CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM TRANSITION INCENTIVES FOR BEGINNING FARMERS OR RANCHERS AND SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED FARMERS OR RANCHERS.

SEC. 2111. CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM TRANSITION INCENTIVES FOR BEGINNING FARMERS OR RANCHERS AND SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED FARMERS OR RANCHERS.(a) Contract Modification Authority.—Section 1235(c)(1)(B) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3835(c)(1)(B)) is amended—(1) in clause (ii), by striking “or” at the end;(2) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); and(3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following new clause:“(iii) to facilitate a transition of land subject to the contract from a retired or retiring owner or operator to a beginning farmer or rancher or socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher for the purpose of returning some or all of the land into production using sustainable grazing or crop production methods; or”.122 STAT. 1036(b) Transition Option.—Section 1235 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3835) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:“(f) Transition Option for Certain Farmers or Ranchers.—“(1) Duties of the secretary.—In the case of a contract modification approved in order to facilitate the transfer, as described in subsection (c)(1)(B)(iii), of land to a beginning farmer or rancher or socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher (in this subsection referred to as a ‘covered farmer or rancher’), the Secretary shall—“(A) beginning on the date that is 1 year before the date of termination of the contract—“(i) allow the covered farmer or rancher, in conjunction with the retired or retiring owner or operator, to make conservation and land improvements; and“(ii) allow the covered farmer or rancher to begin the certification process under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.);“(B) beginning on the date of termination of the contract, require the retired or retiring owner or operator to sell or lease (under a long-term lease or a lease with an option to purchase) to the covered farmer or rancher the land subject to the contract for production purposes;“(C) require the covered farmer or rancher to develop and implement a conservation plan;“(D) provide to the covered farmer or rancher an opportunity to enroll in the conservation stewardship program or the environmental quality incentives program by not later than the date on which the farmer or rancher takes possession of the land through ownership or lease; and“(E) continue to make annual payments to the retired or retiring owner or operator for not more than an additional 2 years after the date of termination of the contract, if the retired or retiring owner or operator is not a family member (as defined in section 1001A(b)(3)(B) of this Act) of the covered farmer or rancher.“(2) Reenrollment.—The Secretary shall provide a covered farmer or rancher with the option to reenroll any applicable partial field conservation practice that—“(A) is eligible for enrollment under the continuous signup requirement of section 1231(h)(4)(B); and“(B) is part of an approved conservation plan.”.