Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026

Section 302(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1922(a)) is amended—

(1) in the 2nd sentence of paragraph (1), by striking “a majority” each place it appears and inserting “at least a 50 percent”;

(2) in paragraph (2), by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the following:

“(A) Eligibility of qualified operators.— Qualified operators, as defined by the Secretary, shall be considered to meet the operator requirement of paragraph (1).

(B) Eligibility of certain operating-only entities.— An applicant that is or will become only the operator of farm real estate acquired, improved, or supported with funds under this subtitle shall be considered to meet the owner-operator requirements of paragraph (1) if 1 or more of the individuals who is an owner of the farm real estate owns at least 50 percent (or such other percentage as the Secretary determines is appropriate) of the applicant.

(C) Eligibility of certain embedded entities.— An entity that is an owner-operator described in paragraph (1), or an operator described in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph that is owned, in whole or in part, by 1 or more other entities, shall be considered to meet the direct ownership requirement imposed under paragraph (1) if at least 75 percent of the total ownership interests of the embedded entity, or of the other entities, is owned, directly or indirectly, by qualified operators of the farm acquired, improved, or supported with funds under this subtitle.”.

Section 302(b) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1922(b)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “3 years” and inserting “2 years”; and

(2) in paragraph (4)—

(A) in subparagraph (A)—

(i) in the matter preceding clause (i)—

(I) by striking “3-year” and inserting “2-year”; and

(II) by striking “1 or 2 years” and inserting “1 year”;

(ii) in clause (iii), by inserting “or operational” before “responsibilities”;

(iii) in clause (vii), by striking “or”; and

(iv) by adding at the end the following:

“(ix) met any other criteria established by the Secretary; or”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking “3-year” and inserting “2-year”.

Section 303 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1923) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(d) Refinancing of guaranteed loans into direct loans.— Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Farm Service Agency (referred to in this section as the “Secretary”), shall promulgate regulations allowing certain loans guaranteed by the Farm Service Agency to be refinanced into direct loans issued by the Farm Service Agency, in accordance with this subsection.

(1) Requirements.—

(A) In general.— A guaranteed loan may be refinanced into a direct loan pursuant to this subsection only if the Secretary determines that—

(i) the guaranteed loan is distressed due to its status as a nonperforming loan that does not have a positive cash flow at rates and terms available from the lender;

(ii) the borrower on the guaranteed loan is in monetary default and subject to liquidation or foreclosure action;

(iii) a reasonable chance for the success of the operation financed by the guaranteed loan exists; and

(iv) all other criteria established by the Secretary for purposes of this subsection to protect taxpayer funds and the loan programs of the Farm Service Agency have been satisfied.

(B) Reasonable chance of success.— For purposes of subparagraph (A)(iii), the Secretary may determine that a reasonable chance for the success of an operation exists if the Secretary determines that—

(i) all relevant problems with the operation financed by the guaranteed loan—

(I) have been identified; and

(II) can be corrected; and

(ii) on correction of the problems, the operation can achieve, or be returned to, a sound financial basis.

(2) Loan programs.— In making direct loans pursuant to the regulations promulgated under this subsection, the Secretary may refinance a loan guaranteed under 1 program of the Farm Service Agency into a direct loan issued under another program of the Farm Service Agency, as the Secretary determines to be appropriate and in accordance with the laws applicable to the program under which the direct loan is issued.

(3) Refinanced guaranteed loans.— A direct loan issued by the Farm Service Agency pursuant to the regulations promulgated under subsection (a) of this section shall be subject to any otherwise applicable limitation on the maximum amount of a direct loan issued by the Farm Service Agency, including, if applicable, the limitations described in sections 305 and 313.”.

Section 304 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1924) is amended—

(1) in subsection (d)—

(A) in paragraph (2), by striking “and” at the end;

(B) in paragraph (3), by striking “1985.” and inserting “1985 (16 U.S.C. 3812); and”; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

“(4) producers who use the loans to adopt precision agriculture practices or acquire precision agriculture technologies, including adoption or acquisition for the purpose of participating in the environmental quality incentives program under subchapter A of chapter 4 of subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa et seq.).”; and

(2) in subsection (h), by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

Section 305(a)(2) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1925(a)(2)) is amended by striking “$600,000, or, in the case of a loan guaranteed by the Secretary, $1,750,000 (increased, beginning with fiscal year 2019” and inserting “$850,000, or, in the case of a loan guaranteed by the Secretary, $3,500,000 (increased, beginning with fiscal year 2026”.

Section 305(c) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1925(c)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), by striking “of the Prices Paid By Farmers Index (as compiled by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the Department of Agriculture) for the 12-month period ending on July 31 of the immediately preceding fiscal year” and inserting “of the per acre average United States farm real estate value, the per acre average United States cropland value, and the per acre average United States pasture value for the preceding year (as published in the applicable Agricultural Land Values report of the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the Department of Agriculture), weighted equally”; and

(2) in paragraph (2), by striking “of such index (as so defined) for the 12-month period that immediately precedes the 12-month period described in paragraph (1)” and inserting “of the per acre average United States farm real estate value, the per acre average United States cropland value, and the per acre average United States pasture value for the year immediately preceding the year described in paragraph (1) (as so published), weighted equally”.

(a) In general.— The Farm Credit Act of 1971 is amended by inserting after section 4.18A (12 U.S.C. 2206a) the following:

“4.18B. Essential community facilities.—

(a) In general.— A Farm Credit Bank, direct lender association, or bank for cooperatives chartered under this Act may, for the purpose of making available capital to develop, build, maintain, improve, or provide related equipment or other support for essential community facilities in rural areas, make and participate in loans and commitments, and extend other technical and financial assistance for projects for essential community facilities eligible for financing under section 306(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act.

(b) Eligibility.— Only an entity eligible for financing under section 306(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act may receive financing or any other assistance under subsection (a) of this section.

(c) Limitations.—

(1) Financing.— A Farm Credit System institution described in subsection (a) shall not provide financing or assistance under this section in an aggregate amount that exceeds 15 percent of the total of all outstanding loans of the institution.

(2) Offer requirement.—

(A) In general.— A Farm Credit System institution shall not provide financing or assistance under this section unless the institution—

(i) has offered, under reasonable terms and conditions acceptable to the borrower involved, an interest in the financing to at least 1 domestic lending institution not referred to in subsection (a) other than the Department of Agriculture; and

(ii) has reported the offer to the Farm Credit Administration.

(B) Rural community bank priority.— In offering an interest in a financing to a domestic lending institution described in subparagraph (A)(i), the Farm Credit System institution shall give priority to community banks located in the service area of the essential community facility being financed.

(d) Annual report to Congress.— Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section and annually thereafter, the Farm Credit Administration shall provide a report to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate on the activities undertaken pursuant to this section by Farm Credit System institutions during the period covered by the report, including through partnerships between such an institution and other lending institutions, which shall also be posted on the website of the Farm Credit Administration.”.

(b) Effective date.— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 2026.

Section 310E(b)(1) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1935(b)(1)) is amended—

(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “exceed 45 percent of the least” and inserting “exceed, subject to section 305(a), 45 percent of the lesser”;

(2) in subparagraph (A), by adding “or” after the semicolon;

(3) in subparagraph (B), by striking “; or” and inserting a period; and

(4) by striking subparagraph (C).

(a) Reauthorization of the heirs property intermediary relending program.— Section 310I(g) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1936c(g)) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

(b) Cooperative agreements for heirs property resolution through direct public interest legal services.— Title V of the Rural Development Act of 1972 (7 U.S.C. 2661–2669) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“509. Cooperative agreements for heirs property resolution through direct public interest legal services.—

(a) In general.— The Secretary shall enter into cooperative agreements with eligible entities to provide legal or accounting services to underserved heirs, at no cost to the underserved heirs, to assist in resolving undivided ownership interests on farmland or forest land, or land transitioning to farmland or forest land, that has multiple owners. Such a cooperative agreement must be for any of the following purposes:

(1) To assist with transitioning land to agricultural production.

(2) To maintain land in agricultural production.

(3) To increase access to programs administered by the Secretary through the resolution of real property claims in order to allow real property owners to meet land ownership eligibility requirements for participation in a program administered by the Secretary.

(b) Administration of cooperative agreements.—

(1) Duration.—

(A) In general.— A cooperative agreement under subsection (a) shall be in effect for not more than 4 years, subject to subparagraph (B).

(B) Special rule.— The Secretary may extend a cooperative agreement or re-enter into a cooperative agreement with the same or a different eligible entity to provide continued services for heirs if—

(i) property ownership is not resolved within the initial term of the original cooperative agreement; and

(ii) the entity certifies that the entity understands that the cooperative agreement is not guaranteed to be funded for more than 4 years after the commencement of the original cooperative agreement.

(2) Management of performance.—

(A) Annual reports.— An eligible entity must provide annual reports to the Secretary summarizing the progress made during each fiscal year towards achieving the goals of the cooperative agreement for the heirs for whom services are provided under the cooperative agreement.

(B) Information and data.— The Secretary may require an eligible entity to provide the Secretary with such information or data as the Secretary deems necessary to determine that the eligible entity is making acceptable progress. The data may not include personally identifiable information.

(C) Effect of failure to demonstrate success.— If an eligible entity providing services under such a cooperative agreement does not demonstrate success, as determined by the Secretary, in resolving or reasonably attempting to resolve the property claims of an heir, the Secretary may terminate the agreement.

(3) Implementation.— The Secretary may utilize requests for public input or the formal rulemaking process to effectuate this section. At a minimum, the Secretary shall make publicly available the criteria for selecting an eligible entity to enter into an agreement to provide services, the administrative and performance requirements for cooperative agreements under this section, as well as codify within its internal policy its implementation process.

(4) Heirs property not in farming.— On a limited basis, and when determined by the Secretary to meet the purposes of a program administered by the Secretary and to expand access to such a program, the Secretary may allow an eligible entity to provide services at no cost to an heir who is not an underserved heir if—

(A) the land with respect to which the services are to be provided is not farmland or in agricultural production, but could be viably productive for agricultural, conservation, or forestry purposes;

(B) the heir satisfies all other requirements of the definition of “underserved heir”;

(C) the heir can provide proof to substantiate that the heir is in control of the real property; and

(D) the heir certifies to the Secretary that the heir intends to apply for, and make a good faith effort to enroll the land in, a program administered by the Secretary once property claims to the land are resolved through services provided under a cooperative agreement entered into under this section.

(c) Definitions.— In this section:

(1) Eligible entity.— The term “eligible entity” means a nonprofit organization that—

(A) provides legal or accounting services to an underserved heir at no cost to the underserved heir to resolve property ownership issues; and

(B) has demonstrated experience in resolving issues related to ownership and succession on farmland or forest land that has multiple owners.

(2) Limited resource heir.— An heir shall be considered a limited resource heir for purposes of this section if—

(A) the total household income of the heir is at or below the national poverty level for a family of 4, or less than 50 percent of the county median household income for the 2 immediately preceding calendar years, as determined annually using data of the Department of Commerce; or

(B) the property of the heir for which legal services are provided pursuant to a cooperative agreement entered into under this section is in a persistent poverty community, as determined annually on the basis of data from the Department of Commerce, or a socially vulnerable area, as designated by the Centers on Disease Control and Prevention.

(3) Underserved heir.— The term “underserved heir” means an heir with an undivided ownership interest in farmland or forest land that has multiple owners, who is—

(A) a limited resource heir;

(B) a member of a socially disadvantaged group (as defined in section 2501(a) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990); or

(C) a veteran (as defined in section 101(2) of title 38, United States Code).

(d) Annual reports to congress.— Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall prepare, make public, and submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a written report on the activities carried out under this section in the year covered by the report.

(e) Limitations on authorization of appropriations.— To carry out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031.”.

(c) Annual report on operations and outcomes under the relending program To resolve ownership and succession on farmland.— Section 310I(f) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1936c(f)), is amended by striking “Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall” and inserting “The Secretary shall annually”.

Section 333A of the of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1983a) is amended—

(1) in subsection (g)—

(A) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:

“(1) Real estate and operating guaranteed loans.—

(A) In general.— The Secretary shall provide to lenders a short, simplified application form for real estate and operating guaranteed loans under this title, for loans of not more than $1,000,000.

(B) Notice.— Within 5 business days after receipt of a complete application to guarantee a farm ownership or operating loan that meets the requirements under subparagraph (A) originated by a Preferred Certified Lender or Certified Lender, the Secretary shall notify the lender as to whether the application is approved or disapproved.

(C) Maximum guarantee.— Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the percentage of the principal amount of a loan which may be guaranteed pursuant to this paragraph shall not exceed—

(i) 90 percent, in the case of a loan not exceeding $125,000;

(ii) 75 percent, in the case of a loan of more than $125,000 and not more than $500,000; or

(iii) 50 percent, in the case of a loan of more than $500,000 and not more than $1,000,000.”; and

(B) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively, and inserting after paragraph (1) the following:

“(2) Business and industry guaranteed loans to assist rural entities.—

(A) In general.— The Secretary shall develop an application process that accelerates, to the maximum extent practicable, the processing of applications for business and industry guaranteed loans to assist rural entities, as described under section 310B(a)(2)(A), for loans not exceeding $400,000.

(B) Exception.— The accelerated application process, as provided under subparagraph (A), shall apply to loans not exceeding $600,000 if there is not a significant increased risk of a default on the loan, as determined by the Secretary.”; and

(2) by striking subsection (h).

(a) In general.— Subtitle D of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act is amended by inserting after section 333D (7 U.S.C. 1983d) the following:

“333E. Expedited approval pilot program.—

(a) In general.— Beginning not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall carry out a pilot program to establish an expedited qualification and approval process for borrowers seeking—

(1) a direct farm ownership loan under this Act; or

(2) a guaranteed farm ownership loan under this Act that is serviced by a Preferred Certified Lender under section 339(d) and provided to a creditworthy borrower, as determined by the Preferred Certified Lender.

(b) Loan assessments.— In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall consider streamlining the process for making—

(1) determinations necessary to make the certifications and assessments referred to in section 339(c)(5); and

(2) determinations under section 360(b).

(c) Rule of interpretation.— Except as otherwise provided in subsections (a) and (b), this section shall not be interpreted to authorize the waiver or modification of any requirement, other than an application process timing requirement, imposed by or under this Act.

(d) Report.— Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report examining the actions undertaken under, and the results of, the pilot program.

(e) Termination of effectiveness.— The authority provided by this section shall terminate effective September 30, 2031.”.

(b) Conforming amendments.— Section 346(b)(2) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1994(b)(2)) is amended—

(1) in subparagraph (A)(i)(II), by inserting “, to the extent practicable” after “April 1 of the fiscal year”;

(2) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by inserting “, to the extent practicable” after “September 1 of the fiscal year”; and

(3) in subparagraph (B)(iii), in the text, by inserting “, to the extent practicable” after “April 1 of the fiscal year”.

Section 311(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1941(a)) is amended—

(1) in the 2nd sentence of paragraph (1), by striking “a majority” each place it appears and inserting “at least a 50 percent”; and

(2) in paragraph (2)—

(A) in the paragraph heading, by striking “(2) Special rule.—An entity” and inserting the following:

“(2) Special rules.—

(A) Eligibility of qualified operators.— Qualified operators, as defined by the Secretary, shall be considered to meet the operator requirement of paragraph (1).

(B) Eligibility of certain operating-only entities.— An entity”; and

(B) by striking “ownership interests of each embedded entity of the entity is owned directly or indirectly by the individuals that own the family farm” and inserting “total ownership interests of the embedded entity, or of the other entities, is owned, directly or indirectly, by qualified operators of the farm improved or supported with funds under this subtitle”.

Section 313(a)(1) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1943(a)(1)) is amended by striking “$400,000, or, in the case of a loan guaranteed by the Secretary, $1,750,000 (increased, beginning with fiscal year 2019” and inserting “$750,000, or, in the case of a loan guaranteed by the Secretary, $3,000,000 (increased, beginning with fiscal year 2026”.

Section 313(c)(2) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1943(c)(2)) is amended by striking “$50,000” and inserting “$100,000”.

Section 313(c)(4)(A) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1943(c)(4)(A)) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

Section 321 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1961) is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)—

(A) in the 1st sentence—

(i) by striking “(A)” and inserting “(i)”;

(ii) by striking “(B)” and inserting “(ii)”;

(iii) by striking “(1)” and inserting “(A)”;

(iv) by striking “(2)” and inserting “(B)”; and

(v) by striking “a majority” each place it appears and inserting “at least a 50 percent”;

(B) in the 2nd sentence, by striking “this subsection” and inserting “this paragraph”;

(C) by striking the 5th sentence; and

(D) by adding after and below the end the following:

“(2) Special rules.—

(A) Eligibility of qualified operators.— Qualified operators, as defined by the Secretary, shall be considered to meet the operator requirement of paragraph (1).

(B) Eligibility of certain operating-only entities.— An applicant that is or will become only the operator of farm real estate acquired, improved, or supported with funds under this subtitle shall be considered to meet the owner-operator requirements of paragraph (1) if 1 or more of the individuals who is an owner of the real estate owns at least 50 percent (or such other percentage as the Secretary determines is appropriate) of the applicant.

(C) Eligibility of certain embedded entities.— An entity that is an owner-operator described in paragraph (1), or an operator described in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph that is owned, in whole or in part, by 1 or more other entities, shall be considered to meet the direct ownership requirement imposed under paragraph (1) if at least 75 percent of the total ownership interests of the embedded entity, or of the other entities, is owned, directly or indirectly, by qualified operators of the farm acquired, improved, or supported with funds under this subtitle.”; and

(2) by striking all that precedes “shall make and insure” and inserting the following:

“321. Eligibility for loans.—

(a) In general.—

(1) Eligibility requirements.— The Secretary”.

Section 333B(h) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1983b(h)) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

Section 346(b)(1) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1994(b)(1)) is amended in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

Section 346(b)(2)(A)(ii)(III) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1994(b)(2)(A)(ii)(III)) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

Section 346(b)(5)(C) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1994(b)(5)(C)) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

(a) Eligibility for credit and financial services.— Section 1.9 of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2017) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (2), by striking “or” at the end;

(2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and

(3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:

“(3) persons furnishing to producers or harvesters of aquatic products services directly related to their operating needs; or”.

(b) Purposes for extensions of credit.— Section 1.11(c)(1) of such Act (12 U.S.C. 2019(c)(1)) is amended by inserting “and to persons furnishing services directly related to the operating needs of producers or harvesters of aquatic products” after “needs”.

(c) Production credit associations.— Section 2.4(a) of such Act (12 U.S.C. 2075(a)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (2), by striking “and” at the end;

(2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

“(4) persons furnishing to producers or harvesters of aquatic products services directly related to their operating needs.”.

Section 3.7(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2128(b)(2)(A)(i)) is amended—

(1) by striking “50 percent of the bank’s capital” and inserting “15 percent of the total assets of the bank”; and

(2) by striking “an amount equal to 50 percent of the bank’s capital” and inserting “15 percent of the total assets of the bank”.

Section 3.7(f) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2128(f)) is amended—

(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B);

(2) by striking “The banks” and inserting “(1) The banks”;

(3) striking “For purposes” and inserting “(3) For purposes”;

(4) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated), by inserting “, or in the case of such loans, commitments, and assistance that are guaranteed, the term rural area means an area described in section 343(a)(13)(A) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(13)(A))” before the period at the end; and

(5) by inserting after paragraph (1) (as so redesignated) the following:

“(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a bank for cooperatives may make and participate in loans and commitments and provide technical and other financial assistance to cooperatives and any other public or private entity (except for the Federal Government) for the purpose of installing, maintaining, expanding, improving, or operating facilities in a rural area for the processing or disposal of waste from any source, the provision of telecommunication services, and producing electricity from any source for use or sale by the borrower.”.

(a) In general.— The Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2001 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 4.20 the following:

“4.21. Farm credit system regulation.—

(a) The Farm Credit Administration shall be the sole and independent regulator of the Farm Credit System with respect to activities subject to this Act.

(b) Nothing in this section shall limit or affect any regulatory or other authority granted to the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation under this Act.

(c) A law enacted or rule promulgated after the date of the enactment of this section shall not be held to modify or supersede the exclusive authority provided by subsection (a), except to the extent that the enacted law does so expressly.”.

(b) Effective date.— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

Section 8.0(7)(B) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2279aa(7)(B)) is amended by inserting “ or section 9007(c)(1) of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8107(c)(1))” before the 1st comma.

Section 8.8 of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2279aa–8) is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)(3), by striking “mortgage investors” and inserting “investors in those types of loans”; and

(2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:

“(c) Qualified loan limitation for single borrowers.—

(1) In general.— The Corporation shall not treat a loan secured by agricultural real estate as a qualified loan when the cumulative principal amount of all loans to a single borrower or related borrowers exceeds 10 percent of the Corporation’s tier 1 capital, as defined by the Farm Credit Administration.

(2) Regulator determination.— The Farm Credit Administration may issue regulations establishing a single borrower concentration limit lower than the percentage specified in paragraph (1) if the Farm Credit Administration determines that such a lower limit is necessary for the safe and sound operation of the Corporation.”.

(a) Definition of State.— Section 501 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 (7 U.S.C. 5101) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(e) Definition of State.— In this title, the term ‘State’ has the meaning given the term in section 2 of the Animal Welfare Act, and includes any Indian tribe (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act).”.

(b) Matching grants to States.— Section 502 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 (7 U.S.C. 5102) is amended—

(1) in subsection (b)(2), by striking “$500,000” and inserting “$700,000”; and

(2) by adding at the end the following:

“(e) Carryover of financial assistance.— The Secretary shall permit a State that receives financial assistance under subsection (a) for a fiscal year to carry over not more than 25 percent of the financial assistance that is not expended by the end of the fiscal year, for use during the next fiscal year without deducting the amount from any assistance provided under this Act in subsequent fiscal years.”.

(c) Authorization of appropriations.— Section 506 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 (7 U.S.C. 5106) is amended by striking “2023” and inserting “2031”.

(a) Elimination of obsolete references to county committees.—

(1) Section 333A(a)(2)(B)(vi) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1983a(a)(2)(B)(vi)) is amended by striking “by the county committee” and inserting “of the application”.

(2) Section 336 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1986) is amended—

(A) by striking the last sentence of subsection (b); and

(B) by striking subsection (c) and redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (c).

(3) Section 339 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1989) is amended—

(A) in subsection (c)(4)(A), by striking “county committee certification that the borrower of the loan meets the eligibility requirements and” and inserting “the borrower meeting”; and

(B) in subsection (d)(4)(A), by striking “county committee certification that the borrower meets the eligibility requirements or” and inserting “the borrower meeting”.

(4) Section 359(c)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2006a(c)(1)) is amended by striking “(as determined by the appropriate county committee during the determination of eligibility for the loan)”.

(b) Revision of loan assessment requirements.— Section 360(d)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2006b(d)(1)) is amended by striking “annual review of direct loans, and periodic review (as determined necessary by the Secretary) of guaranteed loans” and inserting “periodic review (as determined by the Secretary) of direct and guaranteed loans”.

(c) Updating of outdated references to the Farmers Home Administration and the Rural Development Agency.—

(1) Section 309(e) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1928(e)) is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration and the Rural Development Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development”.

(2) Section 331(b)(4) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1981(b)(4)) is amended by striking “Consolidated”.

(3) Section 331(b) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1981(b)) is amended in each of paragraphs (5) and (7) by striking “Farmers Home Administration” each place it appears and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development”.

(4) Section 331(b)(8) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1981(b)(8)) is amended by striking “Rural Development Administration or by the Farmers Home Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development”.

(5) Section 331A(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1981a(a)) is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration or by the Rural Development Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency or by Rural Development”.

(6) Section 335(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1985(a)) is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration or the Rural Development Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency or Rural Development”.

(7) Section 335(f)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1985(f)(1)) is amended—

(A) by striking “Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service payments” and inserting “Farm Service Agency farm program”;

(B) by striking “Farmers Home Administration liens” and inserting “liens for a farmer program loan”; and

(C) by striking “Farmers Home Administration farmer” and inserting “Farm Service Agency farmer”.

(8) Section 338(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1988(a)) is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration or the Rural Development Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development”.

(9) Section 347 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1995) is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration” and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development”.

(10) Section 356 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2004) is amended—

(A) by striking “Farmers Home Administration may” and inserting “Farm Service Agency and Rural Development may”; and

(B) by striking “the inventory of the Farmers Home Administration” and inserting “inventory”.

(11) Section 370(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2008e(a)) is amended by striking “the Rural Development Administration, the Farmers Home Administration, the Rural Electrification Administration” and inserting “Rural Development, the Farm Service Agency, the Rural Utilities Service”.

(12) Each of the following provisions of such Act is amended by striking “Farmers Home Administration” each place it appears and inserting “Farm Service Agency”:

(A) Section 309(g)(1) (7 U.S.C. 1929(g)(1)).

(B) Section 331A(a) (7 U.S.C. 1981a(a)).

(C) Section 333A(e)(1) (7 U.S.C. 1983a(e)(1)).

(D) Section 335(d) (7 U.S.C. 1985(d)).

(E) Section 353A (7 U.S.C. 2001a).

(F) Section 349(e)(1)(B) (7 U.S.C. 1997(e)(1)(B)).

(G) Section 361 (7 U.S.C. 2006c).

(d) Section 335(c)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1985(c)(1)) is amended—

(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking “15” and inserting “60”;

(2) in subparagraph (B)(i)—

(A) by striking “135” and inserting “180”; and

(B) by inserting “suitable for farming and ranching, as determined by the Secretary” before the comma; and

(3) in subparagraph (C), by striking “not later than 135 days after acquiring the real property, the Secretary shall, not later than 30 days after the 135-day period,” and inserting “or if the property is not suitable for farming and ranching as determined by the Secretary, not later than 60 days after the 180-day period, the Secretary shall”.

(e) Correction of infeasible inventory property disposition framework.—

(1) Section 331(b)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1981(b)(1)) is amended by striking “, and until January” and all that follows through “fit)”.

(2) Section 335(f) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1985(f)) is amended—

(A) by striking paragraphs (3) through (5) and redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph (3); and

(B) by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the following:

“(4) The Secretary shall issue regulations consistent with this section that ensures the release of funds to each borrower.”.

(f) Replacement of references to district office with references to District Director.— Section 333A(a)(2)(B) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1983a(a)(2)(B)) is amended by striking “district office” each place it appears and inserting “District Director”.

(g) Correction of obsolete reference to former trust territories.— Section 343(a)(6) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(6)) is amended by striking “the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands” and inserting “the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands”.

(h) Revision of farmer program loan definition.— Section 343(a)(10) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(10)) is amended by inserting “before June 18, 2008, conservation loan (CL) under section 304 on or after June 18, 2008,” before “emergency loan (EM)”.

(i) Elimination of inconsistency between rules applicable to beginning farmers.— Section 343(a)(11)(C) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(11)(C)) is amended by striking “related to one another by blood or marriage” and inserting “qualified beginning farmers”.

(j) Updating of provisions To reflect repurposing of conservation loan provisions.—

(1) Section 303(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1923(a)) is amended in each of paragraphs (1)(D) and (2)(D) by striking “described in section 304”.

(2) Section 310D of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1934) is amended by striking “, or paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 304(a),” and inserting “section 304(a)”.

(k) Updating of notice provision requirement and lifetime debt forgiveness limit.— Section 353(i)(1) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2001(i)(1)) is amended by striking “registered or certified mail” and inserting “any method that provides documentation of delivery”.

(l) Updating of obsolete reference to the Soil Conservation Service.— Section 306(a)(13) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(13)) is amended by striking “Soil Conservation Service” and inserting “Natural Resources Conservation Service”.

(m) Clarification of interest rate requirements.—

(1) Section 307(a)(3)(B) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1927(a)(3)(B)) is amended by striking “not be—” and all that follows and inserting “be equal to the interest rate for direct farm ownership loans under this subtitle, not to exceed 5 percent per year.”.

(2) Section 316(a)(2) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1946(a)(2)) is amended by striking “not be—” and all that follows and inserting “be equal to the interest rate for direct farm ownership loans under this subtitle, not to exceed 5 percent per year.”.

(n) Correction of heading.— Section 309(h)(6) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1929(h)(6)) is amended in the paragraph heading by striking “Beginning farmer loans” and inserting “Down payment loan program participant”.

(o) Elimination of superfluous restrictions.— Section 312 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1942) is amended by striking subsection (d) and redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (d).

(p) Elimination of confusing references to loan guarantees.— Section 319 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1949) is amended—

(1) in the section heading, by striking “or guarantees”; and

(2) by striking “or with respect to whom there is an outstanding guarantee under this subtitle”.

(q) Elimination of obsolete reporting requirements.— Section 346 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1994) is amended by striking subsections (c) and (d).

(r) Correction of obsolete appeals provisions.—

(1) Section 352(c)(3) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2000(c)(3)) is amended by striking “section 333B” and inserting “subtitle H of title II of Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994”.

(2) Section 353 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 2001) is amended—

(A) in subsection (h), by striking “under section 333B”; and

(B) in subsection (j)—

(i) by striking “filed with the appeals division under section 333B” and inserting “to the National Appeals Division”;

(ii) by striking “appeals division shall” and inserting “Secretary shall”; and

(iii) by striking “county supervisor” and inserting “Secretary”.

(s) Elimination of unnecessary constraint on pilot projects.— Section 333D(a) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 1983d(a)) is amended by striking “that are consistent with subtitle A through this subtitle”.

(t) Correction of heading.— The paragraph heading in section 8.8(a)(3) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2279aa–8(a)(3)) is amended by striking “Mortgage loans” and inserting “Loan quality”.

(a) In general.— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report evaluating the feasibility of requiring the adoption of certain risk management practices as a condition for approving certain direct and guaranteed farm loans.

(b) Requirement.— In the report under subsection (a), the Secretary shall evaluate the feasibility of requiring, as a condition for approving certain direct and guaranteed farm loans, the adoption of 1 or more of the following risk management practices:

(1) Hedging and marketing price or revenue risk management strategies.

(2) Insurance coverage optimization or coordination.

(3) Periodic financial reporting or financial management practices.

(4) Cash management services to facilitate timely disbursement of funds and structured collection of operating revenues.

(5) The use of integrated monitoring and analytics tools to align risk management and financial decisions with observed environmental and production conditions.

(6) Other risk mitigation practices as determined by the Secretary.

(7) Voluntary lender incentives to promote integrated risk management support without increasing costs or burdens for applicants.

(c) Certification.— In completing the report under subsection (a), the Secretary shall also evaluate the feasibility of establishing a certification program that identifies loans approved contingent on the adoption of enhanced risk management practices, including through voluntary lender incentives to promote integrated risk management support without increasing costs or burdens for applicants.

(d) Applicability.— The requirements and evaluations under this section shall apply only to operating, production, and working capital loans made for agricultural production purposes and shall not apply to real estate loans, rural development loans, housing loans, business and industry loans, or other non-operating credit programs administered by the Secretary.

(a) In general.— Section 5.19(a) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2254(a)) is amended in the 1st sentence—

(1) by striking “in no event” and inserting “not”; and

(2) by inserting “, except that the Farm Credit Administration, in its sole discretion, may extend the time period between mandatory examinations of institutions deemed by the Farm Credit Administration to be small, low-risk institutions to not more than 24 months” before the period.

(b) Effective date.— The amendments made by subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 2026.