A new, bipartisan climate bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, April 20th. The bill, known as the Growing Climate Solutions Act is targeted towards the agriculture industry and aims to establish a working group to partner with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help create a certification program and to provide technical assistance and reliable information to agricultural producers and forest owners seeking to participate in voluntarily in carbon markets. The primary bill sponsors include Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Senator Mike Braun (R-IN), and it is cosponsored by Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR).
Senator Boozman recently noted several changes from a previous version of the bill from the 116th Congress, which he noted are improvements to the bill. The recent changes and a brief bill summary provided by Senator Boozman's agriculture committee staff are included below.
On April 22, the Senate Agriculture Committee voted the bill out of committee. https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/hearings/business-meeting-4-22-2021
Boozman Improvements in the Bill
- Funded by rescission of Reconciliation bill funds ($4.1 million Administrative Funds to carry out Reconciliation Ag provisions) – does not “cannibalize” existing farm and conservation programs.
- Freestanding law – Does not open / amend Farm Bill.
- Requires a majority of members of the Advisory Council to be farmers, ranchers, or private forest landowners.
- Conflict of Interest – requires Secretary to prevent conflicts by Advisory Council Members.
- Confidentiality – prevents disclosure of farmer-specific or confidential business information by USDA.
- Requires Assessment of current agriculture carbon markets before the Program is established (including consideration of whether the Program will impede existing markets).
- Before the Program is established, the Secretary must find that the Program will enhance participation of farmers in agriculture carbon markets.
- Authorizes the Secretary to revoke the certifications of technical assistance providers and third-party verifiers for failure to perform in accordance with best management practices.
- Requires a Report on the outcomes of the Program every 2 years.
- Makes Advisory Council subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (requiring open / public meetings, etc.).
Brief Summary of the bill
- Requires Assessment of current agriculture carbon markets (240 days after enactment, and every 4 years thereafter).
- Requires findings by Secretary that establishment of program will fulfill purposes of the Act to benefit farmers, etc., before Secretary Establishes Program (270 days after enactment).
- Requires Secretary to hold notice and comment rulemaking on the publication of a list of protocols for voluntary environmental credit markets and qualifications for certified technical assistance and verification providers (90 days after establishment of Program).
- Allows covered entities to self-certify on a website maintained by the Secretary (180 days after establishment of the Program).
- Secretary shall publish a list of the technical assistance and verification providers certified (within 1 year after establishment of the Program and quarterly thereafter).
- Requires Annual audits of a representative sample of certified entities.
- Authorizes the Secretary to revoke the certifications of entities in noncompliance, to make public the names of any entity for which the certification is revoked, and to notify any farmers who used the services of those certified entities.
- Establish 32+ member Advisory Council, 51% of which must be farmers, ranchers, or private forest landowners (within 90n days after establishment of Program).
- Requires a Report on the outcomes of the Program every 2 years.
- Confidentiality – prevents disclosure of farmer-specific or confidential business information by USDA.
- Rescinds $4.1 million from section 1003 of the American Rescue Plan Act (Administrative Funds) to fund initial implementation of the Program.
- Authorizes Appropriations of $1 million per year for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.
More below:
https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/download/committee-print-1251
https://agclimatealliance.com/files/2021/04/faca_press_release_20210420.pdf
https://www.fb.org/newsroom/farm-bureau-supports-new-growing-climate-solutions-act