[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1626 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1626

  To provide emergency disaster assistance to agricultural producers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 17, 2003

  Mr. Dayton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide emergency disaster assistance to agricultural producers.

    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 ``Emergency Agricultural Disaster 
Assistance Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. CROP DISASTER ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsections (b) through (d), the 
Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') 
shall use such sums as are necessary of funds of the Commodity Credit 
Corporation to make emergency financial assistance authorized under 
this section available to producers on a farm that have incurred 
qualifying crop losses for the 2001, 2002, or 2003 crop, or any 
combination of those crops, due to damaging weather or related 
condition, as determined by the Secretary.
    (b) Administration.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        Secretary shall make assistance available under this section in 
        the same manner as provided under section 815 of the 
        Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, 
        and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106-
        387; 114 Stat. 1549A-55), including using the same loss 
        thresholds for the quantity and quality losses as were used in 
        administering that section.
            (2) Payment rates.--The Secretary shall make a disaster 
        payment available to producers on a farm for a crop under this 
        section at a rate equal to--
                    (A) 40 percent of the established price for the 
                crop for any deficiency in production greater than 20 
                percent, but less than 35 percent, for the crop; and
                    (B) 65 percent of the established price for the 
                crop for any deficiency in production of 35 percent or 
                more for the crop.
    (c) Crop Insurance.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary 
shall not discriminate against or penalize producers on a farm that 
have purchased crop insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
U.S.C. 1501 et seq.).
    (d) Other Assistance.--Subject to subsection (c), the amount of 
assistance that producers on a farm would otherwise receive under this 
section shall be reduced by the amount of assistance provided to the 
producers on the farm for crop losses described in subsection (a) under 
any other Federal law.

SEC. 3. LIVESTOCK ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsections (b) through (c), the 
Secretary shall use such sums as are necessary of funds of the 
Commodity Credit Corporation as are necessary to make and administer 
payments for livestock losses to producers for 2001, 2002, or 2003, or 
any combination of those years, in a county that has received a 
corresponding emergency designation by the President or the Secretary, 
of which an amount determined by the Secretary shall be made available 
for the American Indian livestock program under section 806 of the 
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and 
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106-387; 114 
Stat. 1549, 1549A-51).
    (b) Administration.--The Secretary shall make assistance available 
under this section in the same manner as provided under section 806 of 
the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and 
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106-387; 114 
Stat. 1549, 1549A-51).
    (c) Other Assistance.--The amount of assistance that a producer 
would otherwise receive under this section shall be reduced by the 
amount of assistance provided to the producer for losses described in 
subsection (a) under any other Federal law.

SEC. 4. FUNDING.

    Of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary 
shall use such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act, to remain 
available until expended.

SEC. 5. REGULATIONS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as 
are necessary to implement this Act.
    (b) Procedure.--The promulgation of the regulations and 
administration of this Act shall be made without regard to--
            (1) the notice and comment provisions of section 553 of 
        title 5, United States Code;
            (2) the Statement of Policy of the Secretary of Agriculture 
        effective July 24, 1971 (36 Fed. Reg. 13804), relating to 
        notices of proposed rulemaking and public participation in 
        rulemaking; and
            (3) chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code (commonly 
        known as the ``Paperwork Reduction Act'').
    (c) Congressional Review of Agency Rulemaking.--In carrying out 
this section, the Secretary shall use the authority provided under 
section 808 of title 5, United States Code.

SEC. 6. EMERGENCY DESIGNATION.

    (a) In General.--The entire amount made available under this Act 
shall be available only to the extent that the President submits to 
Congress an official budget request for a specific dollar amount that 
includes designation of the entire amount of the request as an 
emergency requirement for the purposes of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900 et seq.).
    (b) Designation.--The entire amount made available under this 
section is designated by Congress as an emergency requirement under 
sections 251(b)(2)(A) and 252(e) of that Act (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(A), 
902(e)).

SEC. 7. BUDGETARY TREATMENT.

    Notwithstanding Rule 3 of the Budget Scorekeeping Guidelines set 
forth in the Joint Explanatory Statement of the Committee of Conference 
accompanying Conference Report No. 105-217, the provisions of this Act 
that would have been estimated by the Office of Management and Budget 
as changing direct spending or receipts under section 252 of the 
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 
902) were it included in an Act other than an appropriation Act shall 
be treated as direct spending or receipts legislation, as appropriate, 
under section 252 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control 
Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 902).
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