PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Council must create an Environmental Quality Policy Statement that sets goals for how farming affects the environment. The statement must be based on an assessment of current USDA programs, including staff and funding levels, that work to find, prevent, and fix environmental problems from agriculture. The assessment must explain each agency’s role, how agencies coordinate, ways to avoid duplicate work, and recommend new monitoring, research, extension, and technical help. The policy must be updated at least every 5 years. The Director, with the Council’s approval, must make a plan to carry out the policy. The plan must review what each agency is doing to reduce harmful effects of agricultural programs and list new agency actions to meet the policy goals. The plan must be updated at least every 5 years. By January 31, 1992, and every year after, the Council (through the Director) must send a report to Congress, other federal and State agencies, and the public about progress. The report must review the Department’s work that year, describe coordination with other programs, and give any recommendations the Secretary thinks needed to balance farming and environmental protection. Up to $2,000,000 may be appropriated each year to carry out this chapter.

Title 7, §5403

Agriculture, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Environmental Quality Policy Statement, implementation plan, and annual report

(1)Policy statement

The Council shall develop an Environmental Quality Policy Statement that identifies goals and objectives for addressing the effects of agriculture on environmental quality. The policy statement shall be based upon an assessment, in accordance with paragraph (2), of the current status and level of effort, in terms of staff and funding, of programs at the Department of Agriculture to evaluate, prevent, and mitigate environmental problems that may result from agricultural production. The policy statement shall be revised at least every 5 years.

(2)Assessment

The assessment under paragraph (1) shall include:

(A)Detailed descriptions of the roles of the involved Departmental agencies.

(B)A description of current efforts to coordinate the individual activities of each of the involved departmental agencies.

(C)Recommendations for precluding any undesirable duplication of efforts within the Department and among the Department and other Federal and State programs.

(D)Specific recommendations for new initiatives in monitoring, research, extension, and technical assistance efforts to address present and potential environmental quality problems.

The assessment may incorporate existing documents and planning processes within the Department.

(b)Implementation plan

The Director, subject to the approval of the Council, shall prepare a plan to implement the Environmental Quality Policy Statement. The plan shall include an assessment of the activities of each departmental agency to mitigate or reduce any negative effects on environmental quality of agricultural policies, programs, and practices under their respective jurisdictions and shall describe in detail new departmental and agency-specific initiatives intended to achieve the goals and objectives of the policy statement. The plan shall be revised at least every 5 years.

(c)Annual environmental quality report

Not later than January 31, 1992, and annually thereafter, the Council, through the Director, shall prepare and submit an annual report to the Congress, other appropriate Federal and State agencies, and the public on the progress being made toward the goals and objectives established in the Environmental Quality Policy Statement. The report shall also include—

(1)a review of the environmental activities and initiatives of the Department during the preceding year;

(2)specific action taken to coordinate the environmental programs of the Department with programs of other Federal agencies and related State programs; and

(3)such recommendations as the Secretary considers appropriate regarding current or additional environmental protection programs, initiatives, or policies that will balance the needs of production agriculture while addressing environmental concerns.

(d)Authorization of appropriations

There are hereby authorized to be appropriated annually not to exceed $2,000,000 to carry out this chapter.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1991—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 102–237, § 201(d)(1), substituted “paragraph (2)” for “subparagraph (B)”. Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 102–237, § 201(d)(2), substituted “paragraph (1)” for “subparagraph (A)” in introductory provisions.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1991 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 102–237 effective as if included in the provision of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, Pub. L. 101–624, to which the amendment relates, see section 1101(b)(1) of Pub. L. 102–237, set out as a note under section 1421 of this title. Termination of Reporting RequirementsFor termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions in subsec. (c) of this section relating to submittal of annual report to Congress, see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance, and page 49 of House Document No. 103–7.

§5403 Environmental Quality Policy Statement