text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
  
      (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Agricultural 
  Equity Act of 1995''.
      (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
  follows:
  
  Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
  Sec. 2. Findings, policy, and purpose.
  Sec. 3. Sense of Congress on ending the Federal deficit.
  Sec. 4. Nonrecourse loans and deficiency payments for the 1996 through 
                              2002 crops of rice, upland cotton, feed 
                              grains, wheat, and oilseeds.
  Sec. 5. Review of status and future of production agriculture.
  
  SEC. 2. FINDINGS, POLICY, AND PURPOSE.
  
      (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
              (1) A sound and prosperous economy in the United States is 
          dependent on American agriculture and related industries, 
          including producers, processors, handlers, manufacturers, 
          marketers, transporters, and the banking and credit industry.
              (2) American agriculture and related industries account for 
          over 21,000,000 jobs and approximately 16 percent, or over 
          $41,000,000,000,000, of the gross domestic product.
              (3) Because of the combined effort of American agriculture 
          and related industries, consumers in the United States enjoy a 
          dependable supply of food and fiber at fair prices.
              (4) The future of American agriculture is dependent on the 
          continued viability of the American agricultural producer, the 
          underpinning of the national economy.
              (5) Agricultural producers must receive a fair return on 
          their productivity and investment in an industry characterized 
          by continued subsidized foreign competition and wide 
          fluctuations in production and prices due to weather and 
          related factors.
              (6) One of the essential elements of a sound agricultural 
          economy is the ability of the United States to compete in the 
          world market.
              (7) Exports of United States agricultural commodities are 
          expected to reach nearly $50,000,000,000 in 1995 and contribute 
          about $20,000,000,000 to the United States balance of trade.
              (8) Agricultural exports account for over 1,000,000 
          American jobs.
              (9) Commodity Credit Corporation outlays for farm programs 
          have declined from a high of approximately $26,000,000,000 for 
          fiscal year 1986 to less than $9,000,000,000 for fiscal year 
          1995, a reduction of over 65 percent that is unique among the 
          many mandatory spending programs of the Federal Government.
              (10) According to the Congressional Budget Office, farm 
          program outlays are projected to remain below the outlay level 
          for fiscal year 1995 for the next 5 years and continue to 
          decline by nearly 8 percent, even if no changes are made in 
          current law for existing farm programs.
      (b) Policy.--It is the policy of the United States that--
              (1) continued Federal Government support is necessary to 
          provide stability for American agricultural producers to--
                      (A) enable the producers to continue to provide 
                  consumers with a steady and dependable supply of food 
                  and fiber at fair prices;
                      (B) enhance farmer and rancher profitability;
                      (C) encourage young farmers to stay on the farm;
                      (D) maintain the competitiveness of the United 
                  States in the world market; and
                      (E) otherwise preserve the underpinnings of a sound 
                  agricultural economy; and
              (2) reductions in farm program spending should be made in a 
          fair and equitable manner in order to meet the objective of 
          achieving a balanced budget for the Federal Government in a 
          manner consistent with paragraph (1).
      (c) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to establish agricultural 
  price support and production adjustment programs for the 1996 through 
  2002 crop years that provide a structure for a sound agricultural 
  economy in a manner consistent with subsection (b).
  
  SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ENDING THE FEDERAL DEFICIT.
  
      It is the sense of Congress that--
              (1) the continuation of significant Federal budgetary 
          deficits harms the economic well-being of the United States and 
          is detrimental to the development of sound, long-term 
          agricultural policy;
              (2) agricultural price support and production adjustment 
          programs are necessary for the continued economic health of 
          United States agriculture, which must compete in international 
          markets against subsidized foreign competition; and
              (3) agricultural price support and production adjustment 
          programs should be--
                      (A) implemented, to the maximum extent practicable, 
                  in a manner that is consistent with the primary goal of 
                  the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 
                  1996 (H. Con. Res. 67, agreed to June 29, 1995) to end 
                  Federal budget deficits; and
                      (B) modified, as necessary, to ensure that the 
                  programs comply with applicable budget reconciliation 
                  instructions in the concurrent resolution that are 
                  designed to end Federal budget deficits, in a manner 
                  consistent with section 306 of the concurrent 
                  resolution.
  
  SEC. 4. NONRECOURSE LOANS AND DEFICIENCY PAYMENTS FOR THE 1996 THROUGH 
                2002 CROPS OF RICE, UPLAND COTTON, FEED GRAINS, WHEAT, 
                AND OILSEEDS.
  
      (a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
              (1) Covered commodities.--The term ``covered commodities'' 
          means rice, upland cotton, feed grains, wheat, and oilseeds.
              (2) Feed grains.--The term ``feed grains'' means corn, 
          grain sorghum, barley, and oats.
              (3) Oilseeds.--The term ``oilseeds'' means soybeans, 
          sunflower seeds, canola, rapeseed, safflower, flaxseed, mustard 
          seed, and such other oilseeds as the Secretary may determine 
          appropriate for inclusion.
      (b) Nonrecourse Loans.--
              (1) Price support loans.--The Secretary shall make 
          available to producers on a farm nonrecourse loans for each of 
          the 1996 through 2002 crops of each covered commodity at the 
          level specified in paragraph (2). Acreage covered shall include 
          both mandatory and voluntary flex acres.
              (2) Loan levels.--The loan levels for each covered 
          commodity shall be 100 percent of the simple average price 
          received by producers of that covered commodity, as determined 
          by the Secretary, during the marketing years for the preceding 
          5 crops of that covered commodity, excluding the year in which 
          the average price was the highest and the year in which the 
          average price was the lowest in the period. The Secretary may 
          adjust the loan level for a particular covered commodity to 
          reflect changes in the market price of that covered commodity.
              (3) Prohibitions.--The Secretary shall not make available a 
          marketing loan or loan deficiency payment to any producer on a 
          farm for any of the 1996 through 2002 crops of covered 
          commodities.
      (c) Deficiency Payments.--
              (1) In general.--The Secretary shall make deficiency 
          payments available to producers for each of the 1996 through 
          2002 crops of each covered commodity (other than oilseeds) in 
          an amount computed by multiplying--
                      (A) the payment rate for the covered commodity;
                      (B) the payment acres for the crop of that covered 
                  commodity; and
                      (C) the farm program yield for the crop of that 
                  covered commodity for the farm.
              (2) Payment rate.--
                      (A) Minimum established price.--The minimum 
                  established price in effect for the 1991 through 1995 
                  crops of each covered commodity shall continue in 
                  effect for the 1996 through 2002 crops of that covered 
                  commodity.
                      (B) Establishment of rate.--The payment rate for 
                  each of the 1996 through 2002 crops of each covered 
                  commodity shall be the amount by which the target price 
                  exceeds the higher of--
                              (i) the loan level established for that 
                          covered commodity under subsection (b);
                              (ii) the average market price of that 
                          covered commodity.
              (3) Payment acres.--Payment acres for a crop of a covered 
          commodity shall equal base acres less idled (set aside) and 
          flex (mandatory and optional) acres.
              (4) Elimination of \0/85\ and \50/85\ programs.--The 
          Secretary shall discontinue the partial payment programs, 
          variously known as \0/85\, \50/85\, \0/92\, and \50/92\, 
          effective with crop year 1996.
      (d) Flexibility (`Flex') Program.--The Secretary shall increase 
  producer planting flexibility--
              (1) by increasing the mandatory flex acreage percentage for 
          each covered commodity from 15 percent to 20 percent; and
              (2) by offering producers an additional voluntary increase 
          in flex acres of between 10 percent to 25 percent.
      (e) Crop Insurance Requirement.--As a condition for eligibility for 
  crop loans and deficiency payments under this section, the producers on 
  a farm shall obtain catastrophic risk protection insurance coverage in 
  accordance with section 508(b) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
  U.S.C. 1508(b)).
      (f) Conforming Repeals.--Sections 101B (rice), 103B (cotton), 105B 
  (feed grains), 107B (wheat), and 205 (oilseeds) of the Agricultural Act 
  of 1949 are repealed. The repeal of such sections shall not affect the 
  authority of the Secretary to carry out a price support or production 
  adjustment program for any of the 1991 through 1995 crops of a covered 
  commodity under a provision of law in effect immediately before the 
  date of the enactment of this Act.
  
  SEC. 5. REVIEW OF STATUS AND FUTURE OF PRODUCTION AGRICULTURE.
  
      (a) Scope of Review.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall conduct a 
  comprehensive review of the status and future of production agriculture 
  and farming communities in the United States and the extent to which 
  the program changes made by this Act will impact production agriculture 
  and farming communities in the United States. The review shall include 
  the following--
              (1) an assessment of the food security situation in the 
          United States in the areas of trade, consumer prices, 
          international competitiveness of United States production 
          agriculture, food supplies, and humanitarian relief;
              (2) an assessment of current and future farm land values 
          and agricultural producer incomes;
              (3) an assessment of the extent to which regulatory relief 
          for agricultural producers has been enacted and implemented, 
          including the application of cost-benefit principles in the 
          issuance of agricultural regulations;
              (4) an assessment of the extent to which tax relief for 
          agricultural producers has been enacted in the form of capital 
          gains tax reductions, estate tax exemptions, and mechanisms to 
          average tax loads over high- and low-income years;
              (5) an assessment of any Federal Government interference in 
          agricultural export markets, such as the imposition of trade 
          embargoes, and the degree of implementation and success of 
          international trade agreements;
              (6) identification of the appropriate future relationship 
          of the Federal Government with production agriculture after 
          2002;
              (7) identification of the long-term goals for production 
          agriculture and farming communities in the United States and 
          recommendations for actions needed to achieve those goals; and
              (8) an assessment of manpower and infrastructure 
          requirements of the Department of Agriculture as the result of 
          program changes made by this Act.
      (b) Legislative Proposals.--As part of the comprehensive review 
  required under subsection (a), the Secretary shall develop specific 
  legislative proposals to implement any recommendations being made.
      (c) Reports.--The Secretary shall report the findings and 
  recommendations made under subsection (a) to the President, to the 
  Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives, and to the 
  Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate, not 
  later than March 31, 1997.
      (d) Hearings.--The Secretary may, for the purpose of carrying out 
  this section, conduct such hearings and receive such evidence as the 
  Secretary considers appropriate.
      (e) Assistance From Other Agencies.--The Secretary may secure from 
  other departments and agencies of the Federal Government such 
  information as may be necessary to carry out this section.
target: Agricultural Equity Act of 1995 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to make price support loans and deficiency payments (excluding oilseeds) through 2002 for wheat, feed grains, rice, upland cotton, and oilseeds.    Provides for increased flex acreage. 
  Requires crop insurance as a condition of program eligibility. 
  Directs the Secretary to review the status and future of production agriculture, including development of related legislative proposals.
feat_title: Agricultural Equity Act of 1995