Dear friends and colleagues,

As we’ve progressed toward the end of the calendar year, Congress continued to introduce (and reintroduce) a range of agricultural bills with implications for soil health. While the longest government shutdown in U.S. history slowed the regularity of presented legislation in October and November, as evidenced by the number of new marker bills introduced in this area, bipartisan support for soil health-focused legislation remains consistent.

From September through December, the bulk of introduced legislation clustered around three recurring themes: strengthening the farm safety net and maintaining the continuity of federal assistance during disruptions (i.e., a government shutdown; natural disasters); advancing the adoption and implementation of conservation practices on agricultural lands; and targeting food supply chains (e.g., through revising public procurement policies, promoting farm-to-school and organic market development). Other issue areas that appeared frequently in our tracking were related to expanding access to financial assistance for producers (including beginning farmers) and agricultural research.

Without further ado, here’s your update on soil health legislation in the U.S. Congress from the Land Core Bill Tracker.

Warmly,

The Land Core Team

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Bill Tracker by the Numbers: 119th Congress

This alert mostly tracks bills introduced from September to mid-December. A total of 38 bills were introduced that relate to or could impact soil health during that period.

Importance to Soil Health: Core or Secondary

Core Bills: 19
Secondary Bills: 19

Party Support

Bipartisan: 21
Democrat Only: 10
Republican Only: 7

Chamber

House Only: 14
Senate Only: 4
Bicameral: 20

Core Soil Health Bills

Bipartisan Bills - REINTRODUCED

Below are 8 CORE bipartisan reintroduced bills that would have a direct impact on soil health.

H.R.5703 - Organic Science and Research Investment Act of 2025

House Sponsor: Rep. Eugene Simon Vindman (D-VA-7) (3 Cosponsors)
Summary: This bill would establish the Coordinating and Expanding Organic Research Initiative across multiple agencies at USDA. It would focus primarily on research, direct an economic impact analysis, and increase funding for extension and data initiatives through fiscal year 2030. If passed, the bill would support the development of regionally adapted practices and technologies that improve soil health, including enhanced soil conservation.

H.R.5854 - Sustainable Agriculture Research Act

House Sponsor: Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO-2) (1 Cosponsor)
Summary: This bill would amend the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 to expand the goals of the Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority (AGARDA). It would add a new objective to enhance the role of sustainable agriculture in developing voluntary resilience solutions and define "precision agriculture.” The bill would direct AGARDA to support technologies addressing extreme weather, drought resilience, carbon storage, sustainable energy, conservation practices, and the adoption of precision agriculture to improve environmental and economic outcomes.

H.R.5875 - Converting Our Waste Sustainably (COWS) Act of 2025

House Sponsor: Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA-21) (3 Cosponsors)
Summary: This bill would establish a national framework for alternative manure management by adding composting and methane-reducing practices to existing conservation programs such as EQIP. It would authorize up to full cost-share and advance payments for approved projects, prioritize applications that reduce greenhouse gases and improve water quality, and direct USDA to support small and mid-sized livestock operations. The bill would also require updated conservation practice standards, expanded technical assistance, and allow cluster applications for shared composting facilities.

H.R.5902 - Innovative Practices for Soil Health Act of 2025

House Sponsor: Rep. Donald S. Beyer, Jr. (D-VA-8) (2 Cosponsors)
Summary: This bill would amend existing USDA conservation programs to promote soil health, carbon sequestration, and climate resilience. It would expand eligible practices under EQIP and CSP to include perennial production systems, agroforestry, and greenhouse gas reduction planning. The bill would authorize payments for soil testing, broaden participation to include Tribal and individual entities, and establish national and regional agroforestry centers to advance research, technical assistance, and demonstration projects supporting sustainable land management practices.

S.3127 - Farm to School Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) (2 Cosponsors)
Summary: This bill would reauthorize and expand the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Program. It would raise annual funding from $5 million to $15 million, increase the maximum grant award to $500,000, and permit USDA to waive or modify the non-federal matching requirement. The bill would also enhance support for technical assistance, research, and evaluation, prioritize projects serving disadvantaged and Tribal communities, and fund improvements in local food procurement and distribution.

S.3140 - Flood Protection and Infrastructure Resilience Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) (1 Cosponsor)
Summary: This bill would modify three USDA programs to strengthen watershed protection and resilience. It would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture, under the Emergency Watershed Protection Program, to undertake measures that provide a higher level of protection than immediate restoration requires. It would amend the Watershed Rehabilitation Program to allow an increased federal cost share of up to 90 percent for rehabilitation projects in limited resource areas, and amend RCPP to add flood prevention, mitigation, and resiliency as statutory purposes.

H.R.6143 - Producing Responsible Energy and Conservation Incentives and Solutions for the Environment (PRECISE) Act

House Sponsor: Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA-2) (5 Cosponsors)
Summary: This bill would promote adoption of precision agriculture practices and technology. It would expand the Conservation Loan and Loan Guarantee Program to cover precision agriculture adoption and equipment, including for producers using loans to participate in EQIP. It would allow EQIP cost-share increases up to 90% for adopting precision practices and acquiring technology, and clarify that EQIP participants may also use conservation loans/guarantees for the same practices. It would add CSP supplemental payments for precision agriculture conservation activities and emphasize third-party soil health planning assistance.

S.3498 - EQIP Improvement Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Cory A. Booker (D-NJ) (1 Cosponsor)
Summary: This bill would reform EQIP. It would reduce the maximum payment cap per participant from $450,000 to $150,000 and establish a lower cost-share rate of 40% for certain infrastructure practices, while maintaining a 75% rate for most other practices and 100% for income foregone. The bill would also require USDA to submit annual reports to Congress detailing program obligations by practice type, state, and operation size, and preserve existing funding allocations for wildlife habitat.

Bipartisan Bills - NEWLY INTRODUCED

Below are 2 CORE bipartisan newly introduced bills that would have a direct impact on soil health.

S.3427/H.R.6593 - A bill to amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to establish the Domestic Organic Investment Program, and for other purposes.

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) (1 Cosponsor)
House Sponsor: Rep. Andrea Salinas (D-OR-6) (1 Cosponsor)
Summary: This bill would establish a Domestic Organic Investment Program within USDA to strengthen domestic organic supply chains. It would authorize competitive grants for certified organic or transitioning producers, cooperatives, and other eligible entities to expand processing, storage, aggregation, distribution, and equipment capacity. The bill would set grant caps, require non-federal cost sharing with certain waivers, prioritize projects addressing supply chain gaps and import reliance, and authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2026 through 2030.

Single Party Support

Below are an additional 9 core bills with single-party support that would have a direct impact on soil health.

Republican

S.3058 - Support Our Farmers and Ranchers Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) (0 Cosponsors)

S.2787/H.R.6300 - Grasslands Grazing Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) (2 Cosponsors)
House Sponsor: Rep. Harriet M. Hageman (R-WY-At Large) (0 Cosponsors)

H.R.6388 - Conservation Reserve Program Modernization Act

House Sponsor: Rep. Brad Finstad (R-MN-1)

Democrat

S.2797/H.R.5367 - Capital for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Act of 2025

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) (0 Cosponsors)
House Sponsor: Rep. Marilyn Strickland (D-WA-10) (7 Cosponsors)

H.R.6341 - Partnerships for Agricultural Climate Action Act

House Sponsor: Rep. Kim Schrier (D-WA-8) (1 Cosponsor)

S.3471/H.R.6706 - Enabling Farmer, Food Worker, Environmental, and Climate Targets through Innovative, Values-aligned, and Equitable (EFFECTIVE) Food Procurement Act

Senate Sponsor: Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) (4 Cosponsors)
House Sponsor: Rep. Alma S. Adams (D-NC-12) (8 Cosponsors)

Secondary Bills

Below are 7 new bills, and 12 reintroduced bills, that would have an indirect impact on soil health.

New:

H.R.5097 - To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program under which the Secretary will award grants to specialty crop producers to acquire certain equipment and provide training with respect to the use of such equipment. - Bipartisan
H.R.5551 - Balanced Agricultural Support and Efficiency Act - Bipartisan
H.R.5633 - Agriculture Infrastructure Stability Act of 2025 - Republican
H.R.5710 - Bridge the Gap for Rural Communities Act - Republican
H.R.5716 - Federal Agricultural Relief Maintained during Shutdowns And Federal Emergencies (FARM SAFE) Act - Bipartisan
S.3112 - Fairness for Fruits and Vegetables Act of 2025 - Bipartisan
H.R.6018 - Bringing Assistance for Rural Needs During Shutdowns Act - Bipartisan

Reintroduced:

S.2778/H.R.5234 - Local School Foods Expansion Act of 2025 - Democrat
S.2808/H.R.6192 - Fertilizer Research Act of 2025 - Bipartisan
H.R.5804 - Providing Robust Organics and Diets for Urban Communities Everywhere (PRODUCE) Act - Democrat
H.R.5564 - To amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to provide for improved coordination between the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretary of Agriculture, and for other purposes. - Republican
H.R.5468 - Community College Agriculture Advancement Act of 2025 - Bipartisan
H.R.5781 - Making Access To Cleanup Happen (MATCH) Act of 2025 - Bipartisan
H.R.5823 - Watershed Protection and Forest Recovery Act of 2025 - Bipartisan
S.3126/H.R.6169 - Fair Credit for Farmers Act of 2025 - Democrat
H.R.6041 - Rural Partnership and Prosperity Act - Bipartisan

Most Active Legislators

Congressional members from across the aisle introduced legislation that could impact soil health from September through mid-December. Overall, the most active legislators in this issue area during this time frame are Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) and Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO-2), having each introduced 3 bills. The other most active legislators in this period, with 2 introductions each, are Rep. Alma S. Adams (D-NC-12), Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA-2), and Rep. Andrea Salinas (D-OR-6).

By the Issues

Below are thematic highlights that stood out from the bills explored in this alert, including:

8 bills related to federal relief, including farm safety net continuity + disaster recovery
6 bills related to access to credit/capital + beginning farmer entry points
8 bills related to conservation practices + programs
8 bills related to food supply chains + public procurement + local/organic market development

View the Bill Tracker!

Bill tracker alerts summarize updates to our soil health federal bill tracker. View this update (including links to each individual bill) on our website.

Let us know if there is a bill of interest that we have not added.

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Land Core is a 501(c)3 organization that works closely with the USDA, legislators, producers, scientists, NGOs and financial institutions across the country to develop policy recommendations that build healthy soils, resilient farmers and national food security. This includes guiding the successful passage of language in both the House and Senate supporting soil health outcomes at the USDA and helping to secure over $50M in federal investment in Soil Health in the 2018 Farm Bill.

Resources: The Land Core Soil Health Bill Tracker is a comprehensive tool designed to monitor and analyze legislation related to soil health and resilience. It can be used to support bills that align with the priorities of strengthening American agriculture, promoting energy independence, and revitalizing rural communities.

Contact: Aria McLauchlan, Co-Founder & Executive Director, aria@landcore.org

Soil Health Federal Bill Tracker Alert - December 2025