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<BillSummaries>
<item congress="113" measure-type="hr" measure-number="1890" measure-id="id113hr1890" originChamber="HOUSE" orig-publish-date="2013-05-08" update-date="2013-09-11">
<title>Balancing Food, Farm, and the Environment Act of 2013</title>
<summary summary-id="id113hr1890v00" currentChamber="HOUSE" update-date="2013-09-11">
<action-date>2013-05-08</action-date>
<action-desc>Introduced in House</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p>Balancing Food, Farm, and the Environment Act of 2013 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to make a producer violating certain conservation requirements under the highly erodible land or wetland programs ineligible for federal crop insurance premiums. </p> <p>Requires producers under the highly erodible land program and the wetland conservation program to comply with specified conservation requirements.</p> <p>Extends and revises: (1) the conservation reserve program, (2) the conservation stewardship program, and (3) the environmental quality incentives program.</p> <p>Establishes: (1) a conservation reserve easement program, and (2) a conservation innovation grant program.</p> <p>Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to use Commodity Credit Corporation funds and facilities to carry out the following programs through FY2018: (1) the conservation reserve program, (2) the conservation security program, (3) the conservation stewardship program, (4) the environmental quality incentives program, (5) the conservation innovation grant program, (6) the agricultural conservation easement program, and (7) the conservation loan and loan guarantee program.</p> <p>Authorizes a conservation loan and loan guarantee program.</p> <p>Establishes an agricultural conservation easement program which shall combine the purposes and functions of the wetlands reserve program, the grassland reserve program, and the farmland protection program.</p> <p>Provides: (1) funding for the purchase by eligible entities of agricultural land easements and other interests in eligible land, and (2) assistance to owners of eligible land to restore and protect wetland through easements and related wetland easement plans. </p> <p>Authorizes the Secretary to enter into one or more agreements with a state, nongovernmental organization, or Indian tribe to carry out a special wetlands reserve enhancement program which shall include a reservation of haying and grazing component.</p> <p>Establishes a regional conservation partnership program which shall combine the purposes and functions of the agricultural water enhancement program, the Chesapeake Bay Watershed program, the cooperative conservation partnership initiative, and the Great Lakes basin program for soil erosion and sediment control.</p> <p>Repeals: (1) the emergency forestry conservation reserve program, (2) the wetlands reserve program, (3) the farmland protection program and farm viability program, (4) the grassland reserve program, (5) the environmental easement program, (6) the program of conservation innovation grants and payments, (7) the agricultural water enhancement program, (8) the wildlife habitat incentive program, (9) the <e > Great Lakes Basin program, (10) the cooperative conservation partnership initiative, and (11) the desert terminal lakes program.</p>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
</item>
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<dc:language>EN</dc:language>
<dc:rights>Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.</dc:rights>
<dc:contributor>Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress</dc:contributor>
<dc:description>This file contains bill summaries for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.</dc:description>
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