# 119-s-2256: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 119-s-2256, Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Hoeven, John [R-ND] (R-ND); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-07-13). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2256 - As of: 2026-07-13 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-s-2256 - Congress: 119 - Title: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 - Status: in_committee - Introduced: 2025-07-10 - Sponsor: Sen. Hoeven, John [R-ND] (R-ND) - Cosponsors: 0 - Policy area: Economics and Public Finance - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-07-13 ## Summary **FY2026 appropriations for USDA and FDA** provide broad funding for farms, rural communities, nutrition programs, research, and FDA regulatory work across multiple agencies and accounts. - Families and households: Supports Child Nutrition programs, WIC, and SNAP and funds rural housing help with $1.7 billion for rental assistance and $48.0 million for Rural Housing Vouchers. - Farmers and rural communities: Backs agricultural research and farm support with Agricultural Research Service at $1.8 billion, National Institute of Food and Agriculture at $1.1 billion, and Farm Service Agency operations at $1.2 billion. It also authorizes crop insurance and Commodity Credit Corporation authorities and multiple loan program levels. - Public health and food safety: Provides $7.0 billion for the Food and Drug Administration, including about $2.5 billion for the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, and funds Food Safety and Inspection Service inspection activities. The bill also funds USDA IT and cybersecurity and several rural infrastructure and broadband programs. ## Provisions PRIA read - More funding for child nutrition: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would provide large new funds for child nutrition, SNAP, WIC, and commodity programs. It would provide about $36.3 billion for child nutrition through Sept 30, 2027 and $118.1 billion for SNAP in FY2026, with a $3.0 billion reserve available through Sept 30, 2027. WIC would get… - More rural business loans and grants: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would provide large new loan and grant authority for rural businesses. It would allow $1.75 billion in guaranteed business loans and about $55.6 million to cover guarantee and grant costs. The bill also funds rural energy loan guarantees ($100 million principal), $50 million fo… - Big boost for rural water projects: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would provide large new funds for rural water and waste systems. It would authorize $1.015 billion in direct loan principal, $50 million in guaranteed loan principal, and about $443.8 million for loan costs and grants, with specific set‑asides for small direct loans, technical… - Big loan boost for rural power and telecom: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would authorize large loan and guarantee principals for rural electric and telecom projects: about $2.667 billion in guaranteed electric loans, $4.333 billion in cost-of-money direct electric loans, $900 million for underwriting guarantees, $350 million for direct telecom loans… - Pause SNAP variety enforcement: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar funds from enforcing the SNAP 'variety' rule until the Agriculture Secretary expands the definition of acceptable items in each staple food category. Until that change, stores would follow the retailer rules that were in place before 2014. - Help to preserve rural rental housing: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would provide $2 million for grants to nonprofits and public housing authorities to give legal and financial help to preserve Rural Housing Service multifamily properties. It would also stop counting incarcerated people when calculating RHS program eligibility or assistance and… - More rural business grants and flex: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would treat $9.465 million from FY2024 and $9.953 million from FY2026 as extra Rural Business Development Grants. It would let USDA raise program levels for some loans and guarantees by up to 25% with a 15‑day notice to Appropriations Committees. The Secretary could waive certa… - Protect local USDA offices and help: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar closing or consolidating Agricultural Research Service labs or NRCS and Rural Development field offices without prior Appropriations Committee approval. It would also fund $2.0 million to prioritize wetland compliance assistance in high‑need areas. These steps aim to… - Local energy circuit riders pilot: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would provide $4 million to start a pilot that helps rural areas with energy planning and projects. Grants would go to states, tribes, universities, cooperatives or other public entities serving two or more rural areas. Awards would last more than 3 years but not more than 6 ye… - Emergency pay exemption for APHIS staff: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would let APHIS treat premium pay for employees responding to declared animal or plant health emergencies as exempt from federal aggregate pay limits. The APHIS Administrator must declare the emergency response. - Pauses and protections for farm rules: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would bar enforcement or new agency guidance in several narrow areas for FY2026. It would stop enforcing the Produce Safety Rule for wine grapes, hops, pulse crops, and almonds. It would bar FDA from issuing new Listeria rules for low‑risk ready‑to‑eat foods until new science i… - One‑time rescissions of program balances: cost, medium. If enacted, the bill would rescind unspent prior-year balances: $22 million from NIFA research, $30 million from NRCS conservation, $78 million from the Working Capital Fund, and $200 million from Food for Peace Title II balances. Emergency‑designated funds would be excluded from these rescissions. - Changes to meat inspection fees and rules: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would let FSIS charge inspected meat, poultry, and egg plants for inspections done outside approved shifts and on federal holidays. It would bar using funds to pay USDA staff to inspect horses under certain authorities. It would also provide $700,000 to cover bison inspection a… - USDA grant rules and oversight changes: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would cap indirect cost reimbursement on certain USDA cooperative agreements with nonprofits at 10% of direct costs. It would let USDA offices reimburse the Office of General Counsel for time‑limited legal services, require 3‑day notice to Appropriations committees before termi… - FDA enforcement, fees, and guidance changes: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would impose new FDA reporting and budget rules and shift enforcement priorities. It would withhold 50% of certain Office of the Commissioner funds until reports are sent, require detailed user‑fee accounting, and require not less than $200 million of tobacco user fees for ENDS… - Buy American rule for rural water projects: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would require iron and steel used in federally funded rural water and wastewater projects to be produced in the United States. Waivers are allowed if U.S. products are unavailable, low quality, or would raise project costs by more than 25%. The Secretary must post waiver reques… - New hemp definitions and FDA report: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would change the legal definition of hemp no sooner than one year after enactment, limit hemp to plant material with 0.3% total THC or less, and exclude some hemp-derived cannabinoid products. The Agriculture Secretary and FDA Commissioner would report within 180 days on implem… - Rural broadband and telehealth pilots: mixed, low. If enacted, the bill would provide $20 million for Community Connect grants, $40.61 million for telemedicine and distance learning grants, and $35 million to continue a broadband loan and grant pilot. The pilot must serve areas where at least 90% of households lack 25/3 Mbps and should build to 100… - Labels for earlier engineered animals: mixed, low. If enacted, the bill would require engineered animals approved before February 19, 2019 to include the words "genetically engineered" immediately before their market name on labels. This would change labeling for producers and sellers of those animals. ## Related bills - 119-s-4668: Protect College Sports Act of 2026 - 119-s-2142: GOLDEN DOME Act of 2025 - 119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act - 119-s-4040: Dakota Water Resources Act Amendments of 2026 - 119-s-3257: John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act - 119-s-1495: NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act ## Sources - [119-s-2256 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2256) ## Related - [119-s-4668: Protect College Sports Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4668) - [119-s-2142: GOLDEN DOME Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2142) - [119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1748) - [119-s-4040: Dakota Water Resources Act Amendments of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4040) - [119-s-3257: John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3257) - [119-s-1495: NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1495) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2256 (as of 2026-07-13).