,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #ebgg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,august #f1 #bjbf,mr4 ,rounds 7for himself and ,ms4 ,klobuchar7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,agriculture1 ,nutrition1 and ,forestry ,a ,,bill ,to establish a ranchland program to support the ,united ,states cow herd1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,rebuilding ,america's ,national ,cow ,herd ,act or the ,,ranch ,act4 #b4 ,ranchland program 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,agriculture 7referred to in this section as the ,secretary7 shall carry out a ranchland program under which the ,secretary shall enroll eligible land described in subsection 7b7 through contracts with owners and operators4 7b7 ,eligible land ,an owner or operator may enroll in the program established under this section cropland that-- 7#a7 the ,secretary determines had a cropping history or was considered to be planted for not less than #d of the #f crop years preceding the date of enactment of this ,act2 and 7#b7 will be restored to perennial grass and forb cover and support grazing4 7c7 ,contracts ,a contract under this section shall-- 7#a7 require the establishment on the eligible land of perennial grass and forb cover appropriate to the region1 soil type1 and intended grazing use1 as determined by the ,secretary2 7#b7 require1 not later than #b years after enrollment of the eligible land1 a site-specific grazing management plan approved by the ,secretary2 7#c7 be for a term of not less than #aj years and not more than #ae years2 7#d7 beginning with the fourth year of the contract1 provide for the temporary suspension of the base history for the land covered by the contract through the end of the contract2 and 7#e7 permit the activities described in subsection 7d74 7d7 ,permitted activities ,the activities referred to in subsection 7c77#e7 are the following3 7#a7 ,grazing in accordance with the grazing management plan4 7#b7 ,fire presuppression1 fire-related rehabilitation1 and construction of fire breaks4 7#c7 ,clipping or mowing to assist in perennial grass and forb establishment4 7#d7 ,emergency haying in response to a localized or regional drought1 flooding1 wildfire1 or other emergency1 outside the primary nesting season1 when-- 7,a7 the county is designated as ,d#b 7severe drought7 or greater according to the ,united ,states ,drought ,monitor2 7,b7 there is at least a #dj percent loss in forage production in the county2 or 7,c7 the ,secretary1 in coordination with the appropriate ,state technical committee established under section #abfa of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chfa71 determines that the program can assist in the response to a natural disaster event without permanent damage to the established cover4 7e7 ,payments 7#a7 ,annual rental payments ,the annual rental rate for a payment under a contract under this section shall be equal to #ge percent of the county average dryland cash rental rate for cropland determined under section #abcd7;d77#d77;,a7 of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chcd7;d77#d77;,a774 7#b7 ,cost-sharing payments ,the ,secretary shall pay to an owner or operator #ej percent of the cost of establishing perennial grass and forb cover on eligible land enrolled under this section4 7#c7 ,incentive payments ,in addition to the cost sharing payment described in paragraph 7#b71 the ,secretary shall make an incentive payment to-- 7,a7 an owner or operator in an amount equal to #ej percent of the cost of using a high-quality diverse native seed mix for establishment of cover described in paragraph 7#b72 and 7,b7 an owner or operator that is a beginning farmer or rancher in an amount equal to #ej percent of the cost share provided under paragraph 7#b74 7#d7 ,limitation ,the total amount of cost share payments under paragraph 7#b7 and incentive payments under paragraph 7#c7 shall not exceed #ajj percent of the cost of establishing perennial grass and forb cover on eligible land enrolled under this section4 7f7 ,enrollment2 acreage limitation 7#a7 ,enrollment 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall accept applications for contracts under this section on a continuous basis1 using ranking periods that are not less frequent than annual4 7,b7 ,delay ,the ,secretary may delay a ranking period described in subparagraph 7,a7 if-- 7i7 the available acreage for enrollment is less than #a1jjj1jjj acres2 or 7ii7 commodity prices are elevated and there is an expected shortage of commodities grown on the eligible land targeted for enrollment4 7#b7 ,acreage limitation ,the ,secretary may enroll in the program established under this section not more than #bj1jjj1jjj acres4 7g7 ,priorities ,in entering into contracts under this section1 the ,secretary shall prioritize-- 7#a7 owners or operators who are beginning farmers or ranchers1 as defined by the ,secretary2 7#b7 owners that operate a livestock grazing operation or have plans to start a livestock grazing operation2 7#c7 owners or operators that agree to follow a conservation plan that includes provisions to support wildlife habitat or land that is part of wildlife corridors2 7#d7 high-quality1 diverse1 native seed mixes for establishment of perennial grass and forb cover2 7#e7 highly erodible land2 and 7#f7 marginal cropland4 7h7 ,technical assistance ,the ,secretary shall make available to owners or operators technical assistance for the duration of a contract entered into under this section4 7i7 ,automatic enrollment 7#a7 ,in general ,on expiration of a contract entered into under this section1 the ,secretary shall automatically enroll the eligible land enrolled under the contract in a contract under section #abca7;d77#b7 of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chca7;d77#b774 7#b7 ,exemptions ,for purposes of automatically enrolling eligible land under paragraph 7#a7-- 7,a7 the eligible land shall not count towards the applicable acreage limitations described in section #abca7;d77#b77;,a7 of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chca7;d77#b77;,a772 and 7,b7 the method of enrollment described in section #abca7;d77#b77;,c7 of that ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chca7;d77#b77;,c77 shall not apply4 7#c7 ,producer flexibility ,an owner or operator may opt out of the automatic enrollment under paragraph 7#a71 but the eligible land shall be ineligible for reenrollment under this section4 7j7 ,enrollment in other programs ,an owner or operator party to a contract entered into under this section may enroll the eligible land in any program under subtitle ,d of title ,,xii of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #chca et seq47 for any activity for which a cost share or incentive payment is not provided under paragraph 7#b7 or 7#c7 of subsection 7e74 7k7 ,payment limitation ,the total amount of payments received1 directly or indirectly1 by a person or legal entity for a fiscal year under this section may not exceed #aee1jjj4 7l7 ,adjusted gross income limitation ,section #ajja;,d7b77#b7 of the ,food ,security ,act of #aihe 7#g ,u4,s4,c4 #acjh-c;a7b77#b77 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7,f7 ,a payment or benefit under section #b of the ,rebuilding ,america's ,national ,cow ,herd ,act4 4