Specialty Crop & Wine Producer Tariff Relief Act

Direct payments for specialty growers and wineries

If enacted, the bill would require the Agriculture Secretary to create a Direct Payment Program to pay specialty crop growers and wine producers for defined "covered losses." Payments would be distributed not later than 180 days after enactment. "Covered losses" would include higher costs for handling, packaging, shipping, temperature-controlled transport, higher labor costs, reduced exports and lost export revenue from increased tariffs (tariffs imposed by other countries on or after January 20, 2025), reduced market access, and cancelled or reduced foreign contracts; for wine it would also include lost export revenue apportioned to wine made with U.S. grapes. The Secretary would be authorized to purchase surplus specialty crops (not wine grapes) to send to nutrition programs such as school breakfast, the National School Lunch Program, and SNAP. Congress would authorize "such sums as are necessary" to carry out the program for fiscal years 2026 through 2030. The Secretary could use up to 1% of funds for administrative costs and would report to Congress, by crop and region, starting within 120 days after first using the authorities and annually through 2030.