Pub. L. 91-524, tit. V, sec. 501

Sec. 501. Effective only with respect to the 1071, 1072, and 1973 crops of feed grains, section 105 of the Agricultural Act of 1949, as amended, is further amended to read as follows: “Sec. 105. Notwithstanding any other provision of law— “(a) (1) The Secretary shall make available to producers loans and purchases on each crop of corn at such level, not less than $1,00 per bushel nor in excess of 90 per centum of the parity price therefor, as the Secretary determines will encourage the exportation of feed grains and not result in excessive total stocks of feed grains in the United States. “(2) The Secretary shall make available to producers loans and purchases on each crop of barley, oats, and rye, respectively, at such level as the Secretary determines is fair and reasonable in relation to the level that loans and purchases are made available for corn, taking into consideration the feeding value of such commodity in relation to corn and the other factors specified in section 401(b), and on each crop of grain sorghums at such level as the Secretary determines is fair and reasonable in relation to the level that loans and purchases are made available for corn, taking into consideration the feeding value and average transportation costs to market of grain sorghums in relation to corn. “(b) (1) In addition, the Secretary shall make available to producers payments for each crop of corn, grain sorghums, and, if designated by the Secretary, barley. The payment rate for corn shall be at such rate as, together with the national average market price received by farmers for corn during the first five months of the marketing year for the crop, the Secretary determines will not be less than (A) $1.35 per bushel, or (B) 70 per centum of the parity price of corn as of the beginning of the marketing year, whichever is the greater. The payment rate for grain sorghums and, if designated by the Secretary, barley, shall be such rate as the Secretary determines fair and reasonable in relation to the rate at which payments are made available for corn. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the rate of payment for the 1973 crop shall not be such as will result in a total amount of payments which the Secretary estimates will be made pursuant to this subsection with respect to the 1973 crop of feed grains above the total amount of payments made pursuant to this subsection with respect to the 1972 crop of feed grains by reason of the level specified in clause (B) being fixed above 68 per centum of the parity price for corn. “(2) The payments with respect to a farm shall be made available on 50 per centum of the feed grain base for the farm and shall be computed on the basis of the yield established for the farm for the preceding crop with such adjustments as the Secretary determines necessary to provide a fair and equitable yield. “(3) If for any crop the total acreage on a farm planted to feed grains included in the program formulated under this subsection is less than the portion of the feed grain base for the farm on which payments are available under this subsection, the feed grain base for the farm for the succeeding crops shall be reduced by the percentage by which the planted acreage is less than such portion of the feed grain base for the farm, but such reduction shall not exceed 20 per centum of the feed grain base. If no acreage has been planted to such feed grains for three consecutive crop years on any farm which has a feed84 Stat. 1369 grain base, such farm shall lose its feed grain base: Provided, That no farm feed grain base shall be reduced or lost through failure to plant, if the producer elects not to receive payment for such portion of the farm reed grain base not planted, to which he would otherwise be entitled under the provisions of this Act. Any such acres eliminated from any farm shall be assigned to a national pool for the adjustment of feed grain bases as provided for in subsection (e)(2). Producers on any farm who have planted to such feed grains not less than 90 per centum of the portion of the feed grain base on which payments are made available shall be considered to have planted an acreage equal to 100 per centum of such portion. An acreage on the farm which the Secretary determines was not planted to such feed grains because of drought, flood, or other natural disaster or condition beyond the control of the producer shall be considered to be an acreage of feed grains planted for harvest. For the purpose of this paragraph, the Secretary may permit producers of feed grains to have acreage devoted to soybeans or to wheat considered as devoted to the production of such feed grains to such extent and subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines will not impair the effective operation of the feed grain or soybean program. “(c) (1) The Secretary shall provide for a set-aside of cropland if he determines that the total supply of feed grains or other commodities will, in the absence of such a set-aside, likely be excessive taking into account the need for an adequate carryover to maintain reasonable and stable supplies and prices of feed grains and to meet a national emergency. If a set-aside of cropland is in effect under this subsection (c), then as a condition of eligibility for loans, purchases, and payments on corn, grain sorghums, and, if designated by the Secretary, barley, respectively, the producers on a farm must set aside and devote to approved conservation uses an acreage of cropland equal to (i) such percentage of the feed grain base for the farm as may be specified by the Secretary, plus (ii) the acreage of cropland on the farm devoted in preceding years to soil-conserving uses, as determined by the Secretary. The Secretary is authorized for the 1971, 1972, and 1973 crops to limit the acreage planted to feed grains on the farm to such percentage of the feed grain base as he determines necessary to provide an orderly transition to the program provided for under this section. If for any crop, the producer so requests for purposes of having acreage devoted to the production of wheat considered as devoted to the production of feed grains, pursuant to the provisions of section 328 of the Food and Agriculture Act of 1962, the term ‘feed grains’ shall include oats and rye, and barley, if not designated by the Secretary as provided above. Such section 328 shall be effective in 1971, 1972, 1973 to the same extent as it would be if a diversion program were in effect for feed grains during each of such years. Grazing shall not be permitted during any of the five principal months of the normal growing season as determined by the county committee, established pursuant to section 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, as amended, and subject to this limitation (1) the Secretary shall permit producers to plant and graze on the set-aside acreage sweet sorghum, and (2) the Secretary may permit, subject to such terms and conditions as lie may prescribe, all or any of the set-aside acreage to be devoted to grazing or the production of guar, sesame, safflower, sunflower, castor beans, mustard seed, crambe, plantago ovato, flaxseed, or other commodity, if he determines that such production is needed to provide an adequate supply, is not likely to increase the cost of the price-support program, and will not adversely affect farm income. 84 Stat. 1370 “(2) To assist in adjusting the acreage of commodities to desirable goals, the Secretary may make land diversion payments, in addition to the payments authorized in subsection (b),to producers on a farm who, to the extent prescribed by the Secretary, devote to approved conservation uses an acreage of cropland on the farm in addition to that required to be so devoted under subsection (c)(1). The land diversion payments for a farm shall be at such rata or rates as the Secretary determines to be fair and reasonable taking into consideration the diversion undertaken by the producers and the productivity of tire acreage diverted. The Secretary shall limit the total acreage to be diverted under agreements in any county or local community so as not to adversely affect the economy of the county or local community. “(3) The feed grain program formulated under this section shall require the producer to take such measures as the Secretary may deem appropriate to protect the set-aside acreage and the additional diverted acreage from erosion, insects, weeds, and rodents. Such acreage may be devoted to wildlife food plots or wildlife habitat in conformity with standards established by the Secretary in consultation with wildlife agencies. The Secretary may provide for an additional payment on such acreage in an amount determined by the Secretary to lie appropriate in relation to the benefit, to the general public if the producer agrees to permit, without other compensation, access to all or such portion of the farm as the Secretary may prescribe by the general public, for hunting, trapping, fishing, and hilling, subject to applicable State, and Federal regulations. “(4) If the operator of the farm desires to participate in the program formulated under this section, he shall file his agreement to do so no later than such date as the Secretary may prescribe. Loans and purchases on feed grains included in the set-aside program and payments under this section shall lie made available to producers on such farm only if the producers set aside and devote to approved soil conserving uses an acreage on the farm equal to the number of acres which the operator agrees to set aside and devote to approved soil conserving uses, and the agreement shall so provide. The Secretary may, by mutual agreement with the producer, terminate or modify any such agreement entered into pursuant to this subsection (c)(4) if he determines such action necessary because of an emergency created by drought or other disaster, or in order to prevent or alleviate a shortage in the supply of agricultural commodities. “(d) The Secretary shall provide for the sharing of payments under this section among producers on the farm on a fair and equitable basis. “(e) (1) For the purpose of this section, the feed grain base shall be the average acreage devoted on the farm to corn, grain sorghums and, if designated by the Secretary, barley in 1959 and 1960. “(2) The Secretary may make such adjustments in acreage under this section as he determines necessary to correct for abnormal factors affecting production, and to give due consideration to tillable acreage, crop-rotation practices, types of soil, soil and water conservation measures, and topography, and in addition, in the case of conserving use acreages to such other factors as he deems necessary in order to establish a fair and equitable conserving use acreage for the farm. The Secretary shall, upon the request of a majority of the State committee established pursuant to section 8(b) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, as amended, adjust the feed grain bases for farms within any State or county in order to establish fair and equitable feed grain bases for farms within such State or county: Provided, That except for acreage provided for in subsection (b)(3),84 Stat. 1371 adjustments made pursuant to this sentence shall not increase the total. State feed grain acreage. The Secretary is authorized to draw upon the acreage, pool provided for in subsection (b)(3) in making such adjustments. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, the feed grain base for the farm shall be adjusted downward to the extent required by subsection (b)(3). “(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection not to exceed 1 per centum of the estimated total feed grain bases for all farms in a State for any year may lie reserved from the feed grain bases established for farms in the State for apportionment to farms on which there were no acreages devoted to feed grains in the crop years 1959 and I960 on the basis of the following factors: suitability of the land for the production of feed grains, the extent to which the farm operator is dependent on income from farming for his livelihood, the production of feed grains on other farms owned, operated, or controlled by the farm operator, and such other factors as the Secretary determines should be considered for the purpose of establishing fair and equitable feed grain bases. No part of such reserve shall be allocated to a farm to reflect new cropland brought into production after the date of enactment, of the set-aside program for feed grains. An acreage equal to the feed grain base so established for each farm shall lie deemed to have been devoted to feed grains on the farm in each of the crop years 1959 and 1960 for purposes of this .section. “(f) In any casein which the failure of a producer to comply fully with the terms and conditions of the program formulated under this section precludes the making of loans, purchases, and payments, the Secretary may, nevertheless, make such loans, purchases, and payments in such amounts as he determines to be equitable in relation to the seriousness of the default. “(g) The Secretary shall make a preliminary payment to producers, as soon as practicable after July 1 of the year in which the crop is harvested, at a rate equal to 32 cents per bushel for corn, with comparable rates for grain sorghums and, if designated by the Secretary, barley, and the payment so made shall not be reduced if the rate as finally determined is less than the rate of the preliminary payment. If the set-aside in effect under subsection (c) is less than 20 per centum of the feed grain base, the preliminary payment, rate under this subsection shall be reduced proportionately. “(h) The Secretary is authorized to issue such regulations as he determines necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. “(i) The Secretary shall carry out the program authorized by this section through the Commodity Credit Corporation.”