,i  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #fjbc  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,february #bh1       
#bjbj,ms4 ,brownley of ,california 7for 
herself and ,ms4 ,pingree7 introduced   
the following bill2 which was referred  
to the ,committee on ,agriculture  ,a   
,,bill  ,to amend the ,food ,security   
,act of #aihe to require the designation
 of composting as a conservation        
practice and conservation activity1 and 
for other purposes4  #a4 ,short title   
,this ,act may be cited as the          
,cultivating ,organic ,matter through   
the ,promotion ,of ,sustainable         
,techniques ,act or the ,,compost ,act 4
  #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the     
following3 7#a7 ,composting is one of   
the most environmentally friendly means 
to dispose of food waste and other      
organic wastes4  7#b7 ,composting not   
only causes less nutrient pollution of  
surface and ground water and emits a    
smaller quantity of greenhouse gases    
compared to alternative disposal        

methods1 but also yields a valuable soil
 amendment that enhances soil health and
 fertility and agricultural resilience  
to the impacts of climate change4  7#c7 
,it is critical for the ,natural        
,resources ,conservation ,service to    
provide technical and financial support 
to producers in the on-farm production  
of compost from on-farm and off-farm    
organic byproducts1 and the utilization 
of compost in accordance with sound soil
 health and nutrition management4  #c4  
,composting as conservation practice    
,section #abda7;j7 of the ,food         
,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4  
#chda7;j77 is amended-- 7#a7 by         
redesignating paragraph 7#b7 as         
paragraph 7#c72 and  7#b7 by inserting  
after paragraph 7#a7 the following new  
paragraph3  7#b7 ,composting as         
conservation practice and activity  7,a7
 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall by   
regulation provide that composting is a 
conservation practice and a conservation
 activity for the purposes of this      

title4  7,b7 ,composting defined  7i7   
,in general ,for the purposes of this   
paragraph1 the term composting means--  
7,i7 an activity 7including an activity 
that does not require the use of a      
composting facility7 to produce compost 
from organic waste that is-- 7aa7       
generated on a farm2 or  7bb7 brought to
 a farm from a nearby community and used
 to produce compost on that farm2 and   
7,,ii7 the use and active management of 
compost on a farm1 in accordance with   
any applicable ,federal1 ,state1 or     
local law1 to improve water retention   
and soil health4  7ii7 ,determination of
 nearby communities ,the ,secretary1 in 
consultation with the ,administrator of 
the ,environmental ,protection ,agency1 
shall issue regulations for determining 
whether a community is nearby for       
purposes of clause 7i77,i7 which shall  
ensure that bringing organic waste from 
the community to the farm to produce    
compost results in a net reduction of   
greenhouse gas emissions4  4