,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #aef ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,january #ba1 #bjbe,mr4 ,marshall 7for himself and ,mr4 ,bennet7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,agriculture1 ,nutrition1 and ,forestry ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe to modify the delivery of technical assistance1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe4 #b4 ,delivery of technical assistance ,section #abdb of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chdb7 is amended-- 7#a7 in subsection 7a7-- 7,a7 by redesignating paragraph 7#b7 as paragraph 7#c72 and 7,b7 by inserting after paragraph 7#a7 the following3 7#b7 ,non-,federal certifying entity ,the term non-,federal certifying entity means a non-,federal entity or ,state agency described in subparagraph 7,a7 or 7,b71 respectively1 of subsection 7e77#d74 2 7#b7 in subsection 7b71 by striking science-based1 site-specific practices designed and inserting timely1 science-based1 and site-specific practice design and implementation assistance2 7#c7 in subsection 7d71 by inserting 7including private sector entities7 after non-,federal entities2 7#d7 in subsection 7e7-- 7,a7 in paragraph 7#b71 by striking ,food1 ,conservation1 and ,energy ,act of #bjjh and inserting ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe2 7,b7 in paragraph 7#c7-- 7i7 in subparagraph 7,a71 by striking ensure and all that follows through engineering1 and inserting ensure that third-party providers with expertise in the technical aspects of conservation planning1 watershed planning1 environmental engineering1 conservation practice design1 implementation1 and evaluation1 or other technical skills1 as determined by the ,secretary12 and 7ii7 in subparagraph 7,c71 by inserting by the ,secretary after established2 and 7,c7 by striking paragraphs 7#d7 and 7#e7 and inserting the following3 7#d7 ,certification ,the ,secretary shall certify a third-party provider through-- 7,a7 a certification process administered by the ,secretary1 acting through the ,chief of the ,natural ,resources ,conservation ,service2 7,b7 a non-,federal entity 7other than a ,state agency7 approved by the ,secretary to perform the certification2 or 7,c7 a ,state agency with statutory authority to certify1 administer1 or license professionals in one or more fields of natural resources1 agriculture1 or engineering approved by the ,secretary to perform the certification4 7#e7 ,timely decisions ,not later than #aj business days after the date on which the ,secretary receives a notification submitted by a non-,federal certifying entity that the non-,federal certifying entity has certified a third-party provider1 the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 review the certification2 and 7,b7 if the certification is satisfactory to the ,secretary1 include the name of the third-party provider on the registry of certified third-party providers maintained by the ,secretary4 7#f7 ,non-,federal certifying entity process 7,a7 ,establishment ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of the ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe1 the ,secretary shall establish a process for the certification of third-party providers by non-,federal certifying entities1 with the goal of increasing third-party provider capacity1 including the certification of qualified agricultural retailers1 cooperatives1 professional societies1 service providers1 and organizations described in section #abfe;,a7#c77;,b77i74 7,b7 ,eligibility of non-,federal certifying entities ,in determining the eligibility of a non-,federal certifying entity under subparagraph 7,a71 the ,secretary shall consider-- 7i7 the ability of the non-,federal certifying entity to assess qualifications of a third-party provider and certify third-party providers at scale2 7ii7 the experience of the non-,federal certifying entity in working with third-party providers and eligible participants2 7iii7 the expertise of the non-,federal certifying entity in the technical and science-based aspects of conservation delivery described in paragraph 7#c77;,a72 7iv7 the history of the non-,federal certifying entity in working with agricultural producers2 and 7v7 such other qualifications as the ,secretary determines to be appropriate4 7,c7 ,approval ,not later than #dj business days after the date on which the ,secretary receives an application submitted by a non-,federal certifying entity to certify third-party providers under this section1 the ,secretary shall make a decision on whether to approve the non-,federal certifying entity to certify third-party providers4 7,d7 ,duties of non-,federal certifying entities ,a non-,federal certifying entity approved by the ,secretary to certify third-party providers shall-- 7i7 assess the ability of a third-party provider to appropriately provide technical assistance to eligible participants2 7ii7 provide training to ensure that a third-party provider certified by the non-,federal certifying entity is qualified to provide that technical assistance2 and 7iii7 submit to the ,secretary a timely notice of-- 7,i7 each third-party provider certified by the non-,federal certifying entity1 for inclusion on the registry of certified third-party providers maintained by the ,secretary2 and 7,,ii7 each third-party provider the certification of which is withdrawn by the non-,federal certifying entity4 7#g7 ,streamlined certification ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of the ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe1 the ,secretary shall provide a streamlined certification process for a third-party provider that has an appropriate specialty certification1 including a certified crop advisor certified by the ,american ,society of ,agronomy1 a professional engineer1 or a holder of a technical certification approved by the ,secretary4 2 and 7#e7 in subsection 7f7-- 7,a7 in paragraph 7#b71 in the matter preceding subparagraph 7,a71 by inserting or a non-,federal certifying entity after third-party provider2 7,b7 by striking paragraph 7#c7 and inserting the following3 7#c7 ,review ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of the ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe1 and additionally thereafter at the discretion of the ,secretary1 the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 review certification requirements for third-party providers2 7,b7 make any adjustments considered necessary by the ,secretary to improve participation and the quality and effectiveness of conservation practices implemented and adopted with support from technical service providers2 7,c7 conduct outreach to and receive input from third-party providers1 both that currently participate in the program under this section and those that no longer participate in the program1 and entities1 organizations1 and associations providing or supporting consultative services to agriculture1 livestock1 and forest producers to assess barriers and opportunities for the use of third-party provider assistance for improved conservation program delivery2 and 7,d7 set a target utilization rate for third-party providers4 2 7,c7 in paragraph 7#d77;,a77i71 by inserting maintenance1 after outreach12 and 7,d7 by striking paragraph 7#e7 and inserting the following3 7#e7 ,payment amounts 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall establish fair and reasonable amounts of payments for technical services provided by third-party providers at rates equivalent to1 but that do not exceed1 technical assistance provided by the ,secretary4 7,b7 ,considerations ,in determining fair and reasonable payment amounts under subparagraph 7,a71 the ,secretary shall consider specialized equipment1 frequency of site visits1 training1 travel and transportation1 and such other factors as the ,secretary determines to be appropriate4 7,c7 ,exclusion ,a payment provided under another ,federal program directly to an eligible participant for technical assistance provided by a third-party provider certified under this section shall be-- 7i7 excluded from cost-sharing requirements under the program under which the payment was provided2 and 7ii7 equal to not more than #ajj percent of the fair and reasonable payment amount for the applicable technical assistance determined under subparagraph 7,b74 7#f7 ,transparency ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of the ,increased ,,tsp ,access ,act of #bjbe1 the ,secretary shall provide accessible public information on-- 7,a7 funds obligated to third-party providers through-- 7i7 contracts entered into between eligible participants and individual third-party providers2 and 7ii7 agreements with public and private sector entities to secure third-party technical assistance2 7,b7 certification results1 including-- 7i7 the number of third-party providers certified by the ,secretary2 7ii7 the number of non-,federal certifying entities approved by the ,secretary2 7iii7 the number of third-party providers certified by non-,federal certifying entities2 and 7iv7 the number of third-party providers certified based on ,state agency or professional association credentialing2 7,c7 how third-party providers contribute to the quality and effectiveness of conservation practices implemented and adopted1 and what improvements are needed2 and 7,d7 the target utilization rate set under paragraph 7#c77;,d7 and how actual utilization compares to that target rate4 4