payments and loans

payments and loans Sec. 102. Effective for the 1976 and 1977 crops of rice, section 101 of the Agricultural Act of 1949 is amended by adding the following new subsection at the end thereof: “(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law— “(1) The established price for the purpose of making payments on rice under this subsection shall be $8 per hundredweight in the case of the 1976 crop, adjusted to reflect any changes in the index of prices paid by farmers for production items, bitterest, taxes, and wage rates during the period beginning on the date of enactment of the Rice Production Act of 1975, and ending July 31, 1976; for the 1977 crop the established price shall be the established price for the 1976 crop adjusted to reflect any changes in the index of prices paid by farmers for production items, interest, taxes, and wage rates during the twelve-month period immediately preceding July 31, 1977; Provided, That any increase that would otherwise be made in the established price for the 1976 and 1977 crops to reflect a change in the index of prices paid by farmers may be further adjusted to reflect any change in (i) the national average yield per acre of rice for the three calendar years preceding the year for which the determination is made, over (ii) the national average yield per acre for the three calendar years preceding the year previous to the one for which the determination is made. “(2) The Secretary shall make available, to cooperators in the several States of the United States, loans and purchases on the 1976 crop of rice at a rate equal to $6 per hundredweight, adjusted to reflect any changes in the index of prices paid by farmers for production items, interest, taxes, and wage rates during the period beginning on the date of enactment of the Rice Production Act of 1975 and ending July 31, 1976: Provided, That any increase in the rate of loans and purchases for the 1976 crop to reflect a change in the index of prices paid by farmers may be further adjusted to reflect the change described in the proviso in paragraph (1) of this subsection. Loans and purchases for the 1977 crop shall be established at such rate as bears the same ratio to the loan rate for the 1976 crop as the established price for the 1977 crop bears to the established price for the 1976 90 STAT. 184crops. The loans and purchases for the 1976 and 1977 crops shall be made available to cooperators on a farm with respect to a quantity of rice determined by multiplying the allotment by the yield established for the farm, as determined in the manner described in the second sentence of paragraph (4) of this subsection. “(3) The Secretary shall make available to cooperators payments for each of the 1976 and 1977 crops of rice grown in the several States of the United Stales at a rate equal to the amount by which the established price for the crop of rice exceeds the higher of— “(A) the national average market price received by farmers during the first five months of the marketing year for such crop, as determined by the Secretary; or “(B) the loan level determined under paragraph (2) for such crop. “(4) The payments for the 1976 and 1977 crops shall be made available to cooperators on a farm with respect to a quantity of rice determined by multiplying the allotment by the yield established for the farm. The yield for the farm for any year shall be determined on the basis of the actual yields per harvested acre for the three preceding years: Provided, That the actual yields shall be adjusted by the Secretary for abnormal yields in any year caused by drought, flood, outlier natural disaster, or condition beyond the control of the cooperator. If the Secretary determines that the persons involved in producing rice on a farm are prevented from planting all or any portion of the acreage allotments of producers on the farm or farm acreage allotment to rice or other nonconserving crop, because of droughts, flood, or other natural disaster or condition beyond the control of the producer, the rate of payment with regard to such acres so affected shall be the larger of (A) the foregoing rate, or (B) one-third of the established price, except that the Secretary shall make no payment pursuant to this sentence on a farm from which acres were transferred tender section 352(d) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 with respect to the transferred acreage. If the Secretary determines that, because of such disaster or condition, the total quantity of rice which the persons involved in producing rice are able to harvest on any farm is less than 66% per centum of the acreage allotments of producers on the farm or of the farm acreage allotment times the yield of rice established for the farm, the rate of payment for the deficiency in production below 100 per centum shall be the larger of (A) the foregoing rate, or (B) one-third of the established price. Any payment made under the previous two sentences with regard to acres transferred under section 352(d) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 shall be calculated with respect to the farm yield established on the farm to which such acres were transferred. “(5) (A) The Secretary may provide for a set-aside of cropland for a crop of rice if he estimates (without taking into consideration the effect of a set-aside), that the carryover of rice, for the marketing year beginning in the calendar year immediately following the calendar year in which such crop will be grown will exceed 15 per centum of the total supply of rice for the marketing year beginning in the calendar year in which such crop will be grown. The Secretary shall make a preliminary determination prior to the beginning of the calendar year in which such crop will be grown and a final determination not later than April 1 of the calendar year in which such crop is grown of whether a set-aside shall be in effect and, if so, the acreage of crop-90 STAT. 185land required to be set aside. The determinations and estimates on which they are based shall he published in the Federal Register at the time they are made. If a set-aside of cropland is in effect under this paragraph then, us a condition of eligibility for payments, loans and purchases under this subsection, the cooperators must set aside and devote to conservation uses an acreage of cropland equal to (i) such percentage of the farm acreage allotment as may be specified by the Secretary (not to exceed 30 per centum of the farm acreage allotment), plus, if required by the Secretary, (ii) the acreage of cropland on the farm devoted in preceding years to soil conserving uses, as determined by the Secretary. The Secretary shall permit cooperators to plant and graze sweet sorghum on set-aside acreage. The Secretary may permit, subject to such trims and conditions as he may prescribe, all or any part of the set-aside acreage to be devoted to hay and grazing or the production of guar, sesame, safflower, sunflower, castor beans, mustard seed, cram be, plantago ovate, flaxseed, triticale, oats, rye, or other commodity, if he determines that such production is needed to provide an adequate supply of such commodities, is not likely to increase the cost of the price support program, and will not adversely affect farm income. “(B) To assist in adjusting the acreage of rice to desirable goals, the Secretary may make land diversion payments, in addition to the payments authorized in paragraph (3) of this subsection, to cooperators 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 devoted under subparagraph (A) of tills paragraph. The land diversion payments for a farm shall be at such rate, or rates as the Secretary determines to be fair and reasonable taking into consideration the diversion undertaken by the cooperator and the productivity of the 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. “(6) The rice program formulated under this subsection shall require the cooperators 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 acre-age 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 pay an appropriate share of the cost of practices designed to carry out the purposes of the foregoing sentences. The Secretary may provide for an additional payment on such acreage in the amount determined by the Secretary to be appropriate in relation to the benefit to the general public if the cooperator 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 hiking, subject, to applicable State and Federal regulations. “(7) If the operator of the farm desires to participate in the program formulated under this subsection, he shall file his agreement to do so no later than such date as the Secretary may prescribe. Payments under this subsection shall be made available to cooperators on such farm only if such cooperators set aside and devote to approved soil conserving uses an acreage on the farm equal to the number of acres 90 STAT. 186which the operator of the farm 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 cooperators on the farm, terminate or modify any such agreement entered into pursuant to this subsection if he determines such action necessary because of any emergency created by drought or other disaster, or in order to alleviate a shortage in the supply of rice. “(8) The Secretary shall provide adequate safeguards to protect the interests of tenants and sharecroppers including provision for sharing, on a fair and equitable basis, in payments under this subsection. “(9) In the case in which the failure of a cooperator to comply fully with the terms and conditions of the program formulated under this subsection 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. “(10) The Secretary is authorized to issue such regulations as he determines necessary to carry out the provisions of this subsection. “(11) The Secretary shall carry out the program authorized by this subsection through the Commodity Credit Corporation. “(12) The provisions of subsection 8(g) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act (relating to assignment of payments) shall apply to payments under this subsection. “(13) Notwithstanding any other provision of law— “(A) The total amount of payments which a person shall be entitled to receive during a crop year under the rice program shall not exceed $55,000. “(B) The term ‘payments’ as used in this paragraph shall not include loans or purchases, or any part of any payment which is determined by the Secretary to represent compensation for resource adjustment or public access for recreation. “(C) If the Secretary determines that the total amount of payments which will be earned by any person under the program in effect for any crop will be reduced under this section, the set-aside acreage for the farm or farms on which such persons will be sharing in payments earned under such program shall be reduced to such extent and in such manner as the Secretary determines will be fair and reasonable in relation to the amount, of the payment redaction. “(D) The Secretary shall issue regulations defining the term ‘person’ and prescribing such rules as he determines necessary to assure a fair and reasonable application of such limitation: Provided, That the provisions of this paragraph which limit, payments to any person shall not be applicable to lands owned by States, political subdivisions, or agencies thereof, so long as such lands are farmed primarily in the direct furtherance of a public function, as determined by the Secretary. The rules for determining whether corporations and their stock-holders may be considered as separate persons shall be in accordance with the regulations issued by the Secretary on December 18, 1970.”.