119-hr641

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 641 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

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119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 641

 To establish an interagency committee on soil carbon sequestration 
 research, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 January 23, 2025

Ms. McClellan (for herself, Mr. Lawler, Mr. Sorensen, Ms. Bonamici, and 
Ms. Scholten) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and in addition to the 
 Committees on Agriculture, and Natural Resources, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
 of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
 concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To establish an interagency committee on soil carbon sequestration 
 research, 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 ``Coordination for Soil Carbon 
Research and Monitoring Act''.

SEC. 2. SOIL CARBON RESEARCH AND MONITORING.

    (a) Interagency Committee.--

    (1) In general.--There is established an interagency 
 committee to be known as the ``Interagency Committee on Soil 
 Carbon Research'' (in this section referred to as the 
 ``Interagency Committee''), to be led by the Office of Science 
 and Technology Policy and composed of representatives from the 
 following:
        (A) The Department of Agriculture.
        (B) The Department of Energy.
            (C) The Department of the Interior.
            (D) The Environmental Protection Agency.
        (E) The United States Geological Survey.
        (F) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
 Administration.
        (G) The National Science Foundation.
        (H) The National Aeronautics and Space 
 Administration.
            (I) The White House Environmental Justice Advisory 
 Council.
        (J) The National Institute of Standards and 
 Technology.
        (K) Such other Federal agencies as the Director of 
 the Office of Science and Technology Policy determines 
 appropriate.

    (2) Duties.--The Interagency Committee shall--
        (A) develop a cross-agency strategic plan for 
 Federal research, development, and deployment regarding 
 soil carbon sequestration sampling and measurement 
 methodologies, measurement and monitoring technologies, 
 and community needs;
        (B) propose roles and responsibilities to each 
 Federal agency to advance soil carbon sequestration 
 research and monitoring;
            (C) oversee working groups established under this 
 section;
            (D) as appropriate, seek to consult with Federal 
 agencies and with the Office of Management and Budget 
 regarding planning and budget review, respectively, 
 concerning matters relating to Federal soil carbon 
 sequestration research and monitoring;
        (E) not later than one year after the date of the 
 enactment of this Act, submit to Congress a baseline 
 report on existing soil carbon sequestration research 
 and monitoring activities;
        (F) submit to Congress progress reports on soil 
 carbon sequestration research and monitoring activities 
 at one-, three-, and five-year intervals after the 
 submission of the baseline report under subparagraph
        (E) ;
        (G) encourage coordination between Federal agencies 
 and evaluate soil carbon sequestration monitoring 
 activities, data collection on soil carbon and 
 greenhouse gas

    (GHG) fluxes, and long-term storage 
 protocols for soil carbon;
        (H) support comprehensive reporting on soil carbon 
 sequestration related activities based on a 
 standardized integration of existing and new relevant 
 data collection efforts across Federal agencies;
            (I) share recommendations for review and input with 
 soil science experts from academia, private industry, 
 and nonprofit organizations that represent the 
 geographic, operational, and demographic diversity of 
 United States agriculture; and
        (J) designate a member of the Interagency Committee 
 to collaborate with Federal agency heads on soil carbon 
 sequestration research and monitoring activities.

    (3) Working groups.--
        (A) In general.--The Interagency Committee may, as 
 appropriate and necessary, establish working groups to 
 coordinate on cross-cutting priorities on soil carbon 
 research as determined by the Interagency Committee, 
 including relating to the following:
            (i) Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification

    (MRV) .
            (ii) Data collection and management, with a 
 focus on measurement standards, standards for 
 use of new technologies, and data architecture 
 for accessibility across agencies.
            (iii) Fundamental research, including 
 regarding soil carbon dynamics, plant breeding, 
 and soil amendments.
            (iv) Community engagement in research 
 development and dissemination of results, 
 particularly with historically underserved and 
 disadvantaged groups.
        (B) Duties.--Working groups established pursuant to 
 subparagraph
        (A) shall--
            (i) identify ongoing research and 
 monitoring efforts on soil carbon at each 
 Federal agency represented in each such working 
 group;
            (ii) identify gaps in current efforts on 
 soil carbon sequestration research and 
 monitoring;
            (iii) outline current collaboration across 
 agencies on soil carbon sequestration research 
 and monitoring;
            (iv) propose coordinated projects and 
 budget requests to advance the field of soil 
 carbon sequestration research and monitoring;
            (v) engage with and conduct outreach to 
 agricultural communities and producers, 
 particularly those historically underserved, to 
 ensure soil carbon sequestration research and 
 monitoring is rooted in stakeholder engagement 
 and on-the-ground perspectives;
            (vi) engage with research and extension 
 soil scientists, private industry, nonprofit 
 organizations, and other interdisciplinary soil 
 science expert groups to ensure that 
 recommendations are informed by the best 
 available science; and
            (vii) collaborate on the development of 
 standardized monitoring of the long-term carbon 
 and environmental impacts of soil carbon 
 sequestration research.

    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $10,000,000 to carry out this section.
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