph (3) (as so
redesignated) the following:
``(1) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means--
``(A) with respect to nonindustrial private forest
land, an owner of the nonindustrial private forest
land;
``(B) with respect to Federal land, a person that
holds a permit from the Federal Government to conduct
agricultural production or grazing on the Federal land;
and
``(C) with respect to land owned by a State or a
unit of local government, a person that leases land
from the State or unit of local government to conduct
agricultural production or grazing on that land.
``(2) Eligible land.--The term `eligible land' means--
``(A) nonindustrial private forest land;
``(B) Federal land; and
``(C) land owned by a State or unit of local
government.''; and
(C) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated)--
(i) in subparagraph (A)--
(I) in the matter preceding clause
(i), by striking ``nonindustrial
private forest land'' and inserting
``eligible land''; and
(II) 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 ``The term''
and inserting the following:
``(A) In general.--The term''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Inclusions.--The term `emergency measures'
includes--
``(i) new permanent measures described in
subparagraph (A), including permanent water
wells and pipelines; and
``(ii) replacement or restoration of
existing emergency measures with permanent
measures described in subparagraph (A),
including permanent water wells and
pipelines.'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) by striking ``an owner of nonindustrial private
forest land who'' and inserting ``an eligible entity
that''; and
(B) by striking ``restore the land'' and inserting
``restore eligible land'';
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) by striking ``owner must'' and inserting
``eligible entity shall''; and
(B) by striking ``nonindustrial private forest
land'' and inserting ``eligible land'';
(4) in subsection (d), by striking ``an owner of
nonindustrial private forest land'' and inserting ``an eligible
entity'';
(5) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (g); and
(6) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
``(e) Streamlining Application Process.--
``(1) Waiver of public comment.--During a drought
emergency, as determined by the Secretary, the 30-day public
comment period required under the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) shall be waived with
respect to an application to carry out emergency measures under
this section on land administered by the Secretary of the
Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land
Management (referred to in this subsection as the `Secretary of
the Interior').
``(2) Acceptance of nrcs reviews.--With respect to an
application to carry out emergency measures under this section
on land administered by the Secretary of the Interior, the
Secretary of the Interior may accept--
``(A) during a drought emergency, as determined by
the Secretary, an archeological review conducted by the
Secretary, acting through the Chief of the Natural
Resources Conservation Service, for purposes of an
archeological review required to be conducted;
``(B) an environmental review under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.) conducted by the Secretary, acting through the
Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service,
for purposes of such an environmental review required
to be conducted; and
``(C) a review under the Endangered Species Act of
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) conducted by the
Secretary, acting through the Chief of the Natural
Resources Conservation Service, for purposes of such a
review required to be conducted.
``(f) Effect.--Nothing in this section authorizes the Secretary to
make a payment under this section to a State or unit of local
government.''.
(c) Clerical Improvements.--
(1) Repeal.--Section 406 of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201 note; Public Law 95-334) is repealed.
(2) Heading format corrections.--
(A) Section 402 of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2202) is amended--
(i) by striking the section designation and
all that follows through ``authorized'' and
inserting the following:
``SEC. 402. WATER CONSERVATION AND WATER ENHANCING MEASURES DURING
SEVERE DROUGHT.
``The Secretary is authorized''; and
(ii) by striking ``during'' and all that
follows through ``of'' and inserting ``during a
period of''.
(B) Section 403 of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2203) is amended by striking the
section designation and all that follows through
``authorized'' in subsection (a) and inserting the
following:
``SEC. 403. EMERGENCY WATERSHED PROGRAM.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary is authorized''.
(C) Section 405 of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2205) is amended by striking the
section designation and all that follows through
``authorized'' and inserting the following:
``SEC. 405. REGULATIONS.
``The Secretary is authorized''.
(3) Reordering.--Title IV of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.) is amended--
(A) by redesignating sections 402C (as added by
subsection (a)), 403, 404, 405, and 407 (as amended by
subsection (b)) as sections 403, 405, 407, 408, and
406, respectively, and moving the sections so as to
appear in numerical order;
(B) in section 402B (16 U.S.C. 2202b), by striking
the section designation and heading and all that
follows through ``maximum'' and inserting the
following:
``(d) Maximum Payment.--The maximum''; and
(C) by moving that subsection (d) (as so
redesignated) so as to appear after subsection (c) of
section 402A (16 U.S.C. 2202a).
(4) Clerical amendments.--Section 402A of the Agricultural
Credit Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2202a) (as amended by paragraph
(3)(C)) is amended--
(A) in subsection (b), by striking ``2279)'' and
inserting ``2279))'';
(B) in subsection (c), in the subsection heading,
by striking ``Limitation'' and inserting ``Total
Payment for Single Event'';
(C) by striking the section designation and heading
and inserting the following:
``SEC. 404. COST-SHARE REQUIREMENT; MAXIMUM PAYMENT.''
; and
(D) by moving that section 404 (as so redesignated)
so as to appear after section 403 (as redesignated by
paragraph (3)(A)).
(5) Conforming amendment.--Section 1241(f)(9)(B) of the
Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(f)(9)(B)) is amended
by striking ``403'' and inserting ``405''.
SEC. 3. LIVESTOCK FORAGE DISASTER PROGRAM.
Section 1501(c)(3)(D)(ii)(I) of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (7
U.S.C. 9081(c)(3)(D)(ii)(I)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``at least 8 consecutive'' and inserting
the following: ``not less than--
``(aa) 4 consecutive weeks
during the normal grazing
period for the county, as
determined by the Secretary,
shall be eligible to receive
assistance under this paragraph
in an amount equal to 1 monthly
payment using the monthly
payment rate determined under
subparagraph (B); or
``(bb) 8 consecutive''; and
(2) in item (bb) (as so designated), by striking ``1
monthly payment'' and inserting ``2 monthly payments''.
SEC. 4. EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FOR LIVESTOCK, HONEY BEES, AND FARM-RAISED
FISH.
(a) In General.--Section 1501(d) of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (7
U.S.C. 9081(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``drought,'' after
``adverse weather,'';
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``to reduce losses'' and
all that follows through the period at the end and inserting
``to reduce losses caused by feed or water shortages (including
transportation costs for feed, water, livestock, and honey
bees), disease, adverse weather, drought, or other factors, as
determined by the Secretary, including inspections of cattle
tick fever.'';
(3) in paragraph (4)--
(A) by striking ``In the case'' and inserting the
following:
``(A) In general.--In the case''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Requirements for honey bees.--
``(i) In general.--In the case of eligible
producers of honey bees, the payment rate under
subparagraph (A) shall incorporate per-hive and
per-colony rates of loss, subject to clause
(ii).
``(ii) Determination of colony losses.--
``(I) In general.--For purposes of
clause (i), in determining honeybee
colony losses eligible for assistance
under this subsection, the Secretary
shall--
``(aa) review the normal
mortality rate used for the
calculation of that assistance;
and
``(bb) adjust the normal
mortality rate described in
item (aa) as necessary to
exclude losses caused by colony
collapse disorder, as
determined by the Secretary.
``(II) Insufficient data.--In the
absence of sufficient data to establish
the adjusted mortality rate described
in subclause (I)(bb), the Secretary
shall use the normal mortality rate for
honey bees applied for the first fiscal
year for which emergency relief was
provided to eligible producers of honey
bees under section 531(e) of the
Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C.
1531(e)).''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Documentation.--
``(A) In general.--Any requirements for the
submission of documentation by an eligible producer to
receive a payment under this subsection shall be
consistent nationwide.
``(B) Producers of honey bees.--The Secretary, in
consultation with eligible producers of honey bees,
shall establish a standard, for purposes of this
subsection, for--
``(i) collecting data; and
``(ii) setting an annual rate for replacing
colonies and hives of honey bees.''.
(b) Applicability to Producers of Honey Bees.--The Secretary of
Agriculture shall apply the amendments made by subsection (a) to
producers of honey bees such that there is no limit on the size of a
beekeeping operation with respect to those amendments.
SEC. 5. DROUGHT MONITOR INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall establish an
interagency working group (referred to in this section as the ``working
group'') to improve the availability of consistent, accurate, and
reliable data for use in producing the United States Drought Monitor in
accordance with section 12512 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of
2018 (7 U.S.C. 5856).
(b) Membership.--The working group shall consist of not fewer
than--
(1) 3 representatives from the Department of Agriculture,
including 1 representative from each of--
(A) the Office of the Chief Economist, who shall
serve as the Chair of the working group;
(B) the Forest Service; and
(C) the Farm Service Agency;
(2) 4 representatives from the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, including 1 representative from
each of--
(A) the Climate Prediction Center;
(B) the National Centers for Environmental
Information;
(C) the National Integrated Drought Information
System; and
(D) the National Mesonet Program;
(3) 1 representative from the National Drought Mitigation
Center;
(4) 1 representative from the Department of the Interior;
(5) 1 representative from the Cooperative Institute for
Research to Operations in Hydrology of the University of
Alabama; and
(6) 3 representatives from mesonet programs in States--
(A) that have experienced severe drought, as
determined by the United States Drought Monitor, in not
less than 5 calendar years during the period of
calendar years 2012 through 2023; and
(B) more than 50 percent of the land area of which
is designated by the Economic Research Service as a
Level 1 frontier and remote area.
(c) Duties.--The working group shall--
(1) develop a means for the inclusion of additional in-situ
data into the process of developing the United States Drought
Monitor, including--
(A) determining minimum requirements for data to be
included in the United States Drought Monitor;
(B) identifying data available from other
government agencies, including through portals managed
by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
and
(C) identifying gaps in coverage and determining
solutions to address those gaps;
(2) identify and address potential barriers to the use of
existing data, including--
(A) identifying Federal datasets that would be of
immediate use in developing the United States Drought
Monitor where access is restricted to some or all
authors of the United States Drought Monitor; and
(B) developing proposed accommodations,
modifications to contractual agreements, or updates to
interagency memoranda of understanding to allow for
incorporation of datasets identified under subparagraph
(A);
(3) develop an open and transparent methodology for vetting
data products developed using remote sensing or modeling;
(4) if determined appropriate by the working group, develop
a methodology for inclusion of data that may otherwise be
excluded from the United States Drought Monitor due to shorter
periods of record; and
(5) identify and address any other issues relating to data
availability and quality, as determined appropriate by the
Chair of the working group.
(d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the working group shall submit a report containing
recommendations for changes in policies, regulations, guidance
documents, or existing law to meet the objectives described in
subsection (c) to--
(1) the Secretary of Agriculture;
(2) the Secretary of Commerce;
(3) the Secretary of the Interior;
(4) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
of the Senate;
(5) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
of the Senate;
(6) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives; and
(7) the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the
House of Representatives.
(e) Action by Secretary.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
submission of the report under subsection (d), the Secretary of
Agriculture, in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce and the
Secretary of the Interior, shall incorporate, to the extent
practicable, the recommendations of the working group to improve the
United States Drought Monitor in accordance with section 12512 of the
Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (7 U.S.C. 5856).
(f) Termination.--The working group shall terminate on the date
that is 90 days after the date on which the report is submitted under
subsection (d).
SEC. 6. ALIGNMENT OF FARM SERVICE AGENCY AND FOREST SERVICE DROUGHT
RESPONSE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date of
submission of the report under section 5(d), the Administrator of the
Farm Service Agency and the Chief of the Forest Service shall enter
into a memorandum of understanding to better align drought response
activities of the Farm Service Agency and the Forest Service (referred
to in this section as the ``agencies'').
(b) Contents.--The memorandum of understanding entered into under
subsection (a) shall include--
(1) a commitment to better align practices of the agencies
with respect to determining the severity of regional drought
conditions;
(2) a strategy for amending those determinations to ensure
consistent policy with respect to drought response in cases
where the agencies are making inconsistent determinations
within the same spatial scale;
(3) an agreement to utilize, to the extent practicable, the
United States Drought Monitor in making those determinations;
and
(4) an agreement to provide consistent information to
grazing permittees, operators, and other stakeholders affected
by determinations relating to drought.
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