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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6183 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6183
To establish an Office of Colonias and Farmworker Initiatives within
the Department of Agriculture, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 2, 2023
Mr. Cuellar (for himself, Ms. Escobar, and Ms. Crockett) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish an Office of Colonias and Farmworker Initiatives within
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 ``Office of Colonias and Farmworker
Initiatives Establishment Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF COLONIAS AND FARMWORKER INITIATIVES.
(a) In General.--Title III of the Federal Crop Insurance Reform and
Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 is amended by
adding after section 309 (7 U.S.C. 6921) the following:
``SEC. 310. OFFICE OF COLONIAS AND FARMWORKER INITIATIVES.
``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish and maintain in
the Department an Office of Colonias and Farmworker Initiatives
(referred to in this subsection as the `Office') to--
``(1) improve engagement with, and service to, border
colonias communities, farmworkers, and the family members and
children of farmworkers;
``(2) improve collaboration between the Department and
National, State, and local colonias and farmworker programs and
nonprofit organizations; and
``(3) carry out other such functions as the Secretary
determines appropriate.
``(b) Duties.--The Office shall ensure that border colonias
communities, farmworkers, the family members and children of
farmworkers, and nonprofit organizations representing or assisting such
communities and individuals have equitable access to, and equitable
participation in, programs and services of the Department by--
``(1) establishing and monitoring the goals and objectives
of the Department to increase participation of such
communities, individuals, and nonprofit organizations in
Department programs;
``(2) assessing the effectiveness of Department outreach
programs to such communities, individuals, and nonprofit
organizations;
``(3) developing and implementing a plan to coordinate
outreach activities and services to such communities,
individuals, and nonprofit organizations provided by--
``(A) the Department; and
``(B) other Federal agencies, including services
related to housing, education, health care, and
infrastructure development;
``(4) providing input to the Department and other Federal
agencies on programmatic and policy decisions relating to such
communities, individuals, and nonprofit organizations,
including--
``(A) identifying obstacles for access to programs
and resources; and
``(B) elevating Federal, State, and local best
practices;
``(5) measuring outcomes of the programs and activities of
the Department to serve such communities and individuals;
``(6) recommending new initiatives and programs to the
Secretary;
``(7) providing technical assistance to such organizations
with respect to Departmental programs and resources; and
``(8) carrying out any other related duties that the
Secretary determines appropriate.
``(c) Colonias Coordinator.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish within the
Office the position of Colonias Coordinator (referred to in
this subsection as the `Coordinator').
``(2) Duties.--The Secretary shall delegate to the
Coordinator responsibility for the following:
``(A) Serving as a liaison to nonprofit
organizations that represent and have demonstrated
experience serving and working in colonias communities.
``(B) Coordinating with the Department, other
Federal agencies, and State and local governments to
ensure that the needs of colonias communities are
assessed and met, including during declared disasters
and other emergencies.
``(C) Consulting within the Office and with other
entities to better integrate perspectives, concerns,
and interest of colonias communities into the ongoing
programs of the Department.
``SEC. 311. COLONIAS AND FARMWORKER INITIATIVES COORDINATING COMMITTEE.
``(a) Establishment of Committee.--The Secretary shall establish
and convene a Federal coordinating committee, to be known as the
Colonias and Farmworker Initiatives Coordinating Committee (referred to
in this subsection as the `Committee') to provide advice and guidance
to the Secretary on matters relating to colonias and farmworker
affairs.
``(b) Membership and Composition.--The Committee shall be
composed--
``(1) of such representatives not described in subparagraph
(B) as the Secretary determines appropriate; and
``(2) of representatives from each of the following:
``(A) The Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
``(B) The Department of the Treasury.
``(C) The Environmental Protection Agency.
``(D) The Department of Health and Human Services.
``(E) The Department of Education.
``(F) The Small Business Administration.
``(G) The Department of Labor.
``(H) The Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``(c) Duties of Committee.--The Committee shall--
``(1) direct a working group composed of members of the
Committee (or designees of such members) and representatives
from other Federal agencies and mission areas within the
Department (such as the Rural Housing Service, Rural Utilities
Service, Rural Business Service, Food and Nutrition Service,
and the Farm Service Agency);
``(2) engage stakeholders and identify State and municipal
best practices to assist colonias communities, farmworkers, and
farmworkers' family members and children;
``(3) submit to the Secretary recommendations or, and
solutions to--
``(A) the issues identified raised under
subparagraph (B); and
``(B) issues raised at the local, regional, or
national level; and
``(4) identify and propose solutions to any
interdepartmental barrier between the Department and other
Federal agencies.
``(d) Federal Advisory Committee Act Exemption.--Section 1013 of
title V, United States Code, shall not apply to the Committee.
``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary $2,500,000 for each of the fiscal years
2024 through 2029 to carry out this section.''.
(b) Transfer of Position of Farmworker Coordinator.--
(1) In general.--The Farmworker Coordinator position
established under section 226B(f) of the Department of
Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6934(f)) is
transferred to the Office of Colonias and Farmworker
Initiatives under section 310 of the Federal Crop Insurance
Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of
1994, as added by this Act.
(2) Transfer of legal provisions.--Subsection (f) of
section 226B of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization
Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6934) is transferred so as to read as
subsection (d) of section 310 of the Federal Crop Insurance
Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of
1994, as added by this Act.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.
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