USDA Agricultural Career and Employment (ACE) Grants — Federal Grants for Farmworker Employment Services
Legal Authority
- 7 U.S.C. § 2279 — Authorizes USDA to provide grants and other assistance to support outreach, employment, and training programs for socially disadvantaged farmers, ranchers, and farmworkers; primary statutory basis for ACE grants
- 7 CFR Part 2502 — USDA implementing regulations for the Agricultural Career and Employment Grants program; specifies eligible grantees, allowable activities, matching requirements, and reporting obligations
Key Mechanics
7 CFR Part 2502 governs USDA's Agricultural Career and Employment (ACE) Grants program, which provides federal funding to eligible entities — community-based organizations, nonprofits, state workforce agencies — to deliver employment and training services to farmworkers and their dependents. ACE grants fund activities including: job search assistance and job placement, English as a Second Language instruction, GED and basic education, job skills training, childcare and transportation support services, and emergency assistance to help farmworkers transition between seasonal employment. Eligible recipients are entities serving agricultural workers, particularly migrant and seasonal farmworkers who face barriers to stable employment. Grant recipients must document the number of participants served, employment outcomes, and wages earned. The program implements USDA's statutory outreach mandate for socially disadvantaged farmers and farmworkers under 7 U.S.C. § 2279, a provision that has been subject to recurring litigation over race-based eligibility criteria; the program's operation reflects the ongoing tension between targeted outreach and equal protection requirements.
Current Rule (2026)
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Citation | 7 CFR Part 2502 |
| Issuing agency | USDA Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO) |
| Statutory authority | 7 U.S.C. § 2279 |
| Last major amendment | No recent Federal Register amendments |
What This Rule Does
Farmworkers — seasonal, migrant, and year-round agricultural laborers — face significant barriers to stable employment: seasonal work gaps, limited English proficiency, housing insecurity, lack of credential recognition, and frequent movement between states and job sites. The Agricultural Career and Employment (ACE) Grants Program is a USDA competitive grant program that funds nonprofit organizations and their partners to provide employment services specifically designed for agricultural workers.
Seven CFR Part 2502 governs who can apply for ACE grants, what services can be funded, who can receive those services, and how grants are administered. The program channels federal resources through nonprofit organizations to farmworkers who need help getting, keeping, improving, or returning to agricultural employment.
Key Provisions
- § 2502.1 — Scope: establishes definitions and the basic structure of the ACE Grants Program; Subpart B covers eligibility, covered services, and grantee obligations; Subpart C covers the application, award, and post-award processes
- § 2502.2 — Definitions: "agricultural employer" means anyone who hires farmworkers, including farmers, ranchers, dairy operators, cooperatives, and farm labor contractors; "agricultural employment" means work on farms, ranches, dairies, and related agricultural operations; "United States Worker" (the beneficiary eligibility standard) means U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and other individuals authorized to work in agricultural employment under federal law
- § 2502.4 — Eligible applicants: nonprofit organizations may apply and receive ACE grants; coalitions composed entirely of nonprofits may also apply; mixed groups that include one or more nonprofits alongside agribusinesses, state or local governments, agricultural labor organizations, farmer or rancher cooperatives, or community groups with farmworker training capacity are also eligible; applications are accepted through Requests for Proposals published by OAO
- § 2502.5 — Program administration: USDA's Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO) runs the ACE program under standard federal grant regulations; OAO determines the number and size of grants, defines eligible uses, and establishes selection criteria; ACE grant funds must be used solely to help eligible farmworkers obtain, retain, improve, or return to agricultural employment
- § 2502.6 — Beneficiary eligibility: only farmworkers who qualify as "United States Workers" may receive ACE grant-funded services or benefits; grantees must verify current employment status for workers who claim to be currently employed; workers who are not currently employed must certify to the grantee that they meet program eligibility requirements
- § 2502.7 — Covered services: grantees must provide services that match local farmworker needs and support employment objectives; the specific services required are detailed in the Request for Proposals, but at minimum the grant plan must explain the workers' needs, how services will address those needs, and how outcomes will be measured
- § 2502.8 — Grant administration: standard USDA grant rules apply to application processing, review, award decisions, and post-award management; the standard "prior approvals" requirement does not apply, but grantees may not subcontract more than 20 percent of their ACE grant to other parties; this limit ensures that the nonprofit grantee directly delivers services rather than acting primarily as a pass-through
How It Affects You
If you operate a nonprofit organization serving migrant or seasonal farmworkers, ACE grants are the primary USDA competitive grant mechanism for agricultural employment services. Watch USDA's Office of Advocacy and Outreach and grants.gov for Request for Proposals announcements. Eligible services may include job placement, skills training, English language instruction, credential support, and employment retention counseling — OAO defines eligible activities in each RFP based on current farmworker needs.
Only U.S.-authorized workers may receive ACE grant-funded services. The statute limits beneficiaries to "United States Workers" — citizens, permanent residents, and others with agricultural work authorization. Grantees bear responsibility for verifying eligibility. Serving ineligible workers can trigger audit findings and repayment obligations.
The 20% subcontracting cap means your organization must directly deliver most ACE-funded services. You can partner with other organizations for specialized components, but you cannot use ACE funds to simply pass the grant to subcontractors who do all the work. Build your direct service capacity before applying.
Employers in the agricultural sector benefit indirectly from ACE grants — the program increases the supply of trained, stable agricultural workers. If your county or region has an active ACE grantee, consider developing a partnership with the grantee organization to identify workers for your employment needs.
Statutory Authority
This rule implements:
- 7 U.S.C. § 2279 — Outreach and Technical Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers; provides USDA authority for outreach and assistance programs for underserved agricultural communities; the ACE program specifically focuses on agricultural worker employment assistance under OAO's broader outreach mandate
Recent Rulemakings
No major Federal Register amendments. The program operates through recurring grant cycles announced by OAO.