119-hr3254

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3254 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3254

 To amend the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 
 with respect to emergency assistance for farm workers, and for other 
 purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 May 7, 2025

 Ms. Salinas (for herself, Ms. Lofgren, Ms. DelBene, Ms. Tlaib, Mr. 
 Doggett, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Carson, Mr. Frost, Ms. 
 Stansbury, Mr. Tonko, Ms. Chu, Ms. Barragan, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Costa, 
Mr. Garcia of California, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, and Mr. Vargas) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 
 with respect to emergency assistance for farm workers, and for other 
 purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Disaster Relief for Farm Workers 
Act''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FOR FARM WORKERS.

 

Section 2281 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act 
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 5177a) is amended to read as follows:

``

SEC. 2281. EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FOR FARM WORKERS.

 ``

    (a) Emergency Relief.--For fiscal year 2026 and each succeeding 
fiscal year, during any period where the Secretary determines there is 
a covered disaster, the Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary 
for Rural Development, shall make grants to eligible farm worker 
organizations to provide emergency relief to farm workers affected by 
such covered disaster.
 ``

    (b) Use of Funds.--An eligible farm worker organization may use 
funds received pursuant to a grant awarded under subsection

    (a) to--
 ``

    (1) provide emergency relief (including through direct 
 distribution of funding) to farm workers to address loss and 
 damage due to a covered disaster;
 ``

    (2) build capacity to provide such emergency relief;
 ``

    (3) build resiliency in farm worker communities to 
 address future losses and damages due to covered disasters;
 ``

    (4) provide infrastructure support, including shelter; 
 and
 ``

    (5) provide emergency services (including such types of 
 assistance the Secretary determines appropriate) to farm 
 workers in response to a covered disaster.
 ``
            (c) Availability of Funds.--Any funds provided to an eligible 
farm worker organization under this section shall remain available 
until expended.
 ``
            (d) Promotional Plan.--The Secretary shall develop and execute a 
promotional plan prior to, and throughout the distribution of, 
emergency relief grants under subsection

    (a) .
 ``

    (e) Consultation.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary 
shall consult with eligible farm worker organizations.
 ``

    (f) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this subsection:
 ``

    (1) Covered disaster.--The term `covered disaster' 
 means--
 ``
        (A) an adverse weather event, such as a drought, 
 wildfire, earthquake, hurricane, flood, derecho, 
 excessive heat, tornado, winter storm, freeze, hail, 
 polar vortex, smoke exposure, or excessive moisture;
 ``
        (B) an unexpected health crisis, such as a 
 pandemic; and
 ``
            (C) such other event or condition that has caused 
 farm workers to lose income, be unable to work, or stay 
 home or return home in anticipation of work shortages.
 ``

    (2) Eligible farm worker organization.--The term 
 `eligible farm worker organization' means an organization that 
 is--
 ``
        (A) a farm worker membership-based organization; 
 or
 ``
        (B) an organization that--
 ``
            (i) is described in 

section 501
            (c) (3) of 
 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt 
 from taxation under 

section 501

    (a) of such 
 Code; and
 ``
            (ii) has experience in providing support 
 or relief services to farm workers, including 
 migrant or seasonal farm workers.
 ``

    (3) Migrant or seasonal farm worker.--The term `migrant 
 or seasonal farm worker' means an individual--
 ``
        (A) who has, during any consecutive 12-month 
 period within the preceding 24-month period, performed 
 farm work for wages; and
 ``
        (B) who has received not less than one-half of 
 such individual's total income, or been employed at 
 least one-half of total work time in farm work.''.
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