Bill Summary
The Women in Agriculture Act is a proposed bill that aims to amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994. This amendment would establish a new position within the Department, called the Women Farmers and Ranchers Liaison. The Liaison would have specific duties and responsibilities, including providing information about agricultural programs available to women, advocating on behalf of women in interactions with the Department, promoting the advancement of women in leadership roles within the Department, and submitting an annual report on funding and employment statistics for women in agriculture. The Liaison would also have the authority to enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with research centers or educational institutions to conduct research and provide resources for women in agriculture. Additionally, the bill proposes to prioritize research and development of ergonomically designed agriculture equipment and machinery for use by women. Lastly, it would give priority to applicants addressing childcare in agricultural or rural communities when awarding loans and grants.
Possible Impacts
1. This legislation could positively affect women farmers and ranchers by creating a specific position in the Department of Agriculture to advocate for their interests, provide information on available programs, and promote their advancement in leadership roles.
2. The legislation could also potentially benefit small farms run by women by providing resources and support through research, educational materials, workshops, and internship opportunities.
3. The prioritization of child care in selecting recipients of loans and grants could also benefit women farmers and ranchers who may have children and need affordable and accessible child care in order to continue their agricultural work.
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2638 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2638
To amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to
establish the position of Women Farmers and Ranchers Liaison, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 3, 2025
Ms. Leger Fernandez (for herself, Mrs. Kiggans of Virginia, Ms.
Pingree, and Ms. Ross) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to
establish the position of Women Farmers and Ranchers Liaison, 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 ``Women in Agriculture Act''.
SEC. 2. WOMEN FARMERS AND RANCHERS LIAISON.
(a) In General.--The Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act
of 1994 is amended by inserting after section 222 (7 U.S.C. 6923) the
following:
``SEC. 223. WOMEN FARMERS AND RANCHERS LIAISON.
``(a) Establishment.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the
enactment of the Women in Agriculture Act, the Secretary shall
establish in the Department the position of Women Farmers and Ranchers
Liaison (in this section referred to as the `Liaison').
``(b) Duties.--
``(1) In general.--The Liaison shall carry out the
following duties:
``(A) With respect to agricultural programs
available to women who are farmers and ranchers--
``(i) provide information to such women
about the availability of such programs and the
eligibility requirements for such programs; and
``(ii) assist such women, and women who are
potential farmers or ranchers, in applying for
such programs.
``(B) Advocate on behalf of women who are farmers
and ranchers in interactions with employees of the
Department.
``(C) Promote the advancement of women in
leadership roles within the Department.
``(D) Submit and make publicly available the report
required under paragraph (2)(A).
``(E) Consult and provide technical assistance to
the Equity Commission of the Department.
``(F) Consult with and provide technical assistance
to any Federal agency that requests such assistance
with respect to the duties described in subparagraphs
(A) through (E).
``(2) Report.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the
date of the enactment of the Women in Agriculture Act,
and annually thereafter, the Liaison shall submit to
Congress and make publicly available a report on the
grants, loans, loan guarantees, and cost share programs
made by the Secretary to woman-owned agriculture
operations.
``(B) Contents.--Each report required under
subparagraph (A) shall include, with respect to the
fiscal year preceding such report--
``(i) the total number of grants, loans,
loan guarantees, and cost share programs made
by each of the Farm Service Agency and the
Natural Resources Conservation Service to
agriculture operations;
``(ii) the percentage of such grants,
loans, loan guarantees, and cost share programs
made to woman-owned agriculture operations;
``(iii) the percentage of total funding
directed to woman-owned agriculture operations,
disaggregated by program;
``(iv) the percentage of applications made
by women-owned agricultural operations; and
``(v) the percentage of women at different
GS levels at the Department, disaggregated by
office.
``(3) Contract or cooperative agreement.--The Liaison may
enter into a contract or cooperative agreement with a research
center of the Agricultural Research Service, an institution of
higher education (as such term is defined in section 101 of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), or a nonprofit
organization to carry out 1 or more of the following activities
with respect to women who are farmers and ranchers:
``(A) Conducting research on the profitability of
small farms run by such women.
``(B) Developing educational materials for such
women.
``(C) Conducting workshops, courses, and certified
vocational training for such women.
``(D) Conducting mentoring activities for such
women.
``(E) Providing internship opportunities for such
women.
``(c) Staff Support.--The Secretary may appoint staff of the
Department of Agriculture to support the Liaison.''.
(b) Termination of Authority.--Section 296(b) of the Department of
Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7014(b)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(11) The authority of the Secretary to carry out the
amendment made to this title by the Women in Agriculture
Act.''.
SEC. 3. HIGH-PRIORITY RESEARCH AND EXTENSION AREAS.
Section 1672(d) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade
Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5925(d)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(21) Ergonomically designed agriculture equipment and
machinery.--Research and extension grants may be made under
this section for the purposes of developing and making widely
available agriculture equipment and machinery that is
ergonomically designed for use by women.''.
SEC. 4. CHILD CARE PRIORITY.
Section 306(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act
(7 U.S.C. 1926(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(27) Child Care Priority.--In selecting recipients of loans and
grants under this subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to any
qualified applicant that proposes to use the loan or grant to address
the availability, quality, or cost of childcare in an agricultural or
rural community.''.
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