Title 7AgricultureRelease 119-73

§1524 Education and risk management assistance

Title 7 › Chapter CHAPTER 36— - CROP INSURANCE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE › § 1524

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary, through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, must run a competitive grant program that pays qualified public and private groups (like land‑grant colleges, extension services, and universities) to teach and give technical help to farmers on farm viability and risk management. The program covers many topics such as crop insurance, business planning, succession planning, market assessment, conservation, and other risk strategies. Grants are awarded on merit with peer review, funds can be obligated for 2 years, and up to 4 percent of grant money may pay program administration. The program must focus help on beginning farmers, legal immigrant farmers trying to start, socially disadvantaged farmers, retiring or transitioning farmers (including those changing production to reach new markets), farmers underserved by the Federal crop insurance program, and veteran farmers. From the insurance fund, $10,000,000 is transferred each fiscal year starting in 2019, and at least $5,000,000 of that must be used for farmers underserved by crop insurance. The Secretary must also give financial help through the Commodity Credit Corporation to producers in Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Producers can use the money to build or improve watershed or irrigation structures, plant windbreaks or trees to help water quality, reduce financial risk by diversifying or using conservation practices (like erosion control, integrated pest management, or organic farming), make marketing plans or value‑added projects, enter futures/hedging or agricultural trade options, or do other related activities. Payments to one person cannot exceed $50,000 in a year. The Commodity Credit Corporation must provide at least $10,000,000 each fiscal year (it provided $15,000,000 for each year 2008–2014). Of each year’s money, at least 50 percent goes through NRCS for construction, trees, and conservation work; 10 percent goes through the Agricultural Marketing Service for organic certification cost share; and 40 percent goes through the Risk Management Agency for the hedging and related activities.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §1524

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)Subject to the amounts made available under paragraph (4), the Secretary, acting through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, shall carry out the program established under paragraph (2).
(2)(A)The Secretary, acting through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, shall establish a program under which competitive grants are made to qualified public and private entities (including land grant colleges, cooperative extension services, and colleges or universities), as determined by the Secretary, for the purpose of educating agricultural producers and providing technical assistance to agricultural producers on a full range of farm viability and risk management activities, including futures, options, agricultural trade options, crop insurance, business planning, enterprise analysis, transfer and succession planning, management coaching, market assessment, cash flow analysis, cash forward contracting, debt reduction, production diversification, farm resources risk reduction, farm financial benchmarking, conservation activities, and other risk management strategies.
(B)A grant under this paragraph shall be awarded on the basis of merit and shall be subject to peer or merit review.
(C)Funds for a grant under this paragraph shall be available to the Secretary for obligation for a 2-year period.
(D)The Secretary may use not more than 4 percent of the funds made available for grants under this paragraph for administrative costs incurred by the Secretary in carrying out this paragraph.
(3)In carrying out the program established under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall place special emphasis on farm viability and risk management strategies (including farm financial benchmarking, business planning and technical assistance, market assessment, transfer and succession planning, and crop insurance participation), education, and outreach specifically targeted at—
(A)beginning farmers or ranchers;
(B)legal immigrant farmers or ranchers that are attempting to become established producers in the United States;
(C)socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers;
(D)farmers or ranchers that—
(i)are preparing to retire;
(ii)are using transition strategies to help new farmers or ranchers get started; 11 So in original. Probably should be followed by “and”.
(iii)are converting production and marketing systems to pursue new markets; and 22 So in original. The word “and” probably should not appear.
(E)producers that are underserved by the Federal crop insurance program established under this subchapter, as determined by the Corporation; and
(F)veteran farmers or ranchers.
(4)From the insurance fund established under section 1516(c) of this title, there is transferred for the partnerships for risk management education program established under paragraph (2), $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2019 and each subsequent fiscal year, of which not less than $5,000,000 shall be used to carry out paragraph (3)(E).
(b)(1)The Secretary shall provide financial assistance to producers in the States of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
(2)A producer may use financial assistance provided under this subsection to—
(A)construct or improve—
(i)watershed management structures; or
(ii)irrigation structures;
(B)plant trees to form windbreaks or to improve water quality;
(C)mitigate financial risk through production or marketing diversification or resource conservation practices, including—
(i)soil erosion control;
(ii)integrated pest management;
(iii)organic farming; or
(iv)to develop and implement a plan to create marketing opportunities for the producer, including through value-added processing;
(D)enter into futures, hedging, or options contracts in a manner designed to help reduce production, price, or revenue risk;
(E)enter into agricultural trade options as a hedging transaction to reduce production, price, or revenue risk; or
(F)conduct any other activity relating to an activity described in subparagraphs (A) through (E), as determined by the Secretary.
(3)The total amount of payments made to a person (as defined in section 1308(5) 33 See References in Text note below. of this title) (before the amendment made by section 1603(a) 3 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008) under this subsection for any year may not exceed $50,000.
(4)(A)The Secretary shall carry out this subsection through the Commodity Credit Corporation.
(B)(i)Except as provided in clause (ii), the Commodity Credit Corporation shall make available to carry out this subsection not less than $10,000,000 for each fiscal year.
(ii)For each of fiscal years 2008 through 2014, the Commodity Credit Corporation shall make available to carry out this subsection $15,000,000.
(C)Of the amounts made available to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year, the Commodity Credit Corporation shall use not less than—
(i)50 percent to carry out subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of paragraph (2) through the Natural Resources Conservation Service;
(ii)10 percent to provide organic certification cost share assistance through the Agricultural Marketing Service; and
(iii)40 percent to conduct activities to carry out subparagraph (F) of paragraph (2) through the Risk Management Agency.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 1308(5) of this title, which required the Secretary to issue

Regulations

defining “person”, referred to in subsec. (b)(3), was redesignated section 1308(e) and amended by section 1603(b)(1) of Pub. L. 107–171. section 1603(a) of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, Pub. L. 110–246, subsequently amended the definition of “covered commodity” in section 1308(a)(1). section 1603(b) of Pub. L. 110–246 amended section 1308 by, among other things, striking out subsec. (e) and adding subsec. (a)(4) which defined “person”. The

Amendments

by section 1603 of Pub. L. 110–246 to section 1308 were effective May 22, 2008. Codification Pub. L. 110–234 and Pub. L. 110–246 made identical

Amendments

to this section. The

Amendments

by Pub. L. 110–234 were repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110–246.

Amendments

2018—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(1), substituted “paragraph (4), the Secretary” for “paragraph (5)—”, struck out subpar. (A) and “(B) the Secretary” before “, acting through”, and substituted “paragraph (2)” for “paragraph (3)”. Prior to amendment, subpar. (A) read as follows: “the Corporation shall carry out the program established under paragraph (2); and”. Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(2), (3), redesignated par. (3) as (2) and struck out former par. (2). Prior to amendment, text of par. (2) read as follows: “The Corporation shall establish a program under which crop insurance education and information is provided to producers in States in which (as determined by the Secretary)— “(A) there is traditionally, and continues to be, a low level of Federal crop insurance participation and availability; and “(B) producers are underserved by the Federal crop insurance program.” Subsec. (a)(2)(A). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(4), substituted “and providing technical assistance to agricultural producers on a full range of farm viability and” for “about the full range of” and inserted “business planning, enterprise analysis, transfer and succession planning, management coaching, market assessment, cash flow analysis,” after “insurance,” and “conservation activities,” after “benchmarking,”. Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(3), (5)(A), redesignated par. (4) as (3) and, in introductory provisions, substituted “program established under paragraph (2)” for “programs established under paragraphs (2) and (3)” and inserted “farm viability and” after “emphasis on” and “, business planning and technical assistance, market assessment, transfer and succession planning, and crop insurance participation” after “benchmarking”. Former par. (3) redesignated (2). Subsec. (a)(3)(D)(iii), (E). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(5)(B), (C), added subpars. (D)(iii) and (E) and struck out former subpar. (E) which read as follows: “new or established farmers or ranchers that are converting production and marketing systems to pursue new markets.” Subsec. (a)(3)(F). Pub. L. 115–334, § 12306(b)(3)(A)–(C), added subpar. (F). Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 115–334, § 11125(a)(6), substituted “transferred for the partnerships” for “transferred—”, subpar. (A), and “(B) for the partnerships”, substituted “paragraph (2), $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2019” for “paragraph (3), $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2001”, and inserted “, of which not less than $5,000,000 shall be used to carry out paragraph (3)(E)” before period at end. Prior to amendment, subpar. (A) read as follows: “for the education and information program established under paragraph (2), $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 and each subsequent fiscal year; and”. 2014—Subsec. (a)(3)(A). Pub. L. 113–79, § 11027(c)(1), inserted “farm financial benchmarking,” after “risk reduction,”. Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 113–79, § 11027(c)(2), inserted “(including farm financial benchmarking)” after “management strategies” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 113–79, § 1609(b)(1), amended language inserted by Pub. L. 110–246, § 1603(g)(3). See 2008 Amendment note below. 2011—Subsec. (b)(4)(B)(ii). Pub. L. 112–55 substituted “certain fiscal years” for “fiscal years 2008 through 2012” in heading and “2014” for “2012” in text. 2008—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 110–246, § 12026(1), substituted “paragraph (5)” for “paragraph (4)” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (a)(1)(B), (3)(A). Pub. L. 110–246, § 7511(c)(2), substituted “the National Institute of Food and Agriculture” for “the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service”. Subsec. (a)(4), (5). Pub. L. 110–246, § 12026(2), (3), added par. (4) and redesignated former par. (4) as (5). Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 110–246, § 2801(a), inserted “Hawaii,” after “Delaware,”. Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 110–246, § 1603(g)(3), as amended by Pub. L. 113–79, § 1609(b)(1), inserted “(before the amendment made by section 1603(a) of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008)” after “section 1308(5) of this title)”. Subsec. (b)(4)(B)(i). Pub. L. 110–246, § 2801(b)(1), substituted “Except as provided in clause (ii)” for “Except as provided in clauses (ii) and (iii)”. Subsec. (b)(4)(B)(ii), (iii). Pub. L. 110–246, § 2801(b)(2), added cl. (ii) and struck out former cls. (ii) and (iii) which related to exception for fiscal years 2003 through 2007 and minimum amounts to carry out certain uses. Subsec. (b)(4)(C). Pub. L. 110–246, § 2801(c), added subpar. (C). 2004—Subsec. (b)(4)(B)(i). Pub. L. 108–199, § 769(1), substituted “clauses (ii) and (iii)” for “clause (ii)”. Subsec. (b)(4)(B)(iii). Pub. L. 108–199, § 769(2), added cl. (iii). 2002—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 107–171 added subsec. (b) and struck out heading and text of former subsec. (b). Text read as follows: “(1) Authority.—The Secretary shall provide cost share assistance to producers, in a manner determined by the Secretary, in not less than 10, nor more than 15, States in which participation in the Federal crop insurance program is historically low, as determined by the Secretary. “(2) Uses.—A producer may use cost share assistance provided under this subsection to— “(A) construct or improve— “(i) watershed management structures; or “(ii) irrigation structures; “(B) plant trees to form windbreaks or to improve water quality; “(C) mitigate financial risk through production diversification or resource conservation practices, including— “(i) soil erosion control; “(ii) integrated pest management; or “(iii) transition to organic farming; “(D) enter into futures, hedging, or options contracts in a manner designed to help reduce production, price, or revenue risk; “(E) enter into agricultural trade options as a hedging transaction to reduce production, price, or revenue risk; or “(F) conduct any other activity related to the activities described in subparagraphs (A) through (E), as determined by the Secretary. “(2) Payment limitation.—The total amount of payments made to a person (as defined in section 1308(5) of this title) under this subsection for any year may not exceed $50,000. “(3) Commodity credit corporation.— “(A) In general.—The Secretary shall carry out this subsection through the Commodity Credit Corporation. “(B) Funding.—The Commodity Credit Corporation shall make available to carry out this subsection $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 and each subsequent fiscal year.”

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2014 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 113–79 effective as if included in Pub. L. 110–246, see section 1609(b)(2) of Pub. L. 113–79, set out as a note under section 1471g of this title.

Effective Date

of 2008 AmendmentAmendment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110–234 by Pub. L. 110–246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110–234, except as otherwise provided, see section 4 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 8701 of this title. Amendment by section 7511(c)(2) of Pub. L. 110–246 effective Oct. 1, 2009, see section 7511(c) of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as a note under section 1522 of this title.

Effective Date

Section effective Oct. 1, 2000, see section 171(b)(1)(A) of Pub. L. 106–224, set out as an

Effective Date

of 2000 Amendment note under section 1501 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 1524

Title 7Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73