118th Congress Agriculture and Food
H.R. 4956: Farmer-Informed WOTUS Act of 2023
Introduced
- Introduced (completed)
- Passed House (not reached)
- Passed Senate (not reached)
- To the President (not reached)
- Became law (not reached)
Summary
This bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish an advisory committee that is representative of the U.S. farming and ranching sectors to make recommendations on the impact of waters of the United States (WOTUS) regulations on U.S. agriculture and environmental protection. (The Clean Water Act [CWA] protects navigable waters, which the statute defines as WOTUS. Because the CWA does not further define this term, the agencies that implement the CWA have defined WOTUS in regulations.)
Specifically, USDA must establish an advisory committee to study and develop recommendations to address matters such as
- the impact of the prior-converted farmland exemption on agricultural operations,
- the impact of WOTUS regulations on secure food supply chains and rural infrastructure, and
- how to develop safe harbor conditions for farmers who observe certain conservation practices.
Read the full summary
Federal agencies must provide to the committee any information requested by the committee chair.
The advisory committee terminates 90 days after completing reporting requirements.
Written by the Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress.
Roll calls
No roll call votes have been held on this bill.
Amendments
No amendments were offered to this bill.
Cosponsors
- Tracey Mann R-KSOriginal
- Erin Houchin R-IN
Who scored on this bill
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Other bills by Rudy Yakym
- H.R. 7655: Support for Expectant and Parenting Foster Youth Act
- H.R. 573: Studying NEPA’s Impact on Projects Act
- H.R. 647: Ensuring Veterans’ Final Resting Place Act of 2025
- H.R. 8342: Improper Payments Transparency Act
- H.R. 4762: To amend title 49, United States Code, to extend the non-premium war risk insurance program.
History
- Introduced in the House by Rudy Yakym.
Show the full action history (3 actions)
- Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
- Introduced in House
- Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 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.