[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 667 Introduced in Senate (IS)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 667

     To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to strengthen payment 
            limitations for commodity payments and benefits.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 19, 2003

 Mr. Grassley (for himself, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. 
        Daschle) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 
        and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 
        ForestryYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to strengthen payment 
            limitations for commodity payments and benefits.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. PAYMENT LIMITATIONS.

    Section 1001 of the Food Security of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1308) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``$40,000'' and 
        inserting ``$20,000'';
            (2) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ``$65,000'' and 
        inserting ``$30,000'';
            (3) by striking ``(d)'' and all that follows through the 
        end of paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
    ``(d) Limitations on Marketing Loan Gains, Loan Deficiency 
Payments, and Commodity Certificate Transactions.--
            ``(1) Loan commodities.--The total amount of the following 
        gains and payments that a person may receive during any crop 
        year may not exceed $87,500:
                    ``(A)(i) Any gain realized by a producer from 
                repaying a marketing assistance loan for 1 or more loan 
                commodities under subtitle B of title I of the Farm 
                Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 
                7931 et seq.) at a lower level than the original loan 
                rate established for the loan commodity under that 
                subtitle.
                    ``(ii) In the case of settlement of a marketing 
                assistance loan for 1 or more loan commodities under 
                that subtitle by forfeiture, the amount by which the 
                loan amount exceeds the repayment amount for the loan 
                if the loan had been settled by repayment instead of 
                forfeiture.
                    ``(B) Any loan deficiency payments received for 1 
                or more loan commodities under that subtitle.
                    ``(C) Any gain realized from the use of a commodity 
                certificate issued by the Commodity Credit Corporation 
                for 1 or more loan commodities, as determined by the 
                Secretary, including the use of a certificate for the 
                settlement of a marketing assistance loan made under 
                that subtitle.''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Single Farming Operation.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding subsections (b) through 
        (d), subject to paragraph (2), if a person participates only in 
        a single farming operation and receives, directly or 
        indirectly, any payment or gain covered by this section through 
        the operation, the total amount of payments or gains (as 
        applicable) covered by this section that the person may receive 
        during any crop year may not exceed twice the applicable dollar 
        amounts specified in subsections (b), (c), and (d).
            ``(2) Individuals.--The total amount of payments or gains 
        (as applicable) covered by this section that an individual 
        person may receive during any crop year may not exceed 
        $275,000.
    ``(i) Spouse Equity.--Notwithstanding subsections (b) through (d), 
except as provided in subsection (e)(2)(C)(i), if an individual and 
spouse are covered by subsection (e)(2)(C) and receive, directly or 
indirectly, any payment or gain covered by this section, the total 
amount of payments or gains (as applicable) covered by this section 
that the individual and spouse may jointly receive during any crop year 
may not exceed twice the applicable dollar amounts specified in 
subsections (b), (c), and (d).
    ``(j) Regulations.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than July 1, 2003, the 
        Secretary shall promulgate regulations--
                    ``(A) to ensure that total payments and gains 
                described in this section made to or through joint 
                operations or multiple entities under the primary 
                control of a person, in combination with the payments 
                and gains received directly by the person, shall not 
                exceed twice the applicable dollar amounts specified in 
                subsections (b), (c), and (d);
                    ``(B) in the case of a person that in the aggregate 
                owns, conducts farming operations, or provides custom 
                farming services on land with respect to which the 
                aggregate payments received by the person exceed the 
                applicable dollar amounts specified in subsections (b), 
                (c), and (d), to attribute all payments and gains made 
                to the person on crops produced on the land to--
                            ``(i) a person that rents land for a share 
                        of the crop that is less than the usual and 
                        customary rate, as determined by the Secretary;
                            ``(ii) a person that provides custom 
                        farming services through arrangements under 
                        which--
                                    ``(I) all or part of the 
                                compensation for the services is at 
                                risk;
                                    ``(II) farm management services are 
                                provided by--
                                            ``(aa) the same person;
                                            ``(bb) an immediate family 
                                        member; or
                                            ``(cc) an entity or 
                                        individual that has a business 
                                        relationship that is not an 
                                        arm's length relationship, as 
                                        determined by the Secretary; or
                                    ``(III) more than \2/3\ of all 
                                payments received for custom farming 
                                services are received by--
                                            ``(aa) the same person;
                                            ``(bb) an immediate family 
                                        member; or
                                            ``(cc) an entity or 
                                        individual that has a business 
                                        relationship that is not an 
                                        arm's length relationship, as 
                                        determined by the Secretary; or
                            ``(iii) a person under such other 
                        arrangements as the Secretary determines are 
                        established to transfer payments from persons 
                        that would otherwise exceed the applicable 
                        dollar amounts specified in subsections (b), 
                        (c), and (d); and
                    ``(C) to ensure that payments attributed under this 
                section to a person other than the direct recipient 
                shall also count toward the limit of the direct 
                recipient.
            ``(2) Primary control.--The regulations under paragraph (1) 
        shall define `primary control' to include a joint operation or 
        multiple entity in which a person owns an interest that is 
        greater than the total interests held by other persons that 
        materially participate on a regular, substantial, and 
        continuous basis in the management of the operation or 
        entity.''.

SEC. 2. REGULATIONS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture may promulgate such 
regulations as are necessary to implement this Act and the amendments 
made by this Act.
    (b) Procedure.--The promulgation of the regulations and 
administration of this Act and the amendments made by 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.
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