Plant Biostimulant Act of 2023

Plant Biostimulant Act of 2023

This bill excludes plant biostimulants (i.e., a substance, micro-organism, or mixture thereof that supports a plant's natural processes independently of the biostimulant's nutrient content) from regulation under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. The bill also requires the Department of Agriculture to study the types of plant biostimulants and practices of plant biostimulant use that best achieve certain results, such as increasing organic matter content.

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 802 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 802

  To amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to 
      provide for a consistent definition for plant biostimulants.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 15, 2023

Mr. Braun (for himself and Mr. Padilla) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, 
                        Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to 
      provide for a consistent definition for plant biostimulants.

    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 ``Plant Biostimulant Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. EXCLUSION FROM REGULATION UNDER FIFRA.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 
section 3 (7 U.S.C. 136a) the following:

``SEC. 3A. EXCLUSION OF PLANT BIOSTIMULANTS.

    ``A plant biostimulant shall not be subject to regulation under 
this Act.''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 2 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 
and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (v)--
                    (A) by striking ``vitamin-hormone horticultural 
                products'' and inserting ``vitamin hormone products''; 
                and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following: ``Such term 
                shall not include a plant biostimulant.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(pp) Plant Biostimulant.--The term `plant biostimulant' means a 
substance, micro-organism, or mixture thereof, that, when applied to 
seeds, plants, the rhizosphere, soil, or other growth media, act to 
support a plant's natural processes independently of the biostimulant's 
nutrient content, thereby improving nutrient availability, uptake or 
use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress, and consequent growth, 
development, quality, or yield.
    ``(qq) Nutritional Chemical.--The term `nutritional chemical'--
            ``(1) means a compound or mixture that interacts with plant 
        nutrients in a manner which improves nutrient availability or 
        aids the plant in acquiring or utilizing plant nutrients; and
            ``(2) includes some plant biostimulants.
    ``(rr) Vitamin Hormone Product.--The term `vitamin hormone product' 
means a product consisting of a mixture of plant hormones, plant 
nutrients, inoculants, or soil amendments.''.
    (c) Regulations.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of Environmental Protection 
Agency shall revise the regulations under subchapter E of chapter I of 
title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act) to carry out the amendments made by subsections 
(a) and (b).

SEC. 3. SOIL HEALTH STUDY.

    (a) Study.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall conduct a study to 
assess the types of, and practices using, plant biostimulants (as 
defined in section 2 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136)) that best achieve the following:
            (1) Increasing organic matter content.
            (2) Reducing atmospheric volatilization.
            (3) Promotion of nutrient management practices.
            (4) Limiting or eliminating runoff or leaching of soil or 
        nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen into groundwater or 
        other water sources.
            (5) Restoring beneficial bioactivity or healthy nutrients 
        to the soil.
            (6) Aiding in carbon sequestration, nutrient use 
        efficiency, and other climate-related benefits.
            (7) Supporting innovative approaches to improving 
        agricultural sustainability, including the adoption of 
        performance-based outcome standards and criteria.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which funds 
are first made available for the study under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall make publicly available and submit to the Committee on 
Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report that 
describes the results of the study.
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