Full Text of HB3240 103rd General Assembly
HB3240ham001 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Rep. Sonya M. Harper Filed: 3/1/2023
| | 10300HB3240ham001 | | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3240
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3240 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
| 4 | | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Organic Transition Pilot Program Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: | 7 | | "Department" means the Department of Agriculture. | 8 | | "Director" means the Director of Agriculture. | 9 | | "Limited resource farmer" has the meaning ascribed to it | 10 | | in 7 CFR 760.107. | 11 | | "Socially disadvantaged farmer" means a farmer who is a | 12 | | member of a socially disadvantaged group. | 13 | | "Socially disadvantaged group" means a group whose members | 14 | | have been subjected to racial, ethnic, or gender prejudice | 15 | | because of their identity as members of a group without regard | 16 | | to their individual qualities. These groups include all of the |
| | | 10300HB3240ham001 | - 2 - | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | following: | 2 | | (1) African Americans. | 3 | | (2) Native Indians. | 4 | | (3) Alaskan Natives. | 5 | | (4) Hispanics.
| 6 | | (5) Asian Americans. | 7 | | (6) Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. | 8 | | "Urbanized area", as used by the United States Census | 9 | | Bureau, refers to a population of at least 50,000 people.
| 10 | | Section 10. Organic Transition Pilot Program. | 11 | | (a) On or before July 1, 2024, the Department shall | 12 | | develop and oversee, for a period of 5 years, the Organic | 13 | | Transition Pilot Program. The pilot program shall support the | 14 | | economic viability of farmers, prioritizing limited resource | 15 | | and socially disadvantaged farmers, by providing incentives, | 16 | | including, but not limited to, grants, research, technical | 17 | | assistance, and educational materials and outreach, to farmers | 18 | | who intend to transition land to organic certification under | 19 | | the federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. | 20 | | (b) The Director shall appoint a Farmer Equity Advisor to | 21 | | administer the pilot program and ensure that the pilot program | 22 | | meets the objectives of this Act. | 23 | | (c) In providing incentives under the pilot program, the | 24 | | Department shall do all of the following: | 25 | | (1) Provide incentives to socially disadvantaged |
| | | 10300HB3240ham001 | - 3 - | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | farmer applicants who self-certify their intent to farm | 2 | | organically. | 3 | | (2) If there are moneys available after providing | 4 | | incentives under paragraph (1), provide incentives to | 5 | | those limited resource farmer applicants who self-certify | 6 | | their intent to farm organically. | 7 | | (3) If there are moneys available after providing | 8 | | incentives under paragraphs (1), provide incentives to any | 9 | | farmer applicants who self-certify their intent to farm | 10 | | organically. | 11 | | (d)(1) Applicants with year-to-year leases may participate | 12 | | in the pilot program. | 13 | | (2) Repeat applicants may participate in the pilot | 14 | | program. | 15 | | (3) If selected to receive an incentive, an applicant may | 16 | | receive advance payment of that incentive. | 17 | | (4) The Department shall prioritize the provision of | 18 | | incentives to new applicants. | 19 | | (e) The following expenses are eligible for incentives | 20 | | under the pilot program: | 21 | | (1) Organic seeds and starts. | 22 | | (2) Organic livestock, poultry, and related expenses. | 23 | | (3) Organic feed. | 24 | | (4) Soil building supplies. | 25 | | (5) Compost. | 26 | | (6) Compost building or generating supplies. |
| | | 10300HB3240ham001 | - 4 - | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | (7) Compost structures supplies. | 2 | | (8) Organic fertilizer and pest control. | 3 | | (9) Organic integrated pest management supplies. | 4 | | (10) Hedgerow and ecosystem enhancement planting and | 5 | | design. | 6 | | (11) Hiring consultants for translation services, | 7 | | certification, business planning, and agronomic practices | 8 | | as they pertain to organic farming certification. | 9 | | (12) Inspection and certification fees. | 10 | | (13) Educational materials on organic certification | 11 | | and production. | 12 | | (14) Development of an organic system plan. | 13 | | (15) Farm supplies and repair. | 14 | | (16) Other expenses deemed necessary by the Director | 15 | | that further the pilot program. | 16 | | (f) The Director shall make available not less than 15% of | 17 | | the moneys appropriated to the Department for purposes of the | 18 | | pilot program to technical service providers with organic | 19 | | expertise, including, but not limited to, the University of | 20 | | Illinois Extension, conservation districts, and nonprofits for | 21 | | any of the following purposes: | 22 | | (1) Providing organic-specific technical assistance as | 23 | | defined in 24 CFR Part 570, training, organic | 24 | | certification support, financial and farm planning, | 25 | | communication support, program recruitment, recordkeeping | 26 | | support, support with the application process, and |
| | | 10300HB3240ham001 | - 5 - | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | translation support to limited resource and socially | 2 | | disadvantaged farmers. | 3 | | (2) Establishing a mentorship program for organic | 4 | | farmers to support transitioning farmers. | 5 | | (3) Supporting annual information sharing for the | 6 | | continuous improvement of program guidelines, application | 7 | | processes, and relevant organic research. | 8 | | (4) Developing capacity and expertise of technical | 9 | | assistance providers to support limited resource and | 10 | | socially disadvantaged farmers to transition to organic | 11 | | farming. | 12 | | (g)(1) On or before January 1, 2025, and annually | 13 | | thereafter until a report has been submitted that covers the | 14 | | conclusion of the pilot program, the Department shall submit a | 15 | | report to the Governor and the General Assembly on the outcome | 16 | | of the pilot program. | 17 | | (2) The report shall include, but is not limited to, all of | 18 | | the following: | 19 | | (A) The number of grants awarded, including the number | 20 | | of grants awarded to socially disadvantaged farmers. | 21 | | (B) The amount of funds awarded.
| 22 | | (C) The number of grant awardees who obtained organic | 23 | | certification. | 24 | | (D) The names of the technical assistance providers | 25 | | that received grants, and a summary of the technical | 26 | | assistance they provided. |
| | | 10300HB3240ham001 | - 6 - | LRB103 25599 RLC 58088 a |
|
| 1 | | (3) The Department shall post the reports submitted under | 2 | | paragraph (1) on the Department's website.
| 3 | | Section 15. Comprehensive market analysis. | 4 | | (a) On or before July 1, 2024, the Department shall | 5 | | conduct a comprehensive statewide market analysis of the total | 6 | | economic impacts of Illinois' organic products sector. | 7 | | (b) The market analysis shall, at a minimum, do all of the | 8 | | following: | 9 | | (1) Compile employment and wage data connected to | 10 | | production, distribution, and sales of organic products in | 11 | | Illinois. | 12 | | (2) Assess the economic impacts of Illinois's organic | 13 | | trade sectors. | 14 | | (3) Evaluate revenues that the Illinois State | 15 | | government derives from the Illinois organic products | 16 | | sector. | 17 | | (4) Identify and assess economic and growth | 18 | | opportunities related to Illinois organic products and | 19 | | trade. | 20 | | (c) The Department shall post the market analysis on its | 21 | | website.
| 22 | | Section 20. Repeal. This Act is repealed on January 1, | 23 | | 2030.".
|
|