# 119-s-4995: Agricultural Worker Justice Act of 2026 119-s-4995, Agricultural Worker Justice Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-08-02). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4995 - As of: 2026-08-02 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-s-4995 - Congress: 119 - Title: Agricultural Worker Justice Act of 2026 - Status: introduced - Introduced: 2026-07-15 - Sponsor: Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT) - Cosponsors: 4 - Policy area: Agriculture and Food - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-08-02 ## Summary **Protect worker safety and tighten USDA buying rules.** This bill would bar USDA from buying meat, poultry, and processed foods made by workers paid below the local prevailing wage, require annual labor and safety disclosures from contractors, ban stock buybacks and dividend payments while under contract, and push new safety, inspection, and ergonomic standards for meat and poultry plants. - Families and schools: School food authorities could get waivers to buy foreign commodities when domestic items are unavailable or when price or quality justify it, but must post waivers publicly and notify parents at least once per school year. - Workers in meat and poultry plants: Would require ergonomic standards, medical management programs, limits on increasing line speeds without independent safety inspections, stronger anti-retaliation rules, and a GAO study on racial and ethnic disparities in the sector. - Farmers, contractors, and grant recipients: USDA contractors must disclose recent labor and safety violations or face corrective measures and a public ineligible list that lasts 4 years, and contractors under USDA contracts may not repurchase stock or pay dividends. - Local producers: Authorizes $400.0 million for fiscal year 2026 and each succeeding year for the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Program to boost local purchases. *Authorizes at least $400.0 million per year starting in FY2026 for local food purchases and $2.0 million for OSHA standard work in FY2026, increasing federal spending by those amounts.* ## Cosponsors (4) - Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2026-07-15T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Fetterman, John [D-PA] (D-PA), 2026-07-15T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] (D-OR), 2026-07-15T00:00:00.000Z - Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] (I-VT), 2026-07-15T00:00:00.000Z ## Provisions PRIA read - Weekly pandemic reporting at plants: benefit, high. If a pandemic is declared, the bill would require covered establishments to report weekly infection and death counts to OSHA. Reports would include weekly and cumulative case counts, racial demographics, and employment status. OSHA would issue reporting forms within 1 year or within 7 days after a… - Annual funding for local food purchases: benefit, high. The bill would authorize $400 million to be appropriated for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter for the Local Food Purchase Assistance cooperative program. This would provide recurring federal buying power to support local producers and purchasers under the program. - Limits on meat and poultry speeds: benefit, medium. The bill would bar any USDA waiver or use of funds that increases line speeds at covered establishments unless the plant agrees to an inspection by the OSHA Assistant Secretary or NIOSH Director. That official would have to certify that higher line speeds would not harm worker safety. Inspections w… - New ergonomics rules and inspections: benefit, medium. The bill would require OSHA to propose an ergonomics program within 1 year and finalize it within 30 months. It would also require new medical-referral rules quickly and restore a musculoskeletal-disorder recording column within 1 year. OSHA would set a regional inspection program in every State wi… - Stronger anti-retaliation and legal rights: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would give workers at covered meat and poultry plants stronger anti-retaliation protections and faster investigations. Workers would generally have 180 days to file complaints, and OSHA would have deadlines to decide reasonable cause and issue preliminary relief. The bill would… - GAO study on processing disparities: benefit, low. The bill would require the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress within 180 days on racial and ethnic disparities in meat and poultry processing. The report must review injuries, repetitive musculoskeletal disorders, mental health, chemical exposures, use of temporary and incarcera… - USDA contracts: worker pay and rules: mixed, high. This bill would stop USDA from buying meat, poultry, or processed foods unless the workers who made them were paid at or above local prevailing wages as set by the Department of Labor. Two years after enactment, businesses entering USDA contracts would have to annually disclose certain labor and sa… - School meals: foreign purchase limits: mixed, low. The bill would require school food authorities to request a USDA waiver before buying foreign commodities, except where items are not produced or available domestically. USDA could grant a waiver only if domestic supply, quality, or price is insufficient. Schools that get waivers would have to post… ## Related bills - 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026 - 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026 - 119-s-2823: FAMILY Act - 119-s-3869: Healthy Families Act - 119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act - 119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026 ## Sources - [119-s-4995 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4995) ## Related - [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066) - [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990) - [119-s-2823: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2823) - [119-s-3869: Healthy Families Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3869) - [119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-51) - [119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5108) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4995 (as of 2026-08-02).