Farmer-Driven Conservation Outcomes Act of 2020
The bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a conservation effects assessment project to
USDA must establish a goals and assessment process for conservation programs that includes
In implementing the monitoring and evaluation process, USDA must use certain funds provided for conservation programs and establish a National Technical Committee. USDA may enter into cooperative agreements with government agencies, universities and colleges, and nongovernmental organizations to assist in implementing the monitoring and evaluation process.
The bill also sets forth reporting requirements regarding the progress conservation programs have made in achieving the objectives and outcomes.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6182 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6182
To amend the Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 with
respect to assessments of conservation programs, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 10, 2020
Ms. Fudge (for herself, Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania, Ms. Pingree, Mr.
Delgado, and Ms. Schrier) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 with
respect to assessments of conservation programs, 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 ``Farmer-Driven Conservation Outcomes
Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE SOIL AND WATER RESOURCES CONSERVATION ACT OF
1977.
The Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 (16 U.S.C.
2001 et seq.) is amended by redesignating sections 8 through 10 as
sections 10 though 12, respectively, and inserting after section 7 the
following:
``SEC. 8. CONSERVATION PROGRAMS ASSESSMENT.
``(a) In General.--In coordination with the appraisal of soil,
water, and related resources and with the national soil and water
conservation program established under this Act, the Secretary may
carry out a conservation effects assessment project to quantify the
environmental and economic effects of conservation practices, develop
the science base for managing the agricultural landscape for
environmental quality and sustainable productive capacity, and improve
the efficacy of conservation practices and programs by evaluating
conservation effects.
``(b) Scope.--The project under this subsection may be carried out
at national, regional, and watershed scales, and may include cropland,
grazing lands, wetlands, forests, and such other lands as the Secretary
may determine appropriate.
``(c) Activities.--The project under this subsection may include
research, literature reviews and bibliographies, modeling, assessment,
monitoring and data collection, outreach, extension education, and such
other activities as the Secretary may determine appropriate.
``SEC. 9. GOALS AND ASSESSMENT PROCESS FOR CONSERVATION PROGRAMS.
``(a) Natural Resource and Environmental Objectives and Outcomes.--
``(1) In general.--In coordination with the appraisal of
soil, water, and related resources, the soil and water
conservation program, and the conservation effects assessment
project established by this Act, the Secretary shall identify,
and periodically revise, specific natural resource and
environmental objectives and anticipated conservation outcomes
and results, by resource concern, for the conservation programs
established under subtitles D and H of title XII of the Food
Security Act of 1985 and the landscape conservation initiatives
developed by the Secretary.
``(2) Assessments.--To help measure outcomes and results,
the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, make
assessments of changes in the status and conditions of natural
resources and the environment that result from the application
of conservation activities supported directly by such
conservation programs and initiatives.
``(3) Monitoring and program evaluation.--The Secretary
shall establish a coordinated monitoring and evaluation process
for programs and initiatives to assess progress toward the
identified objectives, to gather information to improve program
and initiative implementation in accordance with desired
program and initiative outcomes and results, and to assess the
need for modifications to program or initiative rules or
statutes.
``(b) Monitoring and Program Evaluation.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall use not more than
one percent of the total annual funding from the funds of the
Commodity Credit Corporation made available for new annual
enrollments for the conservation programs established under
subtitles D and H of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985
to establish a comprehensive monitoring and program evaluation
process to assess progress in reaching natural resource and
environmental objectives identified in accordance with
subsection (a) and the contribution of individual programs and
initiatives, as well as the programs and initiatives
collectively, to that progress.
``(2) Implementation.--In implementing the monitoring and
program evaluation process under paragraph (1), the Secretary
may consider and incorporate resource concern inventories,
quality criteria, conservation practices and enhancements, and
such other information as the Secretary determines relevant for
applying the monitoring and program evaluation process across
each of the major land uses identified by the Secretary.
``(3) Monitoring and evaluation process.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than two years after
the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary
shall issue a design for the comprehensive monitoring
and evaluation process, a schedule for implementing the
process, and a plan for coordinating the process with
the national soil and water conservation program and
conservation effects assessment project established
under this Act.
``(B) Methodology.--The design for the
comprehensive monitoring and evaluation process issued
under subparagraph (A) shall--
``(i) ensure that data made available to
cooperators and researchers under this
subsection is transformed into statistical
aggregate at the county level, in a form that
protects personally identifiable information;
and
``(ii) take into account the cumulative
nature of conservation over time, the
interactions and sequencing effects between
conservation activities, the differing times
for conservation effects to be realized, and
other related measurement challenges.
``(C) Public research.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, in order to facilitate implementation
of the monitoring and evaluation process, the Secretary
shall make available conservation activity and program
data to cooperators and researchers engaged in public
research and evaluation activities to improve
conservation outcomes under this subsection, provided
that--
``(i) adequate assurances are provided to
the Secretary that any resulting research or
information will be made publicly available and
in a form that protects personally identifiable
information; and
``(ii) the National Technical Committee
finds that any such research is likely to
generate information that furthers the purpose
of this section.
``(4) Cooperative agreements.--The Secretary may implement
the monitoring evaluation process in part through cooperative
or contribution agreements with Federal, State, and local
agencies, universities and colleges, nongovernmental
organizations with requisite expertise, as determined by the
Secretary in consultation with the National Technical
Committee.
``(5) National technical committee.--
``(A) Composition.--The monitoring and evaluation
process shall be administered by the Natural Resources
Conservation Service with assistance from a national
technical committee appointed by the Secretary and
composed of individuals with relevant technical and
scientific expertise representing--
``(i) the Agricultural Research Service of
the Department of Agriculture;
``(ii) the Economic Research Service of the
Department of Agriculture;
``(iii) the Farm Service Agency of the
Department of Agriculture;
``(iv) the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service;
``(v) the Forest Service;
``(vi) the National Institute for Food and
Agriculture;
``(vii) the United States Geological
Survey;
``(viii) the Environmental Protection
Agency;
``(ix) State and tribal agencies;
``(x) land grant university natural
resource research programs;
``(xi) nongovernmental organizations with
expertise in the full array of conservation
issues and measurement and evaluation of
conservation outcomes;
``(xii) farmers across a variety of
geographic regions and production types; and
``(xiii) such other agencies, institutions,
or organizations as the Secretary may determine
appropriate.
``(B) FACA exemption.--The national technical
committee shall be exempt from the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.).
``(C) Transparency.--The Secretary shall ensure the
proceedings and recommendations of the national
technical committee are available to the public.
``(6) Voluntary participation.--In carrying out this
subsection, the Secretary shall ensure that any on-farm
monitoring activities that may be included as part of the
monitoring and program evaluation process are voluntary on the
part of the producer, and may include appropriate compensation,
as determined by the Secretary.
``(c) Reporting.--
``(1) Report on objectives and methods.--Beginning in the
fiscal year that is 3 years after the date of enactment of this
subsection, and periodically thereafter, as determined by the
Secretary, the Secretary shall submit to Congress, and make
publicly available, a report that includes--
``(A) a description of conservation outcome
objectives that are, to the maximum extent practicable,
quantitative, measurable, and time-bound for each
program established under subtitle D or H of the Food
Security Act of 1985 and the landscape conservation
initiatives developed by the Secretary;
``(B) a description of the approaches, tools, and
methods used to measure or model the conservation
outcomes and results and to estimate the cost-
effectiveness of each such program; and
``(C) guidance to the conservation project partners
working to implement conservation programs within a
landscape-level project that provides a description of
the approaches, tools, and methods the partners might
consider using to measure and model the conservation
outcomes and results of their projects.
``(2) Report on outcomes.--In conjunction with each of the
reports to Congress pursuant to section 7, the Secretary shall
submit to Congress, and make publicly available, a report that
includes--
``(A) an assessment of progress made towards
achieving conservation program objectives and
anticipated outcomes and results for each conservation
program established under subtitle D or H of title XII
of the Food Security Act of 1985, as well as for such
programs collectively, and the landscape conservation
initiatives developed by the Secretary;
``(B) an evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of
each such conservation program and initiative; and
``(C) recommendations, in light of the assessment
and evaluation, to improve program implementation and
improve the scientific and economic tools (including
any new or revised conservation practices, conservation
enhancements, or conservation planning tools) used to
achieve stated natural resource conservation and
environmental objectives.
``(3) Coordination.--The Secretary may coordinate the
reports required under paragraphs (1) and (2) with any reports
developed as part of the conservation effects assessment
project authorized by section 8, whenever such coordination is
feasible and warranted, as determined by the Secretary.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
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