Sponsors (2)
The bill directs modest federal funding and interagency coordination to accelerate biochar research and translate science into farmer guidance—potentially boosting farm profits, soil health, jobs, and carbon sequestration—while imposing a recurring federal cost, risking premature adoption and resource diversion, and depending on timely technical supports to realize benefits.
Farmers, ranchers, foresters, and rural communities receive region-specific, science-based biochar guidance plus federal funding ($50M/year) for research and pilots, which can raise crop yields and farm profitability while supporting agritech and biorefinery jobs.
Land managers gain data-driven practices that could improve soil health, water quality, and ecosystem resilience to extreme weather.
The bill supports lifecycle greenhouse gas analyses and soil carbon sequestration research on biochar, informing more effective climate-mitigation and carbon-management strategies.
Taxpayers face increased federal spending of $50 million per year for six years to fund the biochar research network.
Farmers and landowners risk prematurely adopting biochar practices based on incomplete or misinterpreted research, which could harm crops or introduce contaminant issues before long-term testing is complete.
Shifting research focus and resources toward biochar may divert limited federal research funds from other agricultural, climate, or conservation priorities.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a national network of up to 20 research sites to study biochar impacts on soils, climate, crops, and farm economics and authorizes $50M/year for 2025–2030.
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to create a National Biochar Research Network of up to 20 research sites to test many types of biochar, production methods, application approaches, soils, and climates. The network will study biochar’s effects on soil carbon storage, greenhouse gas emissions, crop yields, soil and ecosystem health, resource conservation, resilience, and farm profitability and will produce region-specific guidance for land managers. Designates the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to administer the network in coordination with other federal research agencies and the NRCS. The program must perform experiments, develop testing methods, run pilot production systems, model technoeconomic and life-cycle impacts, and collect GHG and economic data. It authorizes $50 million per year for fiscal years 2025–2030 to carry out the work.
Introduced July 24, 2025 by Charles Ernest Grassley · Last progress July 24, 2025