Research and development
Definition of policy
Reimbursement of research, development, and maintenance costs
Research and development payment
In general
Reimbursement
Advance payments
In general
Procedures
Concept proposal
As a condition of eligibility for advance payments, an applicant shall submit a concept proposal for the policy that the applicant plans to submit to the Board under section 1508(h) of this title, consistent with procedures established by the Board for submissions under subparagraph (B), including—
a summary of the qualifications of the applicant, including any prior concept proposals and submissions to the Board under section 1508(h) of this title and, if applicable, any work conducted under this section;
a projection of total research and development costs that the applicant expects to incur;
a description of the need for the policy, the marketability of and expected demand for the policy among affected producers, and the potential impact of the policy on producers and the crop insurance delivery system;
a summary of data sources available to demonstrate that the policy can reasonably be developed and actuarially appropriate rates established; and
an identification of the risks the proposed policy will cover and an explanation of how the identified risks are insurable under this subchapter.
Review
Experts
Timing
Approval
In general
The Board may approve up to 50 percent of the projected total research and development costs to be paid in advance to an applicant, in accordance with the procedures developed by the Board for the making of the payments, if, after consideration of the reviewer reports described in subparagraph (D) and such other information as the Board determines appropriate, the Board determines that—
the concept, in good faith, will likely result in a viable and marketable policy consistent with section 1508(h) of this title;
at the sole discretion of the Board, the concept, if developed into a policy and approved by the Board, would provide crop insurance coverage—
in a significantly improved form;
to a crop or region not traditionally served by the Federal crop insurance program; or
in a form that addresses a recognized flaw or problem in the program;
the applicant agrees to provide such reports as the Corporation determines are necessary to monitor the development effort;
the proposed budget and timetable are reasonable, as determined by the Board; and
the concept proposal meets any other requirements that the Board determines appropriate.
Waiver
The Board may waive the 50-percent limitation and, upon request of the submitter after the submitter has begun research and development activities, the Board may approve an additional 25 percent advance payment to the submitter for research and development costs, if, at the sole discretion of the Board, the Board determines that—
the intended policy or plan of insurance developed by the submitter will provide coverage for a region or crop that is underserved by the Federal crop insurance program, including specialty crops; and
the submitter is making satisfactory progress towards developing a viable and marketable policy or plan of insurance consistent with section 1508(h) of this title.
Submission of policy
Final payment
Approved policies
Policies not approved
If a policy is submitted under subparagraph (F) and is not approved by the Board under section 1508(h) of this title, the Corporation shall—
not seek a refund of any payments made in accordance with this paragraph; and
not make any further research and development cost payments associated with the submission of the policy under this paragraph.
Policy not submitted
Repeated submissions
The Board may prohibit advance payments to applicants who have submitted—
a concept proposal or submission that did not result in a marketable product; or
a concept proposal or submission of poor quality.
Continued eligibility
Marketability
Maintenance payments
Requirement
Duration
Options for maintenance
On the expiration of the 4-year period described in subparagraph (B), the approved insurance provider responsible for maintenance of the policy may—
maintain the policy and charge a fee to approved insurance providers that elect to sell the policy under this subsection; or
transfer responsibility for maintenance of the policy to the Corporation.
Fee
Amount
Approval
The Board shall approve the amount of a fee determined under clause (i) for maintenance of the policy unless the Board determines that the amount of the fee—
is unreasonable in relation to the maintenance costs associated with the policy; or
unnecessarily inhibits the use of the policy.
Treatment of payment
Reimbursement amount
Research and development authority
Authority
The Corporation may conduct activities or enter into contracts to carry out research and development to maintain or improve existing policies or develop new policies to—
increase participation in States in which the Corporation determines that—
there is traditionally, and continues to be, a low level of Federal crop insurance participation and availability; and
the State is underserved by the Federal crop insurance program;
increase participation in areas that are underserved by the Federal crop insurance program; and
increase participation by producers of underserved agricultural commodities, including specialty crops.
Underserved agricultural commodities and areas
Authority
Consultation
Qualified persons
Types of contracts
Use of resulting policies
Research and development priorities
Study of multiyear coverage
In general
Report
Contract for revenue coverage plans
Contract for cost of production policy
Authority
Research and development
The research and development shall—
take into consideration the differences in the cost of production on a county-by-county basis; and
cover as many commodities as is practicable.
Energy crop insurance policy
Definition of dedicated energy crop
In this subsection, the term “dedicated energy crop” means an annual or perennial crop that—
is grown expressly for the purpose of producing a feedstock for renewable biofuel, renewable electricity, or biobased products; and
is not typically used for food, feed, or fiber.
Authority
Research and development
Research and development described in subparagraph (B) shall evaluate the effectiveness of risk management tools for the production of dedicated energy crops, including policies and plans of insurance that—
are based on market prices and yields;
to the extent that insufficient data exist to develop a policy based on market prices and yields, evaluate the policies and plans of insurance based on the use of weather or rainfall indices to protect the interests of crop producers; and
provide protection for production or revenue losses, or both.
Aquaculture insurance policy
Definition of aquaculture
In this subsection:
In general
Exclusion
Authority
In general
Bivalve species
At least 1 of the contracts described in clause (i) shall address insurance of bivalve species, including—
American oysters (crassostrea virginica);
hard clams (mercenaria mercenaria);
Pacific oysters (crassostrea gigas);
Manila clams (tapes phillipinnarium); or
blue mussels (mytilus edulis).
Freshwater species
At least 1 of the contracts described in clause (i) shall address insurance of freshwater species, including—
catfish (icataluridae);
rainbow trout (oncorhynchus mykiss);
largemouth bass (micropterus salmoides);
striped bass (morone saxatilis);
bream (abramis brama);
shrimp (penaeus); or
tilapia (oreochromis niloticus).
Saltwater species
At least 1 of the contracts described in clause (i) shall address insurance of saltwater species, including—
Atlantic salmon (salmo salar); or
shrimp (penaeus).
Research and development
Research and development described in subparagraph (B) shall evaluate the effectiveness of policies and plans of insurance for the production of aquacultural species in aquaculture operations, including policies and plans of insurance that—
are based on market prices and yields;
to the extent that insufficient data exist to develop a policy based on market prices and yields, evaluate how best to incorporate insuring of production of aquacultural species in aquaculture operations into existing policies covering adjusted gross revenue; and
provide protection for production or revenue losses, or both.
Poultry insurance policy
Definition of poultry
Authority
Research and development
Apiary policies
Adjusted gross revenue policies for beginning producers
Skiprow cropping practices
In general
Research
Research described in subparagraph (A) shall—
review existing research on skiprow cropping practices and actual production history of producers using skiprow cropping practices; and
evaluate the effectiveness of risk management tools for producers using skiprow cropping practices, including—
the appropriateness of rules in existence as of the date of enactment of this paragraph relating to the determination of acreage planted in skiprow patterns; and
whether policies for crops produced through skiprow cropping practices reflect actual production capabilities.
Margin coverage for catfish
In general
Eligibility
Implementation
The Board shall review the policy described in subparagraph (B) under section 1508(h) of this title and approve the policy if the Board finds that the policy—
will likely result in a viable and marketable policy consistent with this subsection;
would provide crop insurance coverage in a significantly improved form;
adequately protects the interests of producers; and
meets other requirements of this subchapter determined appropriate by the Board.
Biomass and sweet sorghum energy crop insurance policies
In general
The Corporation shall offer to enter into 1 or more contracts with qualified entities to carry out research and development regarding—
a policy to insure biomass sorghum that is grown expressly for the purpose of producing a feedstock for renewable biofuel, renewable electricity, or biobased products; and
a policy to insure sweet sorghum that is grown for a purpose described in clause (i).
Research and development
Research and development with respect to each of the policies required in subparagraph (A) shall evaluate the effectiveness of risk management tools for the production of biomass sorghum or sweet sorghum, including policies and plans of insurance that—
are based on market prices and yields;
to the extent that insufficient data exist to develop a policy based on market prices and yields, evaluate the policies and plans of insurance based on the use of weather indices, including excessive or inadequate rainfall, to protect the interest of crop producers; and
provide protection for production or revenue losses, or both.
Study on swine catastrophic disease program
In general
Report
Whole farm diversified risk management insurance plan
In general
Eligible producers
Diversification
The Corporation may provide diversification-based additional coverage payment rates, premium discounts, or other enhanced benefits in recognition of the risk management benefits of crop and livestock diversification strategies for producers that—
grow multiple crops; or
may have income from the production of livestock that uses a crop grown on the farm.
Market readiness
Study on poultry catastrophic disease program
In general
Report
Poultry business interruption insurance policy
Definitions
Authority
Research and development
As part of the research and development conducted pursuant to a contract or cooperative agreement entered into under subparagraph (B), the entity shall—
evaluate the market place for business interruption insurance that is available to poultry growers;
determine what statutory authority would be necessary to implement a business interruption insurance through the Corporation;
assess the feasibility of a policy or plan of insurance offered under this subchapter to insure against a portion of losses due to business interruption or to the bankruptcy of an business integrator; and
analyze the costs to the Federal Government of a Federal business interruption insurance program for poultry growers or producers.
Deadline for contract or cooperative agreement
Deadline for completion of research and development
Study of food safety insurance
In general
Subject
Report
Alfalfa crop insurance policy
In general
Report
Relation to limitations
A policy developed under this subsection may be prepared without regard to the limitations of this subchapter, including—
the requirement concerning the levels of coverage and rates; and
the requirement that the price level for each insured agricultural commodity must equal the expected market price for the agricultural commodity, as established by the Board.
Partnerships for risk management development and implementation
Purpose
The purpose of this subsection is to authorize the Corporation to enter into partnerships with public and private entities for the purpose of either—
increasing the availability of loss mitigation, financial, and other risk management tools for producers, with a priority given to risk management tools for producers of agricultural commodities covered by section 7333 of this title, specialty crops, and underserved agricultural commodities; or
improving analysis tools and technology regarding compliance or identifying and using innovative compliance strategies.
Authority
Objectives
The Corporation may enter into a partnership under paragraph (2)—
to enhance the notice and timeliness of notice of weather conditions that could negatively affect crop yields, quality, and final product use in order to allow producers to take preventive actions to increase end product profitability and marketability and to reduce the possibility of crop insurance claims;
to develop a multifaceted approach to pest management and fertilization to decrease inputs, decrease environmental exposure, and increase application efficiency;
to develop or improve techniques for planning, breeding, planting, growing, maintaining, harvesting, storing, shipping, and marketing that will address quality and quantity challenges associated with year-to-year and regional variations;
to clarify labor requirements and assist producers in complying with requirements to better meet the physically intense and time-compressed planting, tending, and harvesting requirements associated with the production of specialty crops and underserved agricultural commodities;
to provide assistance to State foresters or equivalent officials for the prescribed use of burning on private forest land for the prevention, control, and suppression of fire;
to provide producers with training and informational opportunities so that the producers will be better able to use financial management, farm financial benchmarking, crop insurance, marketing contracts, and other existing and emerging risk management tools;
to improve analysis tools and technology regarding compliance or identifying and using innovative compliance strategies; and
to develop other risk management tools to further increase economic and production stability.
Funding
Reimbursements
Contracting
Conducting and contracting for research and development
Underserved States
Unused funding
If the Corporation determines that the amount available under this section for a fiscal year is not needed for such purposes, the Corporation may use—
not more than $5,000,000 for each fiscal year to improve program integrity, including by—
increasing compliance-related training;
improving analysis tools and technology regarding compliance;
use of information technology, as determined by the Corporation; and
identifying and using innovative compliance strategies; and
any excess amounts to carry out other activities authorized under this section.
Source
(Feb. 16, 1938, ch. 30, title V, § 522, as added Pub. L. 106–224, title I, § 131,Notes
References in Text
Codification
Amendments
Effective Date of 2008 Amendment
Effective Date
Reimbursement Regulations
Not later than
the notice and comment provisions of section 553 of title 5, United States Code;
the Statement of Policy of the Secretary of Agriculture effective
chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code (commonly known as the ‘Paperwork Reduction Act’).
In carrying out this section, the Corporation shall use the authority provided under section 808 of title 5, United States Code.
The final regulations promulgated under subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of publication of the final regulations.”