Full Text of HB3501 102nd General Assembly
HB3501ham001 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Rep. Sonya M. Harper Filed: 2/3/2022
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3501
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3501 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
| 4 | | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Black | 5 | | Farmer Restoration Program Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Definitions.
As used in this Act:
| 7 | | "Agricultural easement" means a nonpossessory interest of | 8 | | a holder in real property imposing limitations on the use of | 9 | | the property strictly to agricultural purposes. An | 10 | | agricultural easement does not prevent a property owner from | 11 | | constructing, improving, or maintaining a primary residence or | 12 | | housing for farmworkers on the land. | 13 | | "Director" means the Director of Agriculture. | 14 | | "Department" means the Illinois Department of Agriculture. | 15 | | "Eligible individual" means a resident of this State who: | 16 | | was born in this State; |
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| 1 | | is at least 21 years of age;
| 2 | | has previously identified as Black or African | 3 | | American; and | 4 | | has at least one parent of African ancestry.
| 5 | | "Qualified entity" means an organization:
that has a | 6 | | fiscal sponsor who is exempt from taxation pursuant to Section | 7 | | 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
| 8 | | that has a minimum of three years of experience | 9 | | providing agricultural services, business assistance, | 10 | | legal assistance, or advocacy services to socially | 11 | | disadvantaged farmers; and | 12 | | in which at least half of the members of the | 13 | | organization's board of directors are Black. | 14 | | "Socially disadvantaged farmer" means a farmer who is a | 15 | | member of a socially disadvantaged group. | 16 | | "Socially disadvantaged group" means a group of people | 17 | | whose members have been subject to racial or ethnic prejudice | 18 | | because of their identity as a member of a group without regard | 19 | | to their individual qualities.
| 20 | | "Training" means a program of training approved by the | 21 | | Director that: | 22 | | provides an eligible individual with the basic skills | 23 | | to operate a farm profitably with a primary focus on | 24 | | regenerating the soil, ecosystem, and local community; | 25 | | provides a course of study that is equivalent to no | 26 | | less than thirty academic credit hours of study, which may |
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| 1 | | be provided as direct in-field instruction; | 2 | | focuses on low capital-intensive techniques and | 3 | | technologies; and | 4 | | studies local and regional food systems and the market | 5 | | opportunities those systems present. | 6 | | Section 10. Black Farmer Restoration Program. There is | 7 | | hereby created the Black Farmer Restoration Program within the | 8 | | Illinois Department of Agriculture to support current Black | 9 | | farmers and to encourage the growth of Black farmers into the | 10 | | field of agriculture. The Black Farmer Restoration Fund is | 11 | | created as a special fund in the State treasury. The Fund shall | 12 | | consist of gifts, grants and donations, and appropriations | 13 | | which must be made to support the Program. Expenditures from | 14 | | the Fund must be used exclusively to pay costs, fees, and | 15 | | expenses necessary to administer the Program. | 16 | | Section 15. Department and Director responsibilities. | 17 | | (a) The Department shall: | 18 | | (1) purchase, from willing sellers, available | 19 | | agricultural land within this State at a price no greater | 20 | | than fair market value; and | 21 | | (2) convey grants of the purchased land to eligible | 22 | | individuals at no cost to the eligible individual. | 23 | | (b) A land grant to an eligible individual may not exceed | 24 | | one hundred acres. |
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| 1 | | (c) Eligible individuals: | 2 | | (1) An eligible individual seeking a land grant shall | 3 | | submit an application on a form and in a manner approved by | 4 | | the Director that must include a legal description of the | 5 | | eligible agricultural land.
| 6 | | (2) The Director shall give priority to applications | 7 | | to: | 8 | | (A) socially disadvantaged farmers; | 9 | | (B) eligible individuals with a family history of | 10 | | land dispossession; | 11 | | (C) eligible individuals with experience in | 12 | | agriculture, including experience obtained through the | 13 | | provisions of this article; and | 14 | | (D) eligible individuals who are veterans. | 15 | | (3) The Director may grant an application submitted by | 16 | | a qualified entity on behalf of one or more eligible | 17 | | individuals seeking a land grant. An application submitted | 18 | | by a qualified entity for more than one hundred acres must | 19 | | include a proposal for how the land will be subdivided and | 20 | | separately conveyed to multiple eligible individuals. | 21 | | (d) Granted land. | 22 | | (1) The Director shall attach an agricultural easement | 23 | | to the land before it may be conveyed to the eligible | 24 | | individual or qualified entity. | 25 | | (2) The recipient of the land grant may sell the land | 26 | | but the Department has the right of first refusal to |
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| 1 | | purchase the land at the appraised value of the land to | 2 | | convey to another eligible individual pursuant to the | 3 | | provisions of this article.
| 4 | | Section 20. Farm Conservation Corps. | 5 | | (a) The Department shall establish the Farm Conservation | 6 | | Corps to provide residents between the ages of 18 and 29 from | 7 | | socially disadvantaged groups the academic, vocational, and | 8 | | social skills necessary to pursue long-term and productive | 9 | | careers in agriculture. | 10 | | (b) The members of the Farm Conservation Corps shall serve | 11 | | as on-farm apprentices, at no cost, to farms with an annual | 12 | | gross farm income of less than $250,000 operated by:
| 13 | | (1) socially disadvantaged farmers; | 14 | | (2) beginning farmers; or | 15 | | (3) farmers operating certified organic farms. | 16 | | Section 25. Equity Commission. | 17 | | (a) Establishment. | 18 | | (1) Generally. There is established in the Department | 19 | | of Agriculture the Equity Commission, the purposes of | 20 | | which are: | 21 | | (A) to study historical and continuing | 22 | | discrimination by the Department against Black farmers | 23 | | and ranchers that is fostered or perpetuated by the | 24 | | laws, rules, policies, or practices of the Department; |
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| 1 | | and | 2 | | (B) to recommend actions to end the systematic | 3 | | disparities in treatment of Black farmers and | 4 | | ranchers, particularly by the Department. | 5 | | (2) Membership. | 6 | | (A) Composition. The Commission shall be composed | 7 | | of 9 members, to be appointed by the Director, of whom: | 8 | | (i) three shall be Black farmers or ranchers | 9 | | with not less than 10 years of experience in | 10 | | farming or ranching; | 11 | | (ii) three shall be employees or board members | 12 | | of nonprofit organizations that have not less than | 13 | | 7 years of experience providing meaningful | 14 | | agricultural, business assistance, legal | 15 | | assistance, or advocacy services to Black farmers | 16 | | or ranchers; and | 17 | | (iii) three shall be faculty or staff from | 18 | | Chicago State University, the University of | 19 | | Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, or Southern Illinois | 20 | | University. | 21 | | (B) Date. The appointments of the members of the | 22 | | Commission shall be made not later than 90 days after | 23 | | the effective date of this Act. | 24 | | (3) Term; vacancies. | 25 | | (A) Generally. A member of the Commission shall be | 26 | | appointed for the life of the Commission. |
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| 1 | | (B) Vacancies. A vacancy in the Commission:
(i) | 2 | | shall not affect the powers of the Commission; and
| 3 | | (ii) shall be filled in the same manner as the original | 4 | | appointment. | 5 | | (4) Meetings. | 6 | | (A) Initial meeting. Not later than 30 days after | 7 | | the date on which all members of the Commission have | 8 | | been appointed, the Commission shall hold the first | 9 | | meeting of the Commission. | 10 | | (B) Frequency. The Commission shall meet at the | 11 | | call of the Chairperson. | 12 | | (C) Quorum. A majority of the members of the | 13 | | Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser | 14 | | number of members may hold hearings. | 15 | | (5) Chairperson and Vice Chairperson. The Commission | 16 | | shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson from among | 17 | | the members of the Commission. | 18 | | (b) Duties. | 19 | | (1) Study. The Commission shall study discrimination | 20 | | against Black farmers and ranchers by the Department, | 21 | | including by conducting investigations of the prevalence | 22 | | of discrimination against Black farmers and ranchers in | 23 | | Department offices and programs. | 24 | | (2) Recommendations. The Commission shall develop | 25 | | recommendations for ending the systematic disparities in | 26 | | treatment of Black farmers and ranchers, particularly by |
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| 1 | | the Department. | 2 | | (3) Outreach. In studying the matters under paragraph | 3 | | (1) and developing recommendations under paragraph (2), | 4 | | the Commission shall: | 5 | | (A) consult with the Socially Disadvantaged | 6 | | Farmers and Ranchers Policy Research Center; and | 7 | | (B) hold town hall meetings with socially | 8 | | disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, researchers, and | 9 | | civil rights advocates. | 10 | | (4) Report. On or before January 1, 2024, the | 11 | | Commission shall provide to the Governor and the General | 12 | | Assembly a detailed report that describes: | 13 | | (A) the findings of the study under paragraph (1); | 14 | | and | 15 | | (B) the recommendations developed under paragraph | 16 | | (2). | 17 | | (c) Powers of Commission. | 18 | | (1) Hearings. The Commission shall hold open, | 19 | | televised, and public hearings, during which the | 20 | | Commission may sit and act at such times and places, take | 21 | | such testimony, and receive such evidence as the | 22 | | Commission considers advisable to carry out this section. | 23 | | (2) Information from State agencies. | 24 | | (A) Generally. The Commission may secure directly | 25 | | from a State agency such information as the Commission | 26 | | considers necessary to carry out this Section. |
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| 1 | | (B) Furnishing information. On request of the | 2 | | Chairperson of the Commission, the head of any State | 3 | | agency shall furnish the information to the | 4 | | Commission. | 5 | | (3) Gifts. The Commission may accept, use, and dispose | 6 | | of gifts or donations of services or property. | 7 | | (d) Compensation and expenses; support. | 8 | | (1) Compensation and expenses. Members shall serve | 9 | | without compensation but may be reimbursed for reasonable | 10 | | expenses incurred in the performance of their duties from | 11 | | funds appropriated for that purpose. | 12 | | (2) Support. The Department shall house the Commission | 13 | | and shall provide suitable meeting facilities to the | 14 | | Commission, together with such personnel and | 15 | | administrative assistance as the Commission may require. | 16 | | (e) Repeal. This Section is repealed January 1, 2025. | 17 | | Section 30. Data collection and reporting. | 18 | | (a) Generally. The Director shall make publicly available | 19 | | annual reports describing data on the recipients of the | 20 | | Department, including assistance from farm subsidy programs, | 21 | | and the amounts of the assistance, delineated by the race, | 22 | | ethnicity, and gender of the recipients. | 23 | | (b) Research of socially disadvantaged farmers and | 24 | | ranchers. The Department shall conduct research on the status | 25 | | of socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, including, but |
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| 1 | | not limited to: | 2 | | (1) the share of land ownership of those socially | 3 | | disadvantaged farmers and ranchers as compared to all | 4 | | farmers and ranchers, delineated by the race, ethnicity, | 5 | | and gender of the landowners; | 6 | | (2) the share of the amount of assistance those | 7 | | socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers receive from | 8 | | the Department as compared to all farmers and ranchers, | 9 | | delineated by the race, ethnicity, and gender of the | 10 | | recipients; | 11 | | (3) the share, status, and receipt of loans by | 12 | | socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers as compared to | 13 | | all farmers and ranchers, delineated by the race, | 14 | | ethnicity, and gender of the recipients; and | 15 | | (4) an assessment of the reasons for disparities in | 16 | | land ownership, assistance from the Department, and loans | 17 | | for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers compared | 18 | | to all farmers and ranchers. | 19 | | (c) Research of farmworkers. The Department shall conduct | 20 | | research on the demographics and status of farmworkers, | 21 | | including, but not limited to: | 22 | | (1) the races, ethnicities, ages, localities, wages | 23 | | and benefits, and working conditions of farmworkers; | 24 | | (2) the economic contributions of farmworkers to the | 25 | | Illinois economy; and | 26 | | (3) satisfaction of farmworkers with their employment. |
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| 1 | | (d) Census of agriculture. The Department shall: | 2 | | (1) investigate historical changes in reporting | 3 | | methodology and misreporting of Black farmers and ranchers | 4 | | in the census of agriculture; | 5 | | (2) develop procedures to ensure that census of | 6 | | agriculture surveys accurately capture the status of | 7 | | socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers engaged in | 8 | | urban agriculture; and | 9 | | (3) conduct, concurrently with each census of | 10 | | agriculture, a review to assess: | 11 | | (A) the outreach and methodologies used in | 12 | | conducting the census of agriculture; and | 13 | | (B) how such outreach and methodologies have | 14 | | affected the counting of socially disadvantaged | 15 | | farmers and ranchers. | 16 | | (e) Corporate ownership of farmland. The Department shall | 17 | | annually conduct, and annually make publicly available reports | 18 | | describing, in-depth research and analysis of corporate | 19 | | (domestic and foreign) land investment and ownership in | 20 | | Illinois, with specific attention given to the impact of | 21 | | corporate land investment and ownership on: | 22 | | (1) land consolidation trends in Illinois and in the | 23 | | United States; | 24 | | (2) challenges and opportunities for new and beginning | 25 | | farmers and ranchers accessing land for farming or | 26 | | ranching; |
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| 1 | | (3) challenges and opportunities for members of | 2 | | socially disadvantaged groups accessing land for farming | 3 | | or ranching; and | 4 | | (4) crop selection and production trends. | 5 | | Section 35. Rulemaking. The Department shall adopt rules | 6 | | to carry out the provisions of this Act.
| 7 | | Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | 8 | | Section 5.970 as follows: | 9 | | (30 ILCS 105/5.970 new) | 10 | | Sec. 5.970. The Black Farmer Restoration Fund. | 11 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 12 | | becoming law.".
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