Senate Agriculture Committee Releases Draft Text for 2026 Farm Bill

The chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture rolled out his draft version of the Farm Bill – the Agricultural Act of 2026 – on June 23, 2026. Chair John ;Boozman (R-Ark.) has indicated the Committee will move to mark up this draft once the Senate returns from its July recess. That said, there's a real question as to whether Chair Boozman will be able to secure any Democratic support for the legislation, especially given that the draft does not address concerns raised about the significant cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program included in the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB).

In addition to the SNAP cuts remaining unaddressed, several other key provisions were left on the cutting room floor: The draft omits year-round sales of E15 gasoline, new assistance for domestic fertilizer production, animal confinement standards or allowing SNAP to be used for hot rotisserie chicken purchases, and does not address provisions to block states from enacting their own pesticide labeling laws.

Should the Agriculture Committee move the legislation out of Committee this July, finding any time on the Senate floor for a full vote becomes increasingly uncertain. It's looking more likely that final passage may be pushed until after the midterm elections. At that stage, the U.S. House of Representatives' version of the Farm Bill, which passed in April 2026, and the Senate's draft could be conferenced – either formally or informally – until the two chambers agree on a final version.

Additional Activity Related to Agriculture

On June 24, 2026, President Donald Trump sent a supplemental request to the U.S. Congress, including $11.1 billion in farm aid, and asked Congress to approve permanent, year-round sales of E15, as well as a fix to ensure the fair treatment of hemp products. The total supplemental request is for $87.6 billion to "address urgent needs related to Operation Epic Fury (OEF), in addition to other critical needs such as responding to the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa and supporting hardworking American farmers." The president's request includes $10 billion in temporary economic assistance for row and specialty crops planted in crop year 2026. An additional $1.1 billion is requested to help the state of Florida's agricultural producers to rebound from devastating losses that were the result of crippling storms this past winter. Congress will have the final say in what shape the final supplemental package takes, but this request adds another dimension to ongoing discussions around agricultural support and could have significant implications for producers.

In addition, on June 25, 2026, President Trump issued an executive order (EO) on regenerative agriculture. The EO is intended to focus on priorities identified by the Make America Healthy Again Commission – which was created under EO 14212 in February 2025 – and instructs executive branch agencies to take the following steps:

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is to "prioritize registration actions related to substances that can be used as alternatives to older active ingredients; provided, that the Administrator shall undertake all registration actions, including human health and ecological risk assessments, as expeditiously as possible as required by statute."
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and EPA are also directed to "expedite development of a research and evaluation framework for cumulative exposure across chemical classes that are regulated by statute in the food supply."
• The USDA is to increase "funding of the current Regenerative Pilot Program and evaluate ways to expand the reach of the program."

Simultaneously, USDA issued a press release announcing the issuance of final regenerative feedstock rule, including an updated Feedstock Carbon Intensity Calculator, "to help producers quantify regenerative practices such as cover crops, and improved nutrient management, and conservation tillage – including no-till and reduced tillage." According to the USDA announcement, the rule "establishes a framework to connect regenerative agriculture practices to new markets within the biofuel supply chain for corn, soybeans, sorghum, and spring canola." More details will be available when the final regenerative feedstock tule is published in the Federal Register.

Holland & Knight public policy professionals below offer an in-depth analysis of the Senate Farm Bill text. For those further interested in the details, please see the Senate's summary and full text of the bill.

Title I: Commodities

Title I reauthorizes and expands programs referred to as the nation's farm safety net, expanding eligibility and funding streams for farmers. Together, these programs are needed to provide stability for those in the agricultural industry as well as the rural communities supported by them.

Subtitle A: Commodity Policy

• Marketing Assistance Loans. This section stipulates that farmers' access to marketing assistance loans, sugar processing loans and loan deficiency payments will not be disrupted by a lapse in appropriations.
• Certification of Adjusted Gross Income Expansion. This section allows enrolled agents (in addition to attorneys) to provide certification of average adjusted gross income.
• Commodity Credit Corporation. This section updates USDA Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) data collection and reporting requirements and makes CCC crop estimates reports publicly available via a searchable online database.
• Storage Facility Loan Program Expansion. This section will allow producers to utilize the storage facility loan program to build or upgrade propane or fertilizer storage facilities.
• Dry Edible Beans Study. This section creates a study to determine whether the inclusion of dry edible beans as a covered commodity or a loan commodity would provide producers of dry edible beans with an effective safety net. Within 120 days of enactment of the Act, the USDA is to deliver a report of study findings to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees.

Subtitle B: Dairy

• Dairy Program Reauthorizations. This section reauthorizes the Dairy Indemnity Payment Program and the Dairy Promotion and Research Board and makes permanent the Dairy Forward Pricing Program.
• Federal Milk Marketing Orders. This section establishes mandatory producer cost and yield surveys to ensure future changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Orders reflect the most current market conditions and requires the Agriculture Secretary to publish a report summarizing this data every two years.

Subtitle C: Supplemental Agricultural Disaster Assistance

• Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) Expansion. This section expands NAP eligibility to include producers facing losses from natural disasters impacting the acequia systems they rely upon to irrigate their crops.
• Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) Expansion. This section expands LIP to cover losses of unweaned livestock, establishes weight categories to more accurately compensate producers and clarifies the documentation sufficient for payments for losses due to attacks by animals or avian predators. Section 1303 also updates the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-raised Fish Program (ELAP) to help cover transportation costs for hauling feed or water and allows producers combatting drought or adverse weather access to the program.
• Tree Assistance Program (TAP) Updates. This section updates TAP to cover biennial tree crops and pest infestation, adds flexibility in replanting requirements and requires USDA to issue decisions on program applications no more than 120 days after receipt to facilitate replanting.
• Specialty Crop Assistance. This section creates a specialty crop assistance framework to provide direct assistance to producers of specialty crops, the production of which is impacted by an adverse event.
• Natural Disaster Relief Block Grants. This section authorizes USDA to administer additional natural disaster relief funding via block grants to states to provide quicker and more regionally suited assistance.

Title II: Conservation

Title II reauthorizes key conservation programs administered by USDA, including the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) and Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).

Subtitle A: CRP

• CRP Modernization. The bill reauthorizes CRP through 2031 while instituting a 27-million-acre cap (12 million acres for Grasslands CRP). The payment limitation is raised for the first time in the program's history, increased to $125,000 with recalculated rental rates to favor marginal land over prime farmland. Emergency haying and grazing access is expanded for drought, flooding and other natural disasters.

Subtitle B: EQIP

• EQIP Reforms. EQIP is updated with revised definitions for precision agriculture, higher payment limits for water conservation and irrigation contracts, and continued 50 percent funding reserved for livestock practices.

Subtitle C: CSP

• CSP Reauthorization. CSP is reauthorized, and both programs receive extended funding through 2031. Conservation Innovation Grants (CIGs) are also reauthorized.

Subtitle D: Funding and Administration

• Technical Assistance Overhaul. The bill creates a new third-party certification process for technical service providers with required timelines and fair reimbursement standards. The bill further revises the process for updating conservation practice standards across USDA conservation programs, prioritizing innovative technologies such as precision agriculture and biological fertilizer sources.

Subtitle E: ACEP

• Conservation Easement Program Enhancements. ACEP cost-share rates increase from 50 percent to 60 percent (75 percent to 80 percent for grasslands of special significance), and easement payments are exempted from adjusted gross income limits. The bill authorizes buy-protect-sell and buy-sell-protect transactions.

Subtitle F: RCPP

• Expanded Purpose for RCPP. RCPP is expanded to address flooding, drought and flood resiliency. Funding caps per project are set, administrative expense limits are adjusted (15 percent for partners with a negotiated rate, 10 percent otherwise), and technical assistance is capped at 30 percent of total project cost.

Subtitle G: Forest Conservation Easement Program (FCEP)

• New Program. A new FCEP is established with mandatory funding, amounting to a 50 percent federal cost share (75 percent for forests of special significance or socially disadvantaged landowners), replacing the repealed Healthy Forests Reserve Program.

Subtitle H: Other Conservation Programs

• Expanded Watershed and Emergency Programs. Federal watershed construction cost limits double from $25 million to $50 million. Emergency conservation reforms allow advance payments, virtual fencing eligibility and expanded assistance for producers grazing on federal or state land.
• New State Conservation Assistance Program. This program will provide up to $50 million annually in grants capped at $5 million per state or Tribe.

Title III: Trade

Title III aims to promote American competitiveness on the global agricultural stage, bolstering current programs and creating new opportunities for agricultural exports in the global marketplace.

Subtitle A: Food for Peace Act

• Food for Peace Program. This section states that at least 50 percent of funding authorized for the Food for Peace Program be used to procure U.S. commodities or pay for ocean transport of those commodities.

Subtitle B: Agricultural Trade Act of 1978

• Common Food Name Defense. The bill directs USDA and the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to prioritize the defense of common food names in foreign markets.
• Technical Assistance for Loss Prevention. This section establishes a new technical assistance program to improve infrastructure, including cold chain capacity and port improvements, to facilitate expanded trade opportunities in emerging markets and prevent losses due to inadequate infrastructure.
• Specialty Crop Competition Report. This section requires the Agriculture Secretary to work with USTR to issue a report to the appropriate House and Senate committees detailing the competitiveness of U.S. exports of specialty crops.
• Market Access Funding. Section 3204 increases funding for USDA's Market Access Program and the Foreign Market Development Program.
• Interagency Trade Working Group. This section establishes an interagency working group comprised of USDA, USTR and the U.S. Department of Commerce to monitor and assess, on an ongoing basis, trade data and related information on seasonal and perishable fruits and vegetables. The working group may also coordinate on trade actions and recommend actions to the Agriculture Secretary to improve domestic competitiveness or address market impacts.

Subtitle C: Other Agricultural Trade Laws

• Food for Progress Act Purchase Requirements. This section requires the Food for Progress Act to purchase more than one eligible commodity each fiscal year and designate more than one country as a recipient for the program each fiscal year.
• McGovern-Dole Expansion. The bill reauthorizes the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program through 2031 and expands eligibility to lower-middle income countries.
• Reauthorization of Additional Agricultural Trade Laws. This section reauthorizes funding for the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust Act, International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program, International Agricultural Cultural Immersion and Exchange Program, International Food Security Technical Assistance, Global Crop Diversity Trust and the Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement Projects.

Subtitle D: Reports

• Report on Domestic Competitiveness of U.S.-Grown Commodities. This report requires the Agriculture Secretary to work with USTR and the U.S. International Trade Commission to analyze and report on the domestic competitiveness of U.S.-grown agricultural commodities.
• Report on International Shrimp Trade. This report requires the U.S. Comptroller General to deliver to Congress a report examining policy options available to the Agriculture Secretary to boost the competitiveness of domestic shrimp in global and domestic markets.

Title IV: Nutrition

This title funds and oversees national nutrition assistance programs, including SNAP. The title maintains and builds off the contentious cuts to the program enacted in the OBBB. This drew swift condemnation from Democrats in the Agriculture Committee, jeopardizing the bill's progress.

Subtitle A: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

• SNAP Transparency. The bill focuses on staffing and transparency concerns by allowing state agencies to hire contractors to perform SNAP certifications, requiring approval of online retailers and improving reporting on payment errors.
• Flexibility and Incentive Food Expansions. The text quadruples the funding for the Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program, adds animal protein to the list of eligible SNAP incentive foods and transitions the SNAP online purchasing initiative from a pilot program to a permanent program. The bill also extends the prohibition on the imposition of fees by states on electronic benefits transfer (EBT) transactions through 2031.

Subtitle B: Commodity Distribution Programs

• Commodity Distribution Expansions. The Commodity Distribution Program, Commodity Supplemental Food Program and Distribution of Surplus Commodities to Special Nutrition Projects are reauthorized through 2031. The bill also authorizes $10 million annually for fiscal years 2027 to 2029 through a three-year pilot program awarding grants to expand opportunities for the home delivery of commodities to rural seniors.

Subtitle C: Miscellaneous

• Buy America Requirements for School Lunches. This title imposes Buy American requirements on school food authorities. Unlike the House, the Senate does not impose specific prohibitions on the purchasing of poultry and seafood from China or Russia.
• Dietary Guidelines Reform. Similar to the House bill, the bill reforms the Dietary Guidelines process, extending the time between guidelines from five years to 10 years, as well as requiring evidence-based review standards and the creation of an Independent Advisory Board.

Title V: Credit

Title V reauthorizes, updates and strengthens the federal farm loan program infrastructure. The title includes administrative reforms and eligibility expansions, as well as increases credit limits.

Subtitle A: Farm Credit System Modernization

• Farm Credit System (FCS) Updates. This section updates the authorities of the FCS to reflect the evolving rural economy. Historically focused on traditional agriculture, the FCS is now positioned to support a broader set of industries and economic activities.
• FCS Financing for Rural Infrastructure. In line with updates, the bill enables FCS institutions to finance rural infrastructure projects, including waste management and energy production facilities, recognizing infrastructure as critical to rural economic development.
• Expansion of Lending Eligibility. The text expands lending eligibility to entities supporting aquaculture and aquatic harvesting. This aligns financing access with emerging agricultural sectors and diversifies rural economic participation. New safeguards are also introduced to maintain financial discipline.
• Export Financing Reform. This section requires cooperative banks to guarantee or insure up to 95 percent of certain large agricultural export loans (if the balance of the loan exceeds 15 percent of the bank's total assets).
• Risk Controls. To ensure responsible growth, the legislation imposes investment restrictions and risk controls. For example, rural business investment companies owned predominantly by FCS institutions (over 75 percent) are restricted from investing in ineligible entities. Furthermore, limits on borrower concentration reduce systemic risk by preventing excessive exposure to any single borrower relative to capital levels.

Subtitle B: Farm Ownership and Operating Loan Reforms

This subtitle represents a significant modernization of federal farm loan programs administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA). The reforms emphasize expanded access, increased flexibility and improved support for beginning and distressed farmers.

• Increase in Loan Limits. The text increases direct farm ownership loans to $850,000 and operating loans to $750,000, while guaranteed loan caps reach $3.5 million and $3 million, respectively. These limits are indexed to agricultural land values to ensure continued relevance over time.
• Broadened Eligibility Rules. Individuals holding at least a 50 percent ownership stake in a farming entity may now qualify, and criteria for "beginning farmers" are updated to lower barriers to entry. The program also expands eligible uses, including investments in precision agriculture technologies and extending operating loans to commercial fishing operations.
• Enhanced Microloans. To improve accessibility, the legislation enhances microloan and down-payment programs, doubling the microloan cap to $100,000. These smaller, more flexible loans are particularly valuable for new and small-scale producers.
• Financial Flexibility. Additional provisions provide borrowers with financial flexibility, including the ability to refinance bridge loans and convert distressed guaranteed loans into direct loans. The bill also supports farm succession planning by reauthorizing the Heirs' Property Relending Program, helping families retain agricultural land across generations.
• Administrative Efficiency. This topic is addressed through faster loan processing requirements and increased funding for state mediation programs, ensuring borrowers receive timely decisions and support in resolving disputes.

Subtitle C: Administrative Continuity

• Funding Continuity. This section focuses primarily on extending and maintaining existing programs through 2031. It ensures continuity in funding and preserves a 50 percent allocation of operating loan funds for beginning farmers.
• Eligibility Reform. The subtitle also provides a pathway for borrowers who previously received debt forgiveness to regain eligibility after seven years, promoting long-term reintegration into federal credit programs. Technical updates modernize statutory language to reflect the transition from the Farmers Home Administration to the FSA.

Title VI: Rural Development

This title invests in rural infrastructure and utilities, as well as access to healthcare and childcare in rural areas. This includes efforts to modernize the ReConnect broadband program, extensions to rural utilities programs and expansions to technical assistance.

Subtitle A: Rural Broadband Expansion

• ReConnect Program. This program modernizes USDA broadband programs to address persistent connectivity gaps in rural America. A major reform is the consolidation of broadband initiatives into a single ReConnect program, simplifying administration and improving coordination with federal and state partners.
• Performance Standards. The legislation prioritizes underserved areas where broadband service is below 25/3 Mbps and raises performance standards. This reflects the growing importance of reliable, high-speed internet for agriculture, business, education and healthcare.
• Expansion of Support. The bill also expands support for middle-mile infrastructure (regional backbone networks) and last-mile connectivity, including a new initiative to extend broadband directly to farms and ranches. This "last acre" approach is designed to enable precision agriculture and other technology-driven practices.

Subtitle B: Rural Utilities and Financing Programs (Under Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act)

• Rural Utilities Financing. Additional provisions extend financing for rural utilities and development projects through 2031. The USDA retains authority to guarantee bonds and provide zero-interest loans for infrastructure projects, ensuring continued access to affordable financing.
• Emergency Communication Support. Funding is extended for rural 911 service expansion, reinforcing public safety in underserved areas.

Subtitle C: Rural Care Economy – Water Infrastructure and Community Support

Secs. 6201-6235 represent a major investment in rural water systems and community infrastructure. It significantly expands funding and flexibility for projects involving potable water, wastewater, storm drainage and solid waste systems.

• Affordability and Access. The legislation allows up to 100 percent grant funding for certain project costs and permits in-kind contributions toward non-federal cost-sharing requirements. Priority is given to low-income communities with populations under 10,000, ensuring targeted assistance to areas with the greatest need.
• Technical Assistance Programs. Three percent to 10 percent of grant funding is reserved for capacity-building efforts. These programs help communities plan infrastructure projects, access federal funding and improve system management.

Subtitle D: Resilience, Cybersecurity and Emergency Preparedness

• Cybersecurity Circuit Rider Program. Recognizing emerging risks, the legislation introduces new programs to enhance resilience. A Cybersecurity Circuit Rider Program is established to protect rural water systems from cyber threats. Additionally, emergency preparedness programs support communities in maintaining and restoring water services during disasters.
• Targeted Assistance for Vulnerable Populations. The text includes assistance for Alaska Native villages, low-income households and financially distressed water systems. Programs supporting household water quality improvements – such as filtration systems and testing – are also expanded.

Economic Development and Rural Care Economy

• Rural Care Economy. USDA is directed to prioritize funding for mental health services, substance use treatment and childcare facilities. At least 10 percent of certain loan funding is reserved for these sectors.
• Support for Rural Hospitals. This section supports temporary zero-interest loans for construction and modernization. Telemedicine and distance learning programs are also expanded, with provisions to reduce cost-sharing requirements for financially constrained communities.

Title VII: Research, Extension and Related Matters

This title primarily invests in land grant universities to research solutions and innovations in the agriculture production, animal sciences and food security spaces.

Subtitle A: National Agricultural Research, Extension, Teaching Policy Act of 1977

• National Agricultural Research, Extension, Teaching Policy Act of 1977. The text reauthorizes the National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education, and Economics Advisory Board (NAREEEAB), increases the maximum funding for Board expenses and reduces its executive committee from seven members to three members.
• Specialty Crop Committee Updates. This section adds a nonvoting member representing minor production states to the citrus disease subcommittee, expanding that subcommittee's duties to include reviewing grant applications and making a technical correction requiring the Agriculture Secretary to appoint specialty crop committee members.
• Veterinary Services. The bill amends the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) to allow the Agriculture Secretary to consider geographic areas with veterinarian shortages, develop quantitative tools to predict emerging shortage situations and establish streamlined application procedures. Veterinarians in comparable state or local loan repayment programs are clarified as eligible for VMLRP. Similarly, the Veterinary Services Grant Program (VSGP) is updated to include entities capable of expanding, retaining or attracting veterinary practices in rural areas and require a streamlined application process.
• Research at Land Grant Institutions. The subtitle increases several authorization levels for grants and fellowships for food and agriculture sciences education, particularly for land grant and minority-serving institutions. The bill also increases funding for agriculture and food policy research centers and aquaculture assistance programs.
• Animal and Agricultural Research. The subtitle also expands the Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority's goals to cover soil and water conservation, drought, infectious diseases, and plant and animal pathogens and pests. The U.S.-Israel Binational Agricultural Research and Development (BARD) Fund is also directed to establish an accelerator program for mid-stage research. A new provision prohibits vertebrate animal research, education or extension activities from being conducted in or in collaboration with the People's Republic of China, Russian Federation or other foreign countries of concern.

Subtitle B: Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990

• Program Reauthorization. The text amends the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, reauthorizing programs for biological applications, integrated management systems, sustainable agriculture technology, the National Genetics Resources Program, national agricultural weather information system and agricultural genome to phenome initiative, among others.
• High-Priority Research. The bill creates new high-priority research and extension priorities spanning coffee plants, macadamia trees, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), biochar, artificial intelligence (AI), invasive species and other emerging topics. The subtitle expands and increases funding for USDA's urban and indoor agriculture research to include waste stream management and increases.
• Centers of Excellence at 1890 Institutions. This title renames "Centers of Excellence" to "Centers of Excellence at 1890 Institutions," increases the minimum number of such centers to six, adds focus areas to include climate resilience and food safety, and raises funding authorization from $10 million to $20 million.

Subtitle C: Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998

Secs. 7301-7307 amend the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998. It reauthorizes programs for food safety training, integrated research and extension competitive grants, youth organization grants and forestry products research. The bill also increases funding for research on wheat, triticale and barley diseases. The Specialty Crop Research Initiative receives a matching funds waiver and a new $30 million per year mechanization and automation research program. Finally, the bill doubles funding for the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Database Program.

Subtitles D: Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008

• Part I reauthorizes agricultural biosecurity programs, including the biosecurity communication center, local capacity-building grants, countermeasures research and the biosecurity grant program.
• Part II protects the Grazing lands Research Laboratory from being declared excess federal property, increases Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network funding and establishes behavioral health referral services, reauthorizes the natural products research program and expands the Sun Grant Program to include bioproducts.

Subtitle E: Other Matters

• Removing Funding Caps. It reauthorizes the Critical Agricultural Materials Act and updates the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 by removing the $100,000 per-institution cap and cooperative agreement requirement.
• Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. Updates priority areas – including precision agriculture, AI and controlled environment agriculture – while broadening eligibility to community and junior colleges. The final education provision in this subtitle allows Hatch Act funds to be used for graduate student tuition and fees.
• Additional Reauthorizations. The bill covers extension design and demonstration, biomass research and development, the Renewable Resources Extension Act, National Aquaculture Act, federal agriculture research facilities and the enhanced use lease authority program. The subtitle requires the U.S. Government Accountability Office to study whether USDA extension services meet the needs of Tribal lands and populations.

Title VIII: Forestry

Title VIII modernizes federal forest data systems, expands wildfire resilience and forest health tools, and provides new land designations and conservation programs.

Subtitle A: Forest Data Modernization

• Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA). The discussion draft directs a strategic plan update for the FIA program, including nationally consistent data collection protocols, integration of forest carbon tracking and adoption of advanced remote sensing technologies such as Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and hyperspectral imagery. A Blue Ribbon Panel is established to review and recommend improvements to the FIA program.

Subtitle B: Forest Health and Management

• Program Expansions. The discussion draft reauthorizes hazardous fuel reduction programs through 2031 and significantly expands maximum project sizes. Greater sage-grouse and mule deer habitat projects are expanded to 7,500 acres.
• Categorical Exclusions. New categorical exclusions from National Environmental Policy Act review are created for high-priority hazard tree removal (up to 6,000 acres) and electric utility line vegetation management on National Forest System land.
• State and Private Partnerships. Up to $40 million per year is authorized for state forest assessments and strategies. The collaborative forest landscape restoration program, Joint Chiefs Landscape Restoration Partnership, good neighbor authority and stewardship contracting are all reauthorized and enhanced.
• Timber Innovation. The wood innovations grant program and a new Community Wood Facilities Grant Program are authorized, along with a report on mass timber use in federal construction.

Subtitle C: Forest Conservation

• Civilian Conservation Centers. The discussion draft expands Civilian Conservation Center programs, including specialized training for forestry, rangeland management and wildland firefighting, and it creates a wildland firefighting workforce development pilot and housing pilot program.

Subtitle D: Land Designations

Multiple new wilderness, scenic area and special management area designations are made, including Rough Mountain Wilderness, Shenandoah Mountain, Shawnee National Forest conservation areas and others.

Subtitle F: Other Matters

• Tribal Forest Protection. The Tribal Forest Protection Act is expanded to include Tribal organizations and Alaska Native Corporations, with $15 million per year authorized for fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

Title IX: Energy

This title seeks to expand energy markets and access to energy in rural areas, as well as improve the efficiency of relevant programs.

Expansion of Bioenergy and Biobased Products

• Expansion of Biofuels Definition. A key development is the formal inclusion of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) within the definition of advanced biofuels, signaling a major federal priority.
• BioPreferred Program. The BioPreferred Program is strengthened to increase federal procurement of biobased products, improve labeling standards and promote consumer awareness. Standardized testing requirements enhance transparency and consistency across the market.

Biorefinery and Manufacturing Support

• Biomanufacturing Support. The legislation provides substantial support for biomanufacturing, including grants of up to $10 million for the construction or retrofitting of facilities producing biofuels, renewable chemicals and biobased products. These investments aim to expand domestic production capacity and strengthen supply chains.

Rural Energy Program Enhancements

• Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). These include expanded technical assistance, a new rebate pilot for energy-efficient equipment and an increase in the maximum project size from $25 million to $50 million.
• Streamlining Applications. Simplified application processes are required for smaller projects, ensuring accessibility for farmers and small businesses.

Strategic Direction and Efficiency Tools

• SAF Strategy. The USDA is directed to develop a comprehensive SAF strategy, coordinating efforts across the department to scale production. Additionally, the department must create public tools demonstrating the benefits of energy-efficient technologies such as improved irrigation systems.

Program Extensions and Continuity

• Bioenergy Program Extensions. Multiple bioenergy programs are extended through 2031, including those supporting advanced biofuels, biodiesel education, biomass crop production and biogas utilization. These extensions ensure long-term policy stability and investment certainty.

Title X: Horticulture

This title covers a wide range of specialty crop, organic agriculture and regulatory reforms.

Subtitle A: Horticulture Marketing and Information

• Marketing Orders. The Act adds mandarin oranges to the list of commodities eligible for import regulation under marketing orders.
• Specialty Crop Block Grants.The program is reauthorized through 2031, with priorities to be established annually in consultation with specialty crop producers, and elimination of cost-sharing or matching requirements.
• Local Agriculture Market Program. This program is reauthorized through 2031, with an expanded focus on regional food chain coordination.
• Acer (Maple Syrup) Access and Development Program. This program is enhanced with stakeholder consultation requirements and elimination of cost-sharing requirements.
• National Organic Program. Funding increases from prior levels to $26 million in fiscal year 2027, escalating to $34 million by fiscal year 2031. New technical assistance authority is provided for organic farmers and those transitioning to organic. A comprehensive study of organic program oversight protocols based on "risk to organic integrity" is mandated, including differential treatment of noncompliance, multi-tiered certification and virtual inspections.
• Organic Inputs Verification. The discussion draft establishes new risk-based testing protocols for imported organic feedstuffs, with annual residue testing and mandatory exclusion from organic sale of shipments that contain prohibited substances above permissible levels.
• Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production. The agency is reauthorized through 2031 with expanded scope, including controlled-environment agriculture, food waste-to-energy and technical assistance for business incorporation and zoning navigation.

Subtitle B: Regulatory Reform

• The discussion draft creates a new statutory definition of "plant biostimulant" and excludes qualifying low-risk biostimulants from regulation as plant regulators or pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. New definitions for "nutritional chemical," "vitamin hormone product" and "plant-incorporated protectant" are also introduced.
• Pesticide Registration and Review. The deadline for the EPA's initial registration review is extended to 2031, and new interim registration review decision requirements are imposed, including measures to reduce effects on endangered species and their habitats. The USDA Office of Pest Management Policy receives increased funding ($8 million per year through 2031) and an expanded interagency coordination role.
• Coordination with EPA. The discussion draft mandates new coordination requirements between USDA and EPA on risk mitigation measures, data sharing, and reasonable and prudent actions relating to pesticide use.
• Office of Biotechnology Policy. A new Office of Biotechnology Policy is established within USDA to coordinate biotechnology-related activities across the department and with other federal agencies, with $1 million per year authorized through 2031.
• Plant health. The Act authorizes USDA to use funds for construction of research laboratories and quarantine stations to support emergency plant health response efforts. It also broadens authority for interstate movement of plants from areas outside the continental U.S.

Title XI: Crop Insurance

This title modernizes and expands the federal crop insurance system, with a number of notable revisions.

• Governance Restructured. The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) Board is reconstituted to include a livestock-and-crop producer and an underserved/beginning farmer, with a new Specialty Crop Advisory Committee Chair (nonvoting) and Specialty Crops Coordinator position.
• Revenue Loss Coverage Expanded. Qualifying causes of loss now include market price declines not directly caused by the producer, going beyond the traditional natural disaster triggers. Producers whose yields were adversely affected by a specified water resources project may exclude those crop years from their actual production history.
• Veteran Farmer Support. Veterans who have operated a farm or ranch for 10 years or less receive the same enhanced premium assistance as beginning farmers and ranchers.
• Administrative and Operating (A&O) Rates Frozen. A&O expense reimbursement rates for approved insurance providers are frozen at fiscal year 2026 levels for all subsequent reinsurance years.
• New Compliance Appeals Process. A structured multistep appeals process with sequential 90-day stages is established for compliance findings against providers. Failure by the corporation to follow the process relieves the provider of the debt.
• Research and New Product Mandates. The FCIC must develop or study new policies for organic producers, wine grapes (wildfire smoke), mushrooms, specialty crop frost/freeze indices, pecans, lamb, sub-county Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) modifications, rotational oilseed cropping and standalone hurricane policies, among others. Feasibility studies are required for sub-county SCO modifications, standalone hurricane/tropical-storm policies and separate enterprise units for fallow versus continuous acreage. Additional directives include a risk management study for lamb producers, a quality loss adjustment procedures review every eight years, a report on budget-neutral Standard Reinsurance Agreement modifications and a pilot program evaluating coverage penalties for late-planted corn in specified Texas conservation districts. The FCIC must also annually review Whole Farm insurable revenue limitations for high-value crops.
• Final Agency Determinations Reinforced. The corporation's exclusive authority to interpret crop insurance regulations is reaffirmed, with determinations made binding in all litigation and arbitration.

Title XII: Miscellaneous

The miscellaneous title covers items outside of the previous titles.

Subtitle A: Livestock

• Addressing Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Shortages. The legislation allows qualified USDA-employed or contracted veterinarians to conduct animal import inspections, addressing shortages of APHIS inspectors.
• Animal Disease Preparedness and Response. The draft bolsters the National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program by clarifying that disease traceability efforts are an eligible use of program funds, and it increases funding authorization for the National Animal Health Laboratory. The Agriculture Secretary is also empowered to proactively negotiate regionalization and trade agreements in anticipation of animal disease outbreaks, and USDA is required to report on its readiness to support producers during a foreign animal disease event. Additional investments include authorization for new USDA dog training facilities to protect against invasive pests and diseases.
• Guidance. The legislation eases restrictions on livestock auction owners by permitting them to hold interest in smaller meatpacking operations, and it directs USDA to provide tailored Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point guidance and resources to small and very small meat and poultry processing establishments.
• Meat Processing and Surveillance. The bill supports the long-standing National Poultry Improvement Plan and establishes the U.S. Swine Health Improvement Plan to enhance biosecurity and disease surveillance in the swine industry. The legislation also opens the door for interstate online sales of state-inspected meat and poultry directly to household consumers. Finally, the bill directs the Office of the Chief Economist to conduct a study on livestock and meat production trends and marketing practices.

Subtitle B: National Security

• Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act Enhancements. First, the bill lowers the reporting threshold to require foreign lessees of farmland to file should their intended lease exceed five years, and they must notify the Agriculture Secretary within 90 days if they cease to use land for agricultural purposes. The civil penalty regime is also expanded to penalize failure to update inaccurate reports, impose minimum penalty of five percent of fair market value for knowingly false or misleading filings, and the U.S. Attorney General may pursue civil actions to recover penalties. The Agriculture Secretary is also authorized to place liens on agricultural land held by foreign persons subject to unpaid penalties.
• Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) Transparency. The bill also enhances transparency through requirements for annual compliance audits covering at least 10 percent of filings, electronic publication of AFIDA reports, and multiple annual reports to Congress analyzing foreign ownership trends, foreign influence risks and enforcement activities. USDA's Office of Homeland Security receives an expanded mandate to advise on foreign threats and monitor AFIDA compliance.

Subtitle C: Fertilizer

• Crop Input Economist. The draft instructs USDA to employ a full-time Crop Input Economist within the Office of the Chief Economist to coordinate federal data collection and research on crop inputs. It also requires USDA to publish a report on the U.S. fertilizer industry.

Subtitle D: Grain Standards Reauthorization

• Modernizing the Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS). The Agriculture Secretary is directed to prioritize improved grain grading technology, and FGIS gains flexibility to delegate inspection responsibilities to more conveniently located official agencies. The legislation clarifies FGIS's authority to invest user fees in interest-bearing trust accounts, extends the 30 percent cap on administrative costs through fiscal year 2033, and reauthorizes user fee collection and appropriations through the same period. The advisory committee's authority is extended through September 30, 2033, with streamlined nomination and appointment procedures.

Subtitle E: Miscellaneous Provisions

• Pet Policies. It extends the Emergency and Transitional Pet Shelter and Housing Assistance Grant Program and strengthens requirements for imported dogs, including mandatory veterinary certificates and electronic documentation systems.
• Miscellaneous Dairy Initiatives. The bill increases the Dairy Business Innovation Initiative's funding authorization from $20 million to $36 million annually. It also includes a technical correction ensuring the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act applies to school breakfasts.
• Seafood Provisions. Several provisions pertain to seafood, expanding country of origin labeling requirements to cover cooked and canned salmon and cooked king and tanner crab. The bill also establishes funding for USDA's Office of Seafood to improve coordination on domestic seafood issues, complemented by a study on expanding domestic seafood processing capacity.
• Reducing Foodborne Pathogens. The legislation creates a new FDA regulatory category for "zootechnical animal food substances" – feed additives that reduce foodborne pathogens or enteric methane – and streamlines their approval.
• Other Provisions. The bill addresses cattle fever tick eradication, qualified renewable biomass classification, precision agriculture technology standards, reauthorization of farming opportunities training and outreach, enhancements to the U.S. Drought Monitor and establishment of a Commission on Rural Maternal Health.

Holland & Knight Can Help

Holland & Knight's Agriculture & Food Policy Team is monitoring this legislation and will provide updates and further analysis. If you have questions about the potential impact to your business, contact the authors or another member of the team.

Information contained in this alert is for the general education and knowledge of our readers. It is not designed to be, and should not be used as, the sole source of information when analyzing and resolving a legal problem, and it should not be substituted for legal advice, which relies on a specific factual analysis. Moreover, the laws of each jurisdiction are different and are constantly changing. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. If you have specific questions regarding a particular fact situation, we urge you to consult the authors of this publication, your Holland & Knight representative or other competent legal counsel.