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1 1 (August 15, 2022)

handle is hein.crs/goveiay0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service August 15, 2022 Farm and Food Support Under USDA's Section 32 Account Congress created a mandatory appropriation in 1935-the Funds for Strengthening Markets, Income, and Supply (§32 of the act of August 24, 1935; 7 U.S.C. 612c). The funds support producers of agricultural commodities that are not supported by other farm support programs, such as the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). Commodities include primarily fruits, vegetables, meats, poultry, and fish. Ongoing issues for Congress include the scale of funding and how to direct support to various uses. Known as Section 32, the fund has three primary purposes identified as clauses in the law: (1) to encourage the export of agricultural products; (2) to encourage the domestic consumption of farm products by diverting surpluses and increasing their use; and (3) to reestablish farmers' purchasing power by making payments to farmers. A permanent appropriation of 30% of customs receipts on all imports from the prior calendar year fund the Section 32 account. Following imposition of higher tariffs in 2018, this amount more than doubled to exceed $21 billion annually. From that appropriation, three primary allocations are made: a transfer to the U.S. Department of Commerce of 30% of customs receipts from fishery products; a statutory amount retained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to support farmers and domestic food assistance programs (known as a reserved spending authority); and a transfer of the remainder to the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) for the child nutrition programs-amounting to nearly 93% of the Section 32 permanent appropriation in FY2021 (the blue portions of Figure 1 and top of Table 1). The annual Agriculture appropriations act amount for child nutrition includes the Section 32 transfer. Section 32 Commodity Procurement Commodities procured with Section 32 funds may be categorized as either entitlement or contingency (both are shown in the gray boxes in Figure 1 and Table 1 below the line). USDA's entitlement purchases are mandated by various laws and then planned for what is delivered. For example, various nutrition acts specify an amount that is to be delivered in kind to schools and other entities. Based on local preferences, organizations and USDA develop a purchase plan for the year. USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) issues bid specifications, generally for processed products, for deliveries to specific locations. USDA's contingency purchases (also known as emergency surplus removals) result from Clause 2 discretion to buy surplus commodities to support agricultural markets when farm prices are low. USDA may learn about a need through its own commodity experts or from industry organizations. Recipients of bonus commodities may include schools, child care centers, and food banks. Figure I. USDA's Section 32 Account Amounts are for the most recent year with actuals, FY2021 Unobligatdtuds,tcarrylin $391 mnillin Sequestration S71 million Unobliatedfunds, out $375 million Source: CRS using USDA, AMS, FY2023 Congressional Budget Justification; and OMB, FY2023 Budget Appendix. ttps://crsrec 0NFOU

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