[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4470 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4470
To amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to
improve the Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 30, 2026
Mr. Fetterman (for himself, Ms. Slotkin, Mr. Schiff, Ms. Smith, Mr.
Booker, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Heinrich, and Mr. Hickenlooper) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to
improve the Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production, and
for other purposes.
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 ``Supporting Urban and Innovative
Farming Act of 2026''.
SEC. 2. OFFICE OF URBAN AGRICULTURE AND INNOVATIVE PRODUCTION.
Section 222 of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of
1994 (7 U.S.C. 6923) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(3)--
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by
inserting ``production'' after ``emerging
agricultural'';
(B) in subparagraph (D)--
(i) by inserting ``controlled-environment
agriculture, including'' before ``hydroponic'';
and
(ii) by striking ``and'' at the end;
(C) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as
subparagraph (H); and
(D) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the
following:
``(E) using the resources of the Department and of
State, Tribal, and local agencies to provide technical
assistance for business incorporation, navigating local
zoning, and managing farm tract numbers for smaller,
noncontiguous parcels to growers implementing
activities described in this paragraph;
``(F) using the resources of the Department and of
State, Tribal, and local agencies to promote
conservation techniques unique to urban agriculture and
innovative production, including techniques that
address stormwater runoff and the impacted nature of
urban land and the subsurface of the land;
``(G) assisting urban and innovative producers in
navigating Federal, State, Tribal, and local policies
and regulations that impact business or operations;
and'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking ``2023'' and
inserting ``2030''; and
(B) in paragraph (7)(A), by striking ``the date
that is 5 years after the date on which the members are
appointed under paragraph (2)(B)'' and inserting
``September 30, 2030'';
(3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
``(c) Grants and Cooperative Agreements.--
``(1) Grants.--
``(A) In general.--The Director shall award
competitive grants to support the development of urban
and innovative agricultural production and technical or
financial assistance to producers.
``(B) Subgrants.--An eligible entity may use funds
from a grant under subparagraph (A) to provide
subgrants to urban and innovative producers to support
the growth of the farm or farm business of the urban
and innovative producers.
``(C) Priority.--In awarding competitive grants
under this paragraph, the Director shall prioritize
projects that improve access to local foods in areas
where access to fresh, healthy food is limited.
``(D) Eligible entities.--An entity eligible to
receive a grant under subparagraph (A) is--
``(i) a nonprofit organization;
``(ii) a unit of local government;
``(iii) a Tribal organization;
``(iv) an agricultural cooperative or other
agricultural business entity or a producer
network or association; or
``(v) a school that serves any of grades
kindergarten through grade 12.
``(2) Cooperative agreements.--
``(A) In general.--The Director may enter into
cooperative agreements with eligible entities to
support the development of urban and innovative
agricultural production.
``(B) Eligible entities.--An entity eligible to
enter into a cooperative agreement under subparagraph
(A) is--
``(i) a nonprofit organization;
``(ii) a unit of local government;
``(iii) a Tribal organization; or
``(iv) an agricultural cooperative or a
producer network or association.'';
(4) in subsection (d)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Pilot
Projects'' and inserting ``Projects'';
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``Not
later than 1 year after the date of enactment
of this section, the Secretary shall establish
a pilot program for not fewer than 5 years
that'' and inserting ``The Secretary shall
carry out a program that''; and
(ii) in subparagraph (C)--
(I) in the matter preceding clause
(i), by striking ``2023'' and inserting
``2030''; and
(II) in clause (i), by striking
``pilot''; and
(C) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (A)--
(I) by striking ``pilot'';
(II) by striking ``local or
municipal'' and inserting ``local,
municipal, Tribal, State, or United
States territory''; and
(III) by inserting ``or
territories'' after ``States'';
(ii) in subparagraph (B)--
(I) in the subparagraph heading, by
striking ``pilot''; and
(II) in the matter preceding clause
(i), by inserting ``Tribal governments,
States, United States territories,''
after ``local governments,''; and
(iii) in subparagraph (C), by striking
``pilot'' each place it appears; and
(5) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following:
``(e) Funding.--
``(1) Mandatory funding.--Of the funds of the Commodity
Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall use to carry out this
section $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year
thereafter.
``(2) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $50,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030.''.
SEC. 3. AGRICULTURE AND FOOD RESEARCH INITIATIVE.
Section 2(b)(2)(E) of the Competitive, Special, and Facilities
Research Grants Act (7 U.S.C. 3157(b)(2)(E)) is amended--
(1) in clause (iv), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in clause (v), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(vi) hydroponics, aquaponics, aeroponics,
and other production technologies used in
controlled-environment agriculture
production.''.
SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION.
Section 7212(b) of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Public
Law 115-334; 132 Stat. 4812) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding subparagraph
(A)--
(A) by striking ``Not later than one year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the'' and inserting
``The''; and
(B) by striking ``the census of agriculture
conducted in the calendar year 2017'' and inserting
``each census of agriculture''; and
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``$14,000,000 for the
period of fiscal years 2019 through 2021'' and inserting
``$18,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030, to
remain available until expended''.
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