Office of Small Farms

Subtitle B of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6931 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 229. Office of Small Farms (a) Definition of small farm, ranch, or forest operation In this section, the term small farm, ranch, or forest operation means a farm, ranch, or forest operation that— (1) (A) is less than 180 acres; or (B) meets another acreage-based definition of small, as determined by the Secretary, that takes into consideration— (i) the State or region in which the farm, ranch, or forest operation is located; (ii) the production system of the farm, ranch, or forest operation; or (iii) both; and (2) has an annual gross cash farm income of less than $350,000. (b) Establishment The Secretary shall establish within the farm production and conservation mission area the Office of Small Farms. (c) Responsibilities The Office of Small Farms shall— (1) coordinate efforts to improve support for small farms, ranches, and forest operations across all Department agencies and offices; (2) review Department programs and policies and identify statutory, regulatory, and administrative provisions, policies, and guidance that disadvantage small farm, ranch, or forest operation participation, and recommend changes to ensure that those programs and policies adequately serve small farms, ranches, and forest operations; (3) develop recommendations for new initiatives, including financing mechanisms and technical assistance opportunities, to specifically serve small farms, ranches, and forest operations relating to production, conservation, business planning, land access, and other issues, as determined by the Secretary; (4) make recommendations to Department agencies and offices and other Federal agencies on tracking small farm, ranch, or forest operation data, including demographics and program participation rates; (5) propose research agendas on topics that are of special interest to small farms, ranches, and forest operations; (6) provide or coordinate technical assistance through the Department or through cooperative agreements with other entities to operators of small farms, ranches, and forest operations to assist those operators— (A) to access the full complement of available Department grant, cost-share, and loan programs; (B) to implement activities using assistance received under those programs; and (C) with farmland preservation, including through succession planning; (7) implement a program directly or through cooperative agreements with other entities to provide grants of not more than $25,000 to operators of small farms, ranches, and forest operations for— (A) equipment and infrastructure repairs and upgrades; (B) uninsured losses; (C) business planning and market development assistance; (D) conservation practice adoption; (E) down payments for land acquisition; and (F) such other purposes as the Secretary determines to be appropriate; (8) operate a hotline through which operators of small farms, ranches, and forest operations can anonymously report problems that the operators encounter in attempts to access Department programs; and (9) collaborate with other Federal agencies and State agencies on how to effectively reach and serve small farms, ranches, and forest operations. (d) Report to Congress Annually, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report describing— (1) the efforts of the Secretary to enhance participation by small farms, ranches, and forest operations in agricultural programs; and (2) the results achieved to enhance such participation for each such agricultural program. (e) Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031— (1) $15,000,000 for the administration of the Office of Small Farms; and (2) $10,000,000 to provide technical assistance and grants authorized by this section..