[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 136 (Monday, September 21, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6852-S6855]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MANDATORY PRICE REPORTING ACT OF 2015
Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 231, H.R. 2051.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The bill clerk read as follows:
A bill (H.R. 2051) to amend the Agricultural Marketing Act
of 1946 to extend the livestock mandatory price reporting
requirements, and for other purposes. There being no
objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, which
had been reported from
[[Page S6853]]
the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, with
an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause and
insert in lieu thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the
``Agriculture Reauthorizations Act of 2015''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--MANDATORY PRICE REPORTING
Sec. 101. Extension of livestock mandatory reporting.
Sec. 102. Swine reporting.
Sec. 103. Lamb reporting.
Sec. 104. Study on livestock mandatory reporting.
TITLE II--NATIONAL FOREST FOUNDATION ACT REAUTHORIZATION
Sec. 201. National Forest Foundation Act reauthorization.
TITLE III--UNITED STATES GRAIN STANDARDS ACT REAUTHORIZATION
Sec. 301. Reauthorization of United States Grain Standards Act.
Sec. 302. Report on disruption in Federal inspection of grain exports.
Sec. 303. Report on policy barriers to grain producers.
TITLE I--MANDATORY PRICE REPORTING
SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF LIVESTOCK MANDATORY REPORTING.
(a) Extension of Authority.--Section 260 of the
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1636i) is
amended by striking ``September 30, 2015'' and inserting
``September 30, 2020''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 942 of the Livestock
Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999 (7 U.S.C. 1635 note; Public
Law 106-78) is amended by striking ``September 30, 2015'' and
inserting ``September 30, 2020''.
SEC. 102. SWINE REPORTING.
(a) Definitions.--Section 231 of the Agricultural Marketing
Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635i) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through (22) as
paragraphs (10) through (23), respectively;
(2) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
``(9) Negotiated formula purchase.--The term `negotiated
formula purchase' means a swine or pork market formula
purchase under which--
``(A) the formula is determined by negotiation on a lot-by-
lot basis; and
``(B) the swine are scheduled for delivery to the packer
not later than 14 days after the date on which the formula is
negotiated and swine are committed to the packer.'';
(3) in paragraph (12)(A) (as so redesignated), by inserting
``negotiated formula purchase,'' after ``pork market formula
purchase,''; and
(4) in paragraph (23) (as so redesignated)--
(A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (E);
and
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
``(D) a negotiated formula purchase; and''.
(b) Daily Reporting.--Section 232(c) of the Agricultural
Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635j(c)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)(D), by striking clause (ii) and
inserting the following:
``(ii) Price distributions.--The information published by
the Secretary under clause (i) shall include--
``(I) a distribution of net prices in the range between and
including the lowest net price and the highest net price
reported;
``(II) a delineation of the number of barrows and gilts at
each reported price level or, at the option of the Secretary,
the number of barrows and gilts within each of a series of
reasonable price bands within the range of prices; and
``(III) the total number and weighted average price of
barrows and gilts purchased through negotiated purchases and
negotiated formula purchases.''; and
(2) in paragraph (3), by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Late in the day report information.--The Secretary
shall include in the morning report and the afternoon report
for the following day any information required to be reported
under subparagraph (A) that is obtained after the time of the
reporting day specified in that subparagraph.''.
SEC. 103. LAMB REPORTING.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall revise section 59.300
of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, so that--
(1) the definition of the term ``importer''--
(A) includes only those importers that imported an average
of 1,000 metric tons of lamb meat products per year during
the immediately preceding 4 calendar years; and
(B) may include any person that does not meet the
requirement referred to in subparagraph (A), if the Secretary
determines that the person should be considered an importer
based on their volume of lamb imports; and
(2) the definition of the term ``packer''--
(A) applies to any entity with 50 percent or more ownership
in a facility;
(B) includes a federally inspected lamb processing plant
which slaughtered or processed the equivalent of an average
of 35,000 head of lambs per year during the immediately
preceding 5 calendar years; and
(C) may include any other lamb processing plant that does
not meet the requirement referred to in subparagraph (B), if
the Secretary determines that the processing plant should be
considered a packer after considering the capacity of the
processing plant.
SEC. 104. STUDY ON LIVESTOCK MANDATORY REPORTING.
(a) Study Required.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting
through the Agricultural Marketing Service in conjunction
with the Office of the Chief Economist and in consultation
with cattle, swine, and lamb producers, packers, and other
market participants, shall conduct a study on the program of
information regarding the marketing of cattle, swine, lambs,
and products of such livestock under subtitle B of the
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1635 et seq.).
(2) Requirements.--The study shall--
(A) analyze current marketing practices in the cattle,
swine, and lamb markets;
(B) identify legislative or regulatory recommendations made
by cattle, swine, and lamb producers, packers, and other
market participants to ensure that information provided under
the program--
(i) can be readily understood by producers, packers, and
other market participants;
(ii) reflects current marketing practices; and
(iii) is relevant and useful to producers, packers, and
other market participants;
(C) analyze the price and supply information reporting
services of the Department of Agriculture related to cattle,
swine, and lamb; and
(D) address any other issues that the Secretary considers
appropriate.
(b) Report.--Not later than March 1, 2018, the Secretary of
Agriculture shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of
the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report
containing the findings of the study conducted under
subsection (a).
TITLE II--NATIONAL FOREST FOUNDATION ACT REAUTHORIZATION
SEC. 201. NATIONAL FOREST FOUNDATION ACT REAUTHORIZATION.
(a) Extension of Authority To Provide Matching Funds for
Administrative and Project Expenses.--Section 405(b) of the
National Forest Foundation Act (16 U.S.C. 583j-3(b)) is
amended by striking ``for a period of five years beginning
October 1, 1992'' and inserting ``during fiscal years 2016
through 2018''.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 410(b) of the
National Forest Foundation Act (16 U.S.C. 583j-8(b)) is
amended by striking ``during the five-year period'' and all
that follows through ``$1,000,000 annually'' and inserting
``there are authorized to be appropriated $3,000,000 for each
of fiscal years 2016 through 2018''.
(c) Technical Corrections.--
(1) Agent.--Section 404 of the National Forest Foundation
Act (16 U.S.C. 583j-2) is amended--
(A) in subsection (a)(4), by inserting ``notice or'' after
``authorized to accept''; and
(B) in subsection (b), by striking ``under this paragraph''
and inserting ``by subsection (a)(4)''.
(2) Annual report.--Section 407(b) of the National Forest
Foundation Act (16 U.S.C. 583j-5(b)) is amended by striking
the comma after ``The Foundation shall''.
TITLE III--UNITED STATES GRAIN STANDARDS ACT REAUTHORIZATION
SEC. 301. REAUTHORIZATION OF UNITED STATES GRAIN STANDARDS
ACT.
(a) Official Inspection and Weighing Requirements.--
(1) Discretionary waiver authority.--Section 5(a)(1) of the
United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 77(a)(1)) is
amended in the first proviso by striking ``may waive the
foregoing requirement in emergency or other circumstances
which would not impair the objectives of this Act'' and
inserting ``shall waive the foregoing requirement in
emergency or other circumstances that would not impair the
objectives of this Act whenever the parties to a contract for
such shipment mutually agree to the waiver and documentation
of such agreement is provided to the Secretary prior to
shipment''.
(2) Weighing requirements at export elevators.--Section
5(a)(2) of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C.
77(a)(2)) is amended in the proviso by striking
``intracompany shipments of grain into an export elevator by
any mode of transportation, grain transferred into an export
elevator by transportation modes other than barge,'' and
inserting ``shipments of grain into an export elevator by any
mode of transportation''.
(3) Disruption in grain inspection or weighing.--Section 5
of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 77) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(d) Disruption in Grain Inspection or Weighing.--In the
case of a disruption in official grain inspections or
weighings, including if the Secretary waives the requirement
for official inspection due to an emergency under subsection
(a)(1), the Secretary shall--
``(1) immediately take such actions as are necessary to
address the disruption and resume inspections or weighings;
``(2) not later than 24 hours after the start of the
disruption in inspection or weighing, submit to the Committee
on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the
Senate a report that describes--
``(A) the disruption; and
``(B) any actions necessary to address the concerns of the
Secretary relating to the disruption so that inspections or
weighings may resume; and
``(3) once the initial report in paragraph (2) has been
made, provide daily updates until official inspection or
weighing services at the site of disruption have resumed.''.
(b) Official Inspection Authority and Funding.--
(1) Delegation of official inspection authority.--Section
7(e)(2) of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C.
79(e)(2)) is amended--
[[Page S6854]]
(A) by striking ``(2) If the Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(2) Delegation of authority to state agencies.--
``(A) In general.--If the Secretary'';
(B) in the first sentence--
(i) by striking ``and (A)'' and inserting ``and (i)'';
(ii) by striking ``or (B)(i)'' and inserting ``or
(ii)(I)'';
(iii) by striking ``(ii)'' and inserting ``(II)''; and
(iv) by striking ``(iii)'' and inserting ``(III)''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Certification.--
``(i) In general.--Every 5 years, the Secretary shall
certify that each State agency with a delegation of authority
is meeting the criteria described in subsection (f)(1)(A).
``(ii) Process.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Agriculture Reauthorizations Act of 2015,
the Secretary shall establish a process for certification
under which the Secretary shall--
``(I) publish in the Federal Register notice of intent to
certify a State agency and provide a 30-day period for public
comment;
``(II) evaluate the public comments received and, in
accordance with paragraph (3), conduct an investigation to
determine whether the State agency is qualified;
``(III) make findings based on the public comments received
and investigation conducted; and
``(IV) publish in the Federal Register a notice announcing
whether the certification has been granted and describing the
basis on which the Secretary made the decision.
``(C) State agency requirements.--
``(i) In general.--If a State agency that has been
delegated authority under this paragraph intends to
temporarily discontinue official inspection or weighing
services for any reason, except in the case of a major
disaster, the State agency shall notify the Secretary in
writing of the intention of the State agency to do so at
least 72 hours in advance of the discontinuation date.
``(ii) Secretarial consideration.--The Secretary shall
consider receipt of a notice described in clause (i) as a
factor in administering the delegation of authority under
this paragraph.''.
(2) Consultation.--Section 7(f)(1) of the United States
Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(f)(1)) is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (A)(xi), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) the Secretary--
``(i) periodically conducts a consultation with the
customers of the applicant, in a manner that provides
opportunity for protection of the identity of the customer if
desired by the customer, to review the performance of the
applicant with regard to the provision of official inspection
services and other requirements of this Act; and
``(ii) works with the applicant to address any concerns
identified during the consultation process.''.
(3) Geographic boundaries for official agencies.--
(A) Official inspection authority.--Section 7(f)(2) of the
United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(f)(2)) is
amended by striking ``the Secretary may'' and all that
follows through the end of the paragraph and inserting the
following: ``the Secretary shall allow a designated official
agency to cross boundary lines to carry out inspections in
another geographic area if--
``(A) the current designated official agency for that
geographic area is unable to provide inspection services in a
timely manner;
``(B) a person requesting inspection services in that
geographic area requests a probe inspection on a barge-lot
basis; or
``(C) the current official agency for that geographic area
agrees in writing with the adjacent official agency to waive
the current geographic area restriction at the request of the
applicant for service.''.
(B) Weighing authority.--Section 7A(i)(2) of the United
States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79a(i)(2)) is amended by
striking ``the Secretary may'' and all that follows through
the end of the paragraph and inserting the following: ``the
Secretary shall allow a designated official agency to cross
boundary lines to carry out weighing in another geographic
area if--
``(A) the current designated official agency for that
geographic area is unable to provide weighing services in a
timely manner; or
``(B) the current official agency for that geographic area
agrees in writing with the adjacent official agency to waive
the current geographic area restriction at the request of the
applicant for service.''.
(4) Duration of designation authority.--Section 7(g)(1) of
the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(g)(1)) is
amended by striking ``triennially'' and inserting ``every 5
years''.
(5) Fees.--Section 7(j) of the United States Grain
Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79(j)(1)) is amended--
(A) by striking ``(j)(1) The Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(j) Fees.--
``(1) Inspection fees.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary'';
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) the second sentence, by striking ``The fees'' and
inserting the following:
``(B) Amount of fees.--The fees'';
(ii) in the third sentence, by striking ``Such fees'' and
inserting the following:
``(C) Use of fees.--Fees described in this paragraph''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(D) Export tonnage fees.--For an official inspection at
an export facility performed by the Secretary, the portion of
the fees based on export tonnage shall be based on the
rolling 5-year average of export tonnage volumes.'';
(C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (5);
(D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
``(4) Adjustment of fees.--In order to maintain an
operating reserve of not less than 3 and not more than 6
months, the Secretary shall adjust the fees described in
paragraphs (1) and (2) not less frequently than annually.'';
and
(E) in paragraph (5) (as redesignated by subparagraph (C)),
in the first sentence, by striking ``2015'' and inserting
``2020''.
(c) Weighing Authority.--Section 7A of the United States
Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 79a) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(2), in the last sentence, by striking
``subsection (g) of section 7'' and inserting ``subsections
(e) and (g) of section 7''; and
(2) in subsection (l)--
(A) by striking ``(l)(1) The Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(l) Fees.--
``(1) Weighing fees.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary'';
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) the second sentence, by striking ``The fees'' and
inserting the following:
``(B) Amount of fees.--The fees'';
(ii) in the third sentence, by striking ``Such fees'' and
inserting the following:
``(C) Use of fees.--Fees described in this paragraph''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(D) Export tonnage fees.--For an official weighing at an
export facility performed by the Secretary, the portion of
the fees based on export tonnage shall be based on the
rolling 5-year average of export tonnage volumes.'';
(C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4);
(D) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
``(3) Adjustment of fees.--In order to maintain an
operating reserve of not less than 3 and not more than 6
months, the Secretary shall adjust the fees described in
paragraphs (1) and (2) not less frequently than annually.'';
and
(E) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by subparagraph (C)),
in the first sentence, by striking ``2015'' and inserting
``2020''.
(d) Limitation and Administrative and Supervisory Costs.--
Section 7D of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C.
79d) is amended by striking ``2015'' and inserting ``2020''.
(e) Issuance of Authorization.--Section 8(b) of the United
States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 84(b)) is amended by
striking ``triennially'' and inserting ``every 5 years''.
(f) Appropriations.--Section 19 of the United States Grain
Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 87h) is amended by striking ``2015''
and inserting ``2020''.
(g) Advisory Committee.--Section 21(e) of the United States
Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 87j(e)) is amended by striking
``2015'' and inserting ``2020''.
SEC. 302. REPORT ON DISRUPTION IN FEDERAL INSPECTION OF GRAIN
EXPORTS.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the
Senate, the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives, the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related
Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate,
and the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food
and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies of the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a
report that describes--
(1) the specific factors that led to disruption in Federal
inspection of grain exports at the Port of Vancouver in the
summer of 2014;
(2) any factors that contributed to the disruption referred
to in paragraph (1) that were unique to the Port of
Vancouver, including a description of the port facility,
security needs and available resources for that purpose, and
any other significant factors as determined by the Secretary;
and
(3) any changes in policy that the Secretary has
implemented to ensure that a similar disruption in Federal
inspection of grain exports at the Port of Vancouver or any
other location does not occur in the future.
SEC. 303. REPORT ON POLICY BARRIERS TO GRAIN PRODUCERS.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with the
United States Trade Representative, shall submit to the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the
Senate and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives a report that describes--
(1) the policy barriers to United States grain producers in
countries the grain of which receives official grading in the
United States but which do not offer official grading for
United States grain or provide only the lowest designation
for United States grain, including an analysis of possible
inconsistencies with trade obligations; and
(2) any actions the Executive Branch is taking to remedy
the policy barriers so as to put United States grain
producers on equal footing with grain producers in countries
imposing the barriers.
Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
committee-reported amendment be agreed to, that the bill, as amended,
be read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be made
and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
The amendment was ordered to be engrossed, and the bill to be read a
third time.
The bill was read the third time.
The bill (H.R. 2051), as amended, was passed.
____________________