Division B — Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Secretary, $58,292,000 of which not to exceed $7,000,000 shall be available for the immediate Office of the Secretary; not to exceed $1,896,000 shall be available for the Office of Homeland Security; not to exceed $5,190,000 shall be available for the Office of Tribal Relations, of which $1,000,000 shall be to continue a Tribal Public Health Resource Center at a land grant university with existing indigenous public health expertise to expand current partnerships and collaborative efforts with indigenous groups, including but not limited to, tribal organizations and institutions such as tribal colleges, tribal technical colleges, tribal community colleges and tribal universities, to improve the delivery of culturally appropriate public health services and functions in American Indian communities focusing on indigenous food sovereignty; not to exceed $7,500,000 shall be available for the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement, of which $1,500,000 shall be for 7 U.S.C. 2279(c)(5); not to exceed $25,206,000 shall be available for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration, of which $23,500,000 shall be available for Departmental Administration to provide for necessary expenses for management support services to offices of the Department and for general administration, security, repairs and alterations, and other miscellaneous supplies and expenses not otherwise provided for and necessary for the practical and efficient work of the Department: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Administration mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office; not to exceed $4,500,000 shall be available for the Office of Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations and Intergovernmental Affairs to carry out the programs funded by this Act, including programs involving intergovernmental affairs and liaison within the executive branch; and not to exceed $7,000,000 shall be available for the Office of Communications: Provided further, That the Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to transfer funds appropriated for any office of the Office of the Secretary to any other office of the Office of the Secretary: Provided further, That no appropriation for any office shall be increased or decreased by more than 5 percent: Provided further, That not to exceed $22,000 of the amount made available under this paragraph for the immediate Office of the Secretary shall be available for official reception and representation expenses, not otherwise provided for, as determined by the Secretary: Provided further, That the amount made available under this heading for Departmental Administration shall be reimbursed from applicable appropriations in this Act for travel expenses incident to the holding of hearings as required by 5 U.S.C. 551–558: Provided further, That funds made available under this heading for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations and Intergovernmental Affairs shall be transferred to agencies of the Department of Agriculture funded by this Act to maintain personnel at the agency level: Provided further, That no funds made available under this heading for the Office of Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations may be obligated after 30 days from the date of enactment of this Act, unless the Secretary has notified the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress on the allocation of these funds by USDA agency: Provided further, That during any 30 day notification period referenced in section 716 of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall take no action to begin implementation of the action that is subject to section 716 of this Act or make any public announcement of such action in any form.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Chief Information Officer, $91,000,000, of which not less than $77,428,000 is for cybersecurity requirements of the department.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, $6,867,000.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, $1,466,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Civil Rights mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

For necessary expenses of the Office of Civil Rights, $37,000,000.

For payment of space rental and related costs pursuant to Public Law 92–313, including authorities pursuant to the 1984 delegation of authority from the Administrator of General Services to the Department of Agriculture under 40 U.S.C. 121, for programs and activities of the Department which are included in this Act, and for alterations and other actions needed for the Department and its agencies to consolidate unneeded space into configurations suitable for release to the Administrator of General Services, and for the operation, maintenance, improvement, and repair of Agriculture buildings and facilities, and for related costs, $22,603,000, to remain available until expended.

For necessary expenses of the Department of Agriculture, to comply with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) and the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.), $3,000,000, to remain available until expended: Provided, That appropriations and funds available herein to the Department for Hazardous Materials Management may be transferred to any agency of the Department for its use in meeting all requirements pursuant to the above Acts on Federal and non-Federal lands.

For necessary expenses of the Office of Safety, Security, and Protection, $20,800,000.

For necessary expenses of the Office of Inspector General, including employment pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978 (Public Law 95–452; 5 U.S.C. App.), $111,561,000, including such sums as may be necessary for contracting and other arrangements with public agencies and private persons pursuant to section 6(a)(9) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (Public Law 95–452; 5 U.S.C. App.), and including not to exceed $125,000 for certain confidential operational expenses, including the payment of informants, to be expended under the direction of the Inspector General pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978 (Public Law 95–452; 5 U.S.C. App.) and section 1337 of the Agriculture and Food Act of 1981 (Public Law 97–98).

For necessary expenses of the Office of the General Counsel, $60,537,000.

For necessary expenses of the Office of Ethics, $4,500,000.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, $1,884,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Research, Education, and Economics mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office: Provided further, That of the amounts made available under this heading, $500,000 shall be made available for the Office of the Chief Scientist.

For necessary expenses of the Economic Research Service, $90,612,000.

For necessary expenses of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, $187,513,000, of which up to $46,850,000 shall be available until expended for the Census of Agriculture: Provided, That amounts made available for the Census of Agriculture may be used to conduct Current Industrial Report surveys subject to 7 U.S.C. 2204g(d) and (f).

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, $1,617,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Marketing and Regulatory Programs mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, $1,117,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Food Safety mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

For necessary expenses to carry out services authorized by the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, and the Egg Products Inspection Act, including not to exceed $10,000 for representation allowances and for expenses pursuant to section 8 of the Act approved August 3, 1956 (7 U.S.C. 1766), $1,190,009,000; and in addition, $1,000,000 may be credited to this account from fees collected for the cost of laboratory accreditation as authorized by section 1327 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 138f): Provided, That funds provided for the Public Health Data Communication Infrastructure system shall remain available until expended: Provided further, That no fewer than 148 full-time equivalent positions shall be employed during fiscal year 2024 for purposes dedicated solely to inspections and enforcement related to the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act (7 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.): Provided further, That the Food Safety and Inspection Service shall continue implementation of section 11016 of Public Law 110–246 as further clarified by the amendments made in section 12106 of Public Law 113–79: Provided further, That this appropriation shall be available pursuant to law (7 U.S.C. 2250) for the alteration and repair of buildings and improvements, but the cost of altering any one building during the fiscal year shall not exceed 10 percent of the current replacement value of the building.Editorial note: The text above is the only information printed on this page of the signed law.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation, $1,527,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Farm Production and Conservation mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

The following corporations and agencies are hereby authorized to make expenditures, within the limits of funds and borrowing authority available to each such corporation or agency and in accord with law, and to make contracts and commitments without regard to fiscal year limitations as provided by section 104 of the Government Corporation Control Act as may be necessary in carrying out the programs set forth in the budget for the current fiscal year for such corporation or agency, except as hereinafter provided.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Rural Development, $1,620,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Rural Development mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, $1,127,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to an agency in the Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, $932,000: Provided, That funds made available by this Act to any agency in the Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs mission area for salaries and expenses are available to fund up to one administrative support staff for the Office.

The Secretary may use any appropriations made available to the Department of Agriculture in this Act to purchase new passenger motor vehicles, in addition to specific appropriations for this purpose, so long as the total number of vehicles purchased in fiscal year 2024 does not exceed the number of vehicles owned or leased in fiscal year 2018: Provided, That, prior to purchasing additional motor vehicles, the Secretary must determine that such vehicles are necessary for transportation safety, to reduce operational costs, and for the protection of life, property, and public safety: Provided further, That the Secretary may not increase the Department of Agriculture’s fleet above the 2018 level unless the Secretary notifies in writing, and receives approval from, the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress within 30 days of the notification.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture may transfer unobligated balances of discretionary funds appropriated by this Act or any other available unobligated discretionary balances that are remaining available of the Department of Agriculture to the Working Capital Fund for the acquisition of property, plant and equipment and for the improvement, delivery, and implementation of Department financial, and administrative information technology services, and other support systems necessary for the delivery of financial, administrative, and information technology services, including cloud adoption and migration, of primary benefit to the agencies of the Department of Agriculture, such transferred funds to remain available until expended: Provided, That none of the funds made available by this Act or any other Act shall be transferred to the Working Capital Fund without the prior approval of the agency administrator: Provided further, That none of the funds transferred to the Working Capital Fund pursuant to this section shall be available for obligation without written notification to and the prior approval of the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress: Provided further, That none of the funds appropriated by this Act or made available to the Department’s Working Capital Fund shall be available for obligation or expenditure to make any changes to the Department’s National Finance Center without written notification to and prior approval of the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress as required by section 716 of this Act: Provided further, That none of the funds appropriated by this Act or made available to the Department’s Working Capital Fund shall be available for obligation or expenditure to initiate, plan, develop, implement, or make any changes to remove or relocate any systems, missions, personnel, or functions of the offices of the Chief Financial Officer and the Chief Information Officer, co-located with or from the National Finance Center prior to written notification to and prior approval of the Committee on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress and in accordance with the requirements of section 716 of this Act: Provided further, That the National Finance Center Information Technology Services Division personnel and data center management responsibilities, and control of any functions, missions, and systems for current and future human resources management and integrated personnel and payroll systems (PPS) and functions provided by the Chief Financial Officer and the Chief Information Officer shall remain in the National Finance Center and under the management responsibility and administrative control of the National Finance Center: Provided further, That the Secretary of Agriculture and the offices of the Chief Financial Officer shall actively market to existing and new Departments and other government agencies National Finance Center shared services including, but not limited to, payroll, financial management, and human capital shared services and allow the National Finance Center to perform technology upgrades: Provided further, That of annual income amounts in the Working Capital Fund of the Department of Agriculture attributable to the amounts in excess of the true costs of the shared services provided by the National Finance Center and budgeted for the National Finance Center, the Secretary shall reserve not more than 4 percent for the replacement or acquisition of capital equipment, including equipment for the improvement, delivery, and implementation of financial, administrative, and information technology services, and other systems of the National Finance Center or to pay any unforeseen, extraordinary cost of the National Finance Center: Provided further, That none of the amounts reserved shall be available for obligation unless the Secretary submits written notification of the obligation to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress: Provided further, That the limitations on the obligation of funds pending notification to Congressional Committees shall not apply to any obligation that, as determined by the Secretary, is necessary to respond to a declared state of emergency that significantly impacts the operations of the National Finance Center; or to evacuate employees of the National Finance Center to a safe haven to continue operations of the National Finance Center.

No part of any appropriation contained in this Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the current fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein.

No funds appropriated by this Act may be used to pay negotiated indirect cost rates on cooperative agreements or similar arrangements between the United States Department of Agriculture and nonprofit institutions in excess of 10 percent of the total direct cost of the agreement when the purpose of such cooperative arrangements is to carry out programs of mutual interest between the two parties. This does not preclude appropriate payment of indirect costs on grants and contracts with such institutions when such indirect costs are computed on a similar basis for all agencies for which appropriations are provided in this Act.

Appropriations to the Department of Agriculture for the cost of direct and guaranteed loans made available in the current fiscal year shall remain available until expended to disburse obligations made in the current fiscal year for the following accounts: the Rural Development Loan Fund program account, the Rural Electrification and Telecommunication Loans program account, and the Rural Housing Insurance Fund program account.

None of the funds made available to the Department of Agriculture by this Act may be used to acquire new information technology systems or significant upgrades, as determined by the Office of the Chief Information Officer, without the approval of the Chief Information Officer and the concurrence of the Executive Information Technology Investment Review Board: Provided, That notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be transferred to the Office of the Chief Information Officer without written notification to and the prior approval of the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress: Provided further, That notwithstanding section 11319 of title 40, United States Code, none of the funds available to the Department of Agriculture for information technology shall be obligated for projects, contracts, or other agreements over $25,000 prior to receipt of written approval by the Chief Information Officer: Provided further, That the Chief Information Officer may authorize an agency to obligate funds without written approval from the Chief Information Officer for projects, contracts, or other agreements up to $250,000 based upon the performance of an agency measured against the performance plan requirements described in the explanatory statement accompanying Public Law 113–235.

Funds made available under section 524(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1524(b)) in the current fiscal year shall remain available until expended to disburse obligations made in the current fiscal year.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any former Rural Utilities Service borrower that has repaid or prepaid an insured, direct or guaranteed loan under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, or any not-for-profit utility that is eligible to receive an insured or direct loan under such Act, shall be eligible for assistance under section 313B(a) of such Act in the same manner as a borrower under such Act.

Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, not more than $20,000,000 in unobligated balances from appropriations made available for salaries and expenses in this Act for the Farm Service Agency shall remain available through September 30, 2025, for information technology expenses.

None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used for first-class travel by the employees of agencies funded by this Act in contravention of sections 301–10.122 through 301–10.124 of title 41, Code of Federal Regulations.

In the case of each program established or amended by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–79) or by a successor to that Act, other than by title I or subtitle A of title III of such Act, or programs for which indefinite amounts were provided in that Act, that is authorized or required to be carried out using funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation—

Of the funds made available by this Act, not more than $2,900,000 shall be used to cover necessary expenses of activities related to all advisory committees, panels, commissions, and task forces of the Department of Agriculture, except for panels used to comply with negotiated rule makings and panels used to evaluate competitively awarded grants.

Notwithstanding subsection (b) of section 14222 of Public Law 110–246 (7 U.S.C. 612c–6; in this section referred to as “section 14222”), none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this or any other Act shall be used to pay the salaries and expenses of personnel to carry out a program under section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c; in this section referred to as “section 32”) in excess of $1,574,028,000 (exclusive of carryover appropriations from prior fiscal years), as follows: Child Nutrition Programs Entitlement Commodities—$485,000,000; State Option Contracts—$5,000,000; Removal of Defective Commodities—$1,660,000; Administration of section 32 Commodity Purchases—$37,178,000: Provided, That, of the total funds made available in the matter preceding this proviso that remain unobligated on October 1, 2024, such unobligated balances shall carryover into fiscal year 2025 and shall remain available until expended for any of the purposes of section 32, except that any such carryover funds used in accordance with clause (3) of section 32 may not exceed $350,000,000 and may not be obligated until the Secretary of Agriculture provides written notification of the expenditures to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress at least two weeks in advance: Provided further, That, with the exception of any available carryover funds authorized in any prior appropriations Act to be used for the purposes of clause (3) of section 32, none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this or any other Act shall be used to pay the salaries or expenses of any employee of the Department of Agriculture to carry out clause (3) of section 32.

None of the funds appropriated by this or any other Act shall be used to pay the salaries and expenses of personnel who prepare or submit appropriations language as part of the President’s budget submission to the Congress for programs under the jurisdiction of the Appropriations Subcommittees on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies that assumes revenues or reflects a reduction from the previous year due to user fees proposals that have not been enacted into law prior to the submission of the budget unless such budget submission identifies which additional spending reductions should occur in the event the user fees proposals are not enacted prior to the date of the convening of a committee of conference for the fiscal year 2024 appropriations Act.

Notwithstanding section 310B(g)(5) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(g)(5)), the Secretary may assess a one-time fee for any guaranteed business and industry loan in an amount that does not exceed 3 percent of the guaranteed principal portion of the loan.

None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or the Farm Credit Administration shall be used to transmit or otherwise make available reports, questions, or responses to questions that are a result of information requested for the appropriations hearing process to any non-Department of Agriculture, non-Department of Health and Human Services, non-Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or non-Farm Credit Administration employee.

Unless otherwise authorized by existing law, none of the funds provided in this Act, may be used by an executive branch agency to produce any prepackaged news story intended for broadcast or distribution in the United States unless the story includes a clear notification within the text or audio of the prepackaged news story that the prepackaged news story was prepared or funded by that executive branch agency.

No employee of the Department of Agriculture may be detailed or assigned from an agency or office funded by this Act or any other Act to any other agency or office of the Department for more than 60 days in a fiscal year unless the individual’s employing agency or office is fully reimbursed by the receiving agency or office for the salary and expenses of the employee for the period of assignment.

Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, the Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Chairman of the Farm Credit Administration shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a detailed spending plan by program, project, and activity for all the funds made available under this Act including appropriated user fees, as defined in the explanatory statement described in section 4 (in the matter preceding division A of this consolidated Act).

None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to propose, promulgate, or implement any rule, or take any other action with respect to, allowing or requiring information intended for a prescribing health care professional, in the case of a drug or biological product subject to section 503(b)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 353(b)(1)), to be distributed to such professional electronically (in lieu of in paper form) unless and until a Federal law is enacted to allow or require such distribution.

For the purposes of determining eligibility or level of program assistance for Rural Housing Service programs the Secretary shall not include incarcerated prison populations.

For loans and loan guarantees that do not require budget authority and the program level has been established in this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture may increase the program level for such loans and loan guarantees by not more than 25 percent: Provided, That prior to the Secretary implementing such an increase, the Secretary notifies, in writing, the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress at least 15 days in advance.

None of the credit card refunds or rebates transferred to the Working Capital Fund pursuant to section 729 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002 (7 U.S.C. 2235a; Public Law 107–76) shall be available for obligation without written notification to, and the prior approval of, the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress: Provided, That the refunds or rebates so transferred shall be available for obligation only for the acquisition of property, plant and equipment, including equipment for the improvement, delivery, and implementation of Departmental financial management, information technology, and other support systems necessary for the delivery of financial, administrative, and information technology services, including cloud adoption and migration, of primary benefit to the agencies of the Department of Agriculture.

None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to implement, administer, or enforce the “variety” requirements of the final rule entitled “Enhancing Retailer Standards in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)” published by the Department of Agriculture in the Federal Register on December 15, 2016 (81 Fed. Reg. 90675) until the Secretary of Agriculture amends the definition of the term “variety” as defined in section 278.1(b)(1)(ii)(C) of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, and “variety” as applied in the definition of the term “staple food” as defined in section 271.2 of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, to increase the number of items that qualify as acceptable varieties in each staple food category so that the total number of such items in each staple food category exceeds the number of such items in each staple food category included in the final rule as published on December 15, 2016: Provided, That until the Secretary promulgates such regulatory amendments, the Secretary shall apply the requirements regarding acceptable varieties and breadth of stock to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program retailers that were in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–79).

In carrying out subsection (h) of section 502 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1472), the Secretary of Agriculture shall have the same authority with respect to loans guaranteed under such section and eligible lenders for such loans as the Secretary has under subsections (h) and (j) of section 538 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1490p–2) with respect to loans guaranteed under such section 538 and eligible lenders for such loans.

None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act shall be available for the United States Department of Agriculture to propose, finalize or implement any regulation that would promulgate new user fees pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 9701 after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the Broadband Treasury Rate Loan program, authorized in section 601 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 950bb), $7,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Notwithstanding any provision of law that regulates the calculation and payment of overtime and holiday pay for FSIS inspectors, the Secretary may charge establishments subject to the inspection requirements of the Poultry Products Inspection Act, 21 U.S.C. 451 et seq., the Federal Meat Inspection Act, 21 U.S.C. 601 et seq, and the Egg Products Inspection Act, 21 U.S.C. 1031 et seq., for the cost of inspection services provided outside of an establishment’s approved inspection shifts, and for inspection services provided on Federal holidays: Provided, That any sums charged pursuant to this paragraph shall be deemed as overtime pay or holiday pay under section 1001(d) of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2, 135 Stat. 242): Provided further, That sums received by the Secretary under this paragraph shall, in addition to other available funds, remain available until expended to the Secretary without further appropriation for the purpose of funding all costs associated with FSIS inspections.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the rural housing voucher program authorized by section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949, (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.), as amended, $35,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available under the heading “Rural Cooperative Development Grants” for Agriculture Innovation Centers authorized by section 6402 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 1632b), as amended, $7,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

None of the funds appropriated by this Act may be used in any way, directly or indirectly, to influence congressional action on any legislation or appropriation matters pending before Congress, other than to communicate to Members of Congress as described in 18 U.S.C. 1913.

Of the total amounts made available by this Act for direct loans and grants under the following headings: “Rural Housing Service—Rural Housing Insurance Fund Program Account”; “Rural Housing Service—Mutual and Self-Help Housing Grants”; “Rural Housing Service—Rural Housing Assistance Grants”; “Rural Housing Service—Rural Community Facilities Program Account”; “Rural Business-Cooperative Service—Rural Business Program Account”; “Rural Business-Cooperative Service—Rural Economic Development Loans Program Account”; “Rural Business-Cooperative Service—Rural Cooperative Development Grants”; “Rural Business-Cooperative Service—Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program”; “Rural Utilities Service—Rural Water and Waste Disposal Program Account”; “Rural Utilities Service—Rural Electrification and Telecommunications Loans Program Account”; and “Rural Utilities Service—Distance Learning, Telemedicine, and Broadband Program”, to the maximum extent feasible, at least 10 percent of the funds shall be allocated for assistance in persistent poverty counties under this section, including, notwithstanding any other provision regarding population limits, any county seat of such a persistent poverty county that has a population that does not exceed the authorized population limit by more than 10 percent: Provided, That for purposes of this section, the term “persistent poverty counties” means any county that has had 20 percent or more of its population living in poverty over the past 30 years, as measured by the 1990 and 2000 decennial censuses, and 2007–2011 American Community Survey 5-year average, or any territory or possession of the United States: Provided further, That with respect to specific activities for which program levels have been made available by this Act that are not supported by budget authority, the requirements of this section shall be applied to such program level.

None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to notify a sponsor or otherwise acknowledge receipt of a submission for an exemption for investigational use of a drug or biological product under section 505(i) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355(i)) or section 351(a)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262(a)(3)) in research in which a human embryo is intentionally created or modified to include a heritable genetic modification. Any such submission shall be deemed to have not been received by the Secretary, and the exemption may not go into effect.

None of the funds made available by this or any other Act may be used to enforce the final rule promulgated by the Food and Drug Administration entitled “Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption”, and published on November 27, 2015, with respect to the regulation of entities that grow, harvest, pack, or hold wine grapes, hops, pulse crops, or almonds.

For school years 2023–2024 and 2024–2025, none of the funds made available by this Act may be used to implement or enforce the matter following the first comma in the second sentence of footnote (c) of section 220.8(c) of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, with respect to the substitution of vegetables for fruits under the school breakfast program established under section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773).

None of the funds made available by this Act or any other Act may be used—

The Secretary of Agriculture may waive the matching funds requirement under section 412(g) of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7632(g)).

The Secretary, as part of the report on foreign landholding required under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (Public Law 95–460), shall report to Congress on foreign investments in agricultural land in the United States, including the impact foreign ownership has on family farms, rural communities, and the domestic food supply: Provided, That within 2 years after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish a streamlined process for electronic submission and retention of disclosures made under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, including an internet database that contains disaggregated data from each disclosure submitted: Provided further,That all prior year disclosures of foreign investments in agricultural land in the United States are published in the database: Provided further, That the plan includes a process to ensure the protection of personally identifiable information and that all disclosures of foreign investments in agricultural land on the USDA website be disaggregated by: (1) in any case in which such foreign person is an individual, the citizenship of such foreign person; and (2) in any case in which such foreign person is not an individual or a government, the nature of the legal entity holding the interest, the country in which such foreign person is created or organized, and the principal place of business of such foreign person.

There is hereby appropriated $1,000,000, to remain available until expended, for a pilot program for the Secretary to provide grants to qualified non-profit organizations and public housing authorities to provide technical assistance, including financial and legal services, to RHS multi-family housing borrowers to facilitate the acquisition of RHS multi-family housing properties in areas where the Secretary determines a risk of loss of affordable housing, by non-profit housing organizations and public housing authorities as authorized by law that commit to keep such properties in the RHS multi-family housing program for a period of time as determined by the Secretary.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available under the heading “Rural Housing Assistance Grants” for housing repair grants authorized by section 504 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1474), as amended, $28,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Funds made available under title II of the Food for Peace Act (7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq.) may only be used to provide assistance to recipient nations if adequate monitoring and controls, as determined by the Administrator, are in place to ensure that emergency food aid is received by the intended beneficiaries in areas affected by food shortages and not diverted for unauthorized or inappropriate purposes.

None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to procure raw or processed poultry products or seafood imported into the United States from the People’s Republic of China for use in the school lunch program under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.), the Child and Adult Care Food Program under section 17 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1766), the Summer Food Service Program for Children under section 13 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1761), or the school breakfast program under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.).

For school year 2024–2025, only a school food authority that had a negative balance in the nonprofit school food service account as of June 30, 2023, shall be required to establish a price for paid lunches in accordance with section 12(p) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1760(p)).

Any funds made available by this or any other Act that the Secretary withholds pursuant to section 1668(g)(2) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5921(g)(2)), as amended, shall be available for grants for biotechnology risk assessment research: Provided, That the Secretary may transfer such funds among appropriations of the Department of Agriculture for purposes of making such grants.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no funds available to the Department of Agriculture may be used to move any staff office or any agency from the mission area in which it was located on August 1, 2018, to any other mission area or office within the Department in the absence of the enactment of specific legislation affirming such move.

The Secretary, acting through the Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, may use funds appropriated under this Act or any other Act for the Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations Program and the Watershed Rehabilitation Program carried out pursuant to the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (16 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), and for the Emergency Watershed Protection Program carried out pursuant to section 403 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2203) to provide technical services for such programs pursuant to section 1252(a)(1) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3851(a)(1)), notwithstanding subsection (c) of such section.

In administering the pilot program established by section 779 of division A of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public Law 115–141), the Secretary of Agriculture may, for purposes of determining entities eligible to receive assistance, consider those communities which are “Areas Rural in Character”: Provided, That not more than 10 percent of the funds made available under the heading “Distance Learning, Telemedicine, and Broadband Program” for the purposes of the pilot program established by section 779 of Public Law 115–141 may be used for this purpose.

In addition to amounts otherwise made available by this Act and notwithstanding the last sentence of 16 U.S.C. 1310, there is appropriated $2,000,000, to remain available until expended, to implement non-renewable agreements on eligible lands, including flooded agricultural lands, as determined by the Secretary, under the Water Bank Act (16 U.S.C. 1301–1311).

Out of amounts appropriated to the Food and Drug Administration under title VI, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall, not later than September 30, 2024, and following the review required under Executive Order No. 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to regulatory planning and review), issue advice revising the advice provided in the notice of availability entitled “Advice About Eating Fish, From the Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration; Revised Fish Advice; Availability” (82 Fed. Reg. 6571 (January 19, 2017)), in a manner that is consistent with nutrition science recognized by the Food and Drug Administration on the net effects of seafood consumption.

In addition to amounts otherwise made available, there is hereby appropriated $3,000,000, to remain available until expended, for the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program established pursuant to section 1001(b)(4) of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2) to award grants to processors of invasive, wild-caught catfish.

The Secretary shall set aside for Rural Economic Area Partnership (REAP) Zones, until August 15, 2024, an amount of funds made available in title III under the headings of Rural Housing Insurance Fund Program Account, Mutual and Self-Help Housing Grants, Rural Housing Assistance Grants, Rural Community Facilities Program Account, Rural Business Program Account, Rural Development Loan Fund Program Account, and Rural Water and Waste Disposal Program Account, equal to the amount obligated in REAP Zones with respect to funds provided under such headings in the most recent fiscal year any such funds were obligated under such headings for REAP Zones, excluding the funding provided through any Community Project Funding/Congressionally Directed Spending.

In this fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, and notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds made available by this or any other Act may be used to implement section 3.7(f) of the Farm Credit Act of 1971 in a manner inconsistent with section 343(a)(13) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act.

None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue or promote any new guidelines or regulations applicable to food manufacturers for Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) until the FDA considers the available new science in developing the Compliance Policy Guide (CPG), Guidance for FDA Staff, Sec. 55.320 Listeria monocytogenes—regarding Lm in low-risk foods, meaning foods that do not support the growth of Lm.

Section 523 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490c) is amended in subsection (b)(1)(B) by striking “ two years” and inserting “ five years”.

Section 524 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1490d) is amended in subsection (a)(1) by striking “ two years” and inserting “ five years”.

Section 363 of the Multifamily Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 1981 (12 U.S.C. 3702) is amended at paragraph (10) by inserting after “ Secretary of Housing Urban Development” the following: “ and the Secretary of Agriculture”.

None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used by the Food and Drug Administration to develop, issue, promote or advance any final guidelines or new regulations applicable to food manufacturers for long-term population-wide sodium reduction actions until an assessment is completed on the impact of the short-term sodium reduction targets.

There is hereby appropriated $2,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2025, for a Bison Production and Marketing Grant Program that the Agricultural Marketing Service shall develop and maintain: Provided, That this program shall be similar, as determined by the Secretary, to the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program the Department of Agriculture currently maintains pursuant to section 209(c) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1627a(c)), and shall prioritize grants to national non-profits and federally chartered Tribal organizations that have expertise in bison production or marketing.

Notwithstanding the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1622 et seq.) and 9 CFR part 352, the Committee provides an additional $700,000 to the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service to cover voluntary meat inspection fees for the slaughtering or processing of bison/buffalo at Native American owned establishments or establishments operating on tribal lands.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the Rural Water Operation Program under the heading “Natural Resources Conservation Service—Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations”, $28,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

If services performed by APHIS employees are determined by the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to be in response to an animal disease outbreak, any premium pay that is funded, either directly or through reimbursement, shall be exempted from the aggregate of basic pay and premium pay calculated under section 5547 of title 5, United States Code, and any other provision of law limiting the aggregate amount of premium pay payable on a biweekly or calendar year basis: Provided, That this section shall take effect as if enacted on January 1, 2023.

None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to pay the salaries or expenses of personnel—

Any rule-making, notice or guidance of or regarding USDA Proposed Rule (Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans; RIN 0584–AE88) shall allow and provide meal reimbursement for (or “low fat or fat free”) flavored milk in National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program for grades Kindergarten through 12th grade and in Child and Adult Care Food Program for participants 6 years of age and older, and for any other program complying with the meal pattern requirements covered in such final rule.

Sodium limits in effect for School Year 2023–2024 in child nutrition meal patterns shall remain effective through School Year 2026–2027, after which sodium limits that may be included in any rulemaking, notice or guidance of or regarding USDA Proposed Rule (Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans; RIN 0584–AE88), shall not be more restrictive than the Target 2 sodium levels published in the final rule entitled “Nutrition Standards in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs” published by the Department of Agriculture in the Federal Register on January 26, 2012 (77 Fed. Reg 4087).

There is hereby appropriated $2,000,000, to remain available until expended, to carry out section 2103 of Public Law 115–334: Provided, That the Secretary shall prioritize the wetland compliance needs of areas with significant numbers of individual wetlands, wetland acres, and conservation compliance requests.

There is appropriated $3,000,000 for the emergency and transitional pet shelter and housing assistance grant program established under section 12502(b) of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (34 U.S.C. 20127).

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) were tasked with providing findings and recommendations on alcohol consumption for the purposes of inclusion in the 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans as required by Section 772 of Division A of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Public Law 117–328): Provided, That the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture shall consider the findings and recommendations of the NASEM report in the development of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and further, both Secretaries shall ensure that the alcohol consumption recommendations in the 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans shall be based on the preponderance of scientific and medical knowledge consistent with section 5341 of title 7 of United States Code.

The first proviso under the heading “Rural Community Facilities Program Account” in title I of division N of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Public Law 117–328) is amended by inserting “ or to repair or replace essential community facilities damaged by a disaster that occurred in calendar year 2023” after “ calendar year 2022”: Provided, That amounts repurposed pursuant to this section that were previously designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget are designated as an emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the Rural Energy for American program authorized by section 9007 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, (7 U.S.C. 8107), $10,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available in Section 2304 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2), $30,000,000 are hereby rescinded.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available under Division A, Title IV, under the heading “Nutrition Programs Administration” for relocation expenses and the alteration and repair of buildings and improvement pursuant to 7 U.S.C. 2250 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (Public Law 115–31), $8,000,000 are hereby rescinded.

Of the unobligated balances available in fiscal year 2024 in the “Nonrecurring Expenses Fund” established in section 742 of division A of Public Law 113-235, and in addition to any funds otherwise made available for such purposes in this, prior, or subsequent fiscal years, the following shall be available during the period of availability of the Fund for the specified purposes and in the specified amounts—

Provided, That amounts repurposed pursuant to this section that were previously designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 are designated as an emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Section 2250b of title 7, United States Code, is hereby amended in the second proviso by striking “ capital acquisition” and after “ infrastructure” inserting “ and information technology services.”

Section 313B(a) of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 940c–2(a)), shall be applied for fiscal year 2024 and each fiscal year thereafter until the specified funding has been expended as if the following were inserted after the final period: “In addition, the Secretary shall use $9,465,000 of the funds available to carry out this section in fiscal year 2024 for an additional amount for the same purpose and under the same terms and conditions as the Rural Business Development Grants authorized by section 310B of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(c)).”.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the acceptable market name of any engineered animal approved prior to the effective date of the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (February 19, 2019) shall include the words “genetically engineered” prior to the existing acceptable market name.

For an additional amount for the Office of the Secretary, $6,000,000, to remain available until expended, to continue the Institute for Rural Partnerships as established in section 778 of Public Law 117–103: Provided, That the Institute for Rural Partnerships shall continue to dedicate resources to researching the causes and conditions of challenges facing rural areas, and develop community partnerships to address such challenges: Provided further, That administrative or other fees shall not exceed one percent: Provided further, That such partnership shall coordinate and publish an annual report.

There is hereby appropriated $500,000 to carry out the duties of the working group established under section 770 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2019 (Public Law 116–6; 133 Stat. 89).

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for conservation activities under the heading “Natural Resources Conservation Service—Conservation Operations”, $30,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the “National Institute of Food and Agriculture—Research and Education Activities”, $37,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a Concurrent Resolution on the Budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

There is hereby appropriated $1,000,000, to remain available until expended, for section 306E(b) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to provide subgrants to eligible individuals for the construction, refurbishing, and servicing of individually owned household decentralized wastewater systems.

The Secretary of Agriculture shall be included as a member of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) on a case by case basis pursuant to the authorities in section 721(k)(2)(J) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565(k)(2)(J)) with respect to each covered transaction (as defined in section 721(a)(4) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565(a)(4))) involving agricultural land, agriculture biotechnology, or the agriculture industry (including agricultural transportation, agricultural storage, and agricultural processing), as determined by the CFIUS Chairperson in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture. The Secretary of Agriculture shall, to the maximum extent practicable, notify the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States of any agricultural land transaction that the Secretary of Agriculture has reason to believe, based on information from or in cooperation with the Intelligence Community, is a covered transaction (A) that may pose a risk to the national security of the United States, with particular emphasis on covered transactions of an interest in agricultural land by foreign governments or entities of concern, as defined in 42 U.S.C. 19221(a), including the People’s Republic of China, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, and the Islamic Republic of Iran; and (B) with respect to which a person is required to submit a report to the Secretary of Agriculture under section 2(a) of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 3501(a)): Provided, That there is hereby appropriated $2,000,000, to remain available until expended, in addition to amounts otherwise provided for such purpose, to carry out this section.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available in the “Working Capital Fund”, $78,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for the “Community Connect Grant Program”, $30,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available under the heading “Distance Learning, Telemedicine, and Broadband Program”, other than amounts made available for the Community Connect Grant Program, $18,891,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Of the unobligated balances from prior year appropriations made available for veterinary diagnostics under the heading “Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Salaries and Expenses account”, $5,000,000 are hereby rescinded: Provided, That no amounts may be rescinded from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

The agencies and offices of the Department of Agriculture may reimburse the Office of the General Counsel (OGC), out of the funds provided in this Act, for costs incurred by OGC in providing services to such agencies or offices under time-limited agreements entered into with such agencies and offices: Provided, That such transfer authority is in addition to any other transfer authority provided by law.