[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 39 (Thursday, March 11, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2591-S2592]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SANTORUM:
  S. 598. A bill to amend the Federal Agriculture Improvement and 
Reform Act of 1996 to improve the farmland protection program; to the 
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

                    FARMLAND PROTECTION ACT OF 1999

  Mr. SANTORUM. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation 
that would reauthorize the Farmland Protection Program that was 
originally authorized with passage of the 1996 Farm Bill.
  Every year more than one million acres of our nation's most 
productive farmland is lost to urbanization. This is land that produces 
three-quarters of America's fruits and vegetables, and more than half 
of our dairy products. While state and local governments have taken the 
lead in preservation efforts, the demand for assistance continues to 
grow.
  Considering the importance of agriculture to our nation, and to 
generations of families throughout our country, I was proud to take a 
lead role in the United States Senate to assist farmers and communities 
in confronting the obstacle of growing pressure on the use of farmland. 
As such, I, with the support of many Senate colleagues, established the 
Federal Farmland Protection Program to stem the loss of valuable 
farmland, and to provide states with adequate tools to accomplish that 
goal. Those efforts resulted in a $35 million authorization in the 1996 
Farm Bill.
  This money has been used to help states leverage dollars in order to 
purchase development rights, and keep productive farmland in use--all 
through voluntary efforts. In just three short years, the funds were 
exhausted due to the overwhelming response by farmers and state 
governments. In fact, by the end of fiscal year 1997 the original $35 
million authorization had been spent, and the demand outstripped 
funding availability by 900 percent.
  The legislation that I'm introducing today, the Farmland Protection 
Act of 1999, would provide a $50 million per year authorization for the 
much-needed funds to carry out the important work of farmland 
preservation. In addition, my bill would allow non-profit organizations 
to participate in the program--where there is no established government 
program--as they are currently precluded from doing so in certain 
states.
  Mr. President, I am proud to introduce this legislation that will 
enable us to take another giant step forward in protecting a valuable 
resource to many Americans. To date, nineteen states have capitalized 
on this opportunity to augment their preservation efforts, and 
hopefully, the Farmland Protection Act of 1999 will give more states 
the tools to assist their local farming community.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 598

       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 ``Farmland Protection Act of 
     1999''.

     SEC. 2. FARMLAND PROTECTION PROGRAM.

       Section 388 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and 
     Reform Act of 1996 (16 U.S.C. 3830 note; Public Law 104-127) 
     is amended to read as follows:

[[Page S2592]]

     ``SEC. 388. FARMLAND PROTECTION PROGRAM.

       ``(a) Definition of Eligible Entity.--In this section, the 
     term `eligible entity' means--
       ``(1) any agency of any State or local government, or 
     federally recognized Indian tribe; and
       ``(2) any organization that--
       ``(A) is organized for, and at all times since its 
     formation has been operated principally for, 1 or more of the 
     conservation purposes specified in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) 
     of section 170(h)(4)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
       ``(B) is an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of 
     the Code that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of 
     the Code; and
       ``(C)(i) is described in section 509(a)(2) of the Code; or
       ``(ii) is described in section 509(a)(3) of the Code and is 
     controlled by an organization described in section 509(a)(2) 
     of the Code.
       ``(b) Authority.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
     establish and carry out a farmland protection program under 
     which the Secretary shall provide grants to eligible 
     entities, to provide the Federal share of the cost of 
     purchasing conservation easements or other interests in land 
     with prime, unique, or other productive soil for the purpose 
     of protecting topsoil by limiting nonagricultural uses of the 
     land.
       ``(c) Eligible Entities.--The Secretary may provide a grant 
     to an eligible entity described in subsection (a)(2) for the 
     purchase of a conservation easement or other interest in land 
     within the jurisdiction of a State or local government or 
     federally recognized Indian tribe only if the appropriate 
     agency of the State or local government or the federally 
     recognized Indian tribe does not operate a farmland 
     protection program.
       ``(d) Federal Share.--The Federal share of the cost of 
     purchasing a conservation easement or other interest 
     described in subsection (b) shall be not more than 50 
     percent.
       ``(e) Conservation Plan.--Any land for which a conservation 
     easement or other interest is purchased under this section 
     shall be subject to the requirements of a conservation plan 
     that requires, at the option of the Secretary, the conversion 
     of the land to less intensive uses.
       ``(f) Ranking Criteria.--The Secretary shall consult with 
     appropriate agencies of States and local governments and 
     federally recognized Indian tribes in developing criteria for 
     ranking applications for grants under this section.
       ``(g) Funding.--For each fiscal year, the Secretary shall 
     use not more than $50,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity 
     Credit Corporation to carry out this section.''.
                                 ______