Sponsors (2)
The bill establishes a USDA-run farm succession matching service that helps aspiring and retiring farmers find successors and helps preserve rural agricultural jobs and oversight, but it requires federal funding, has a limited five-year authorization that creates planning uncertainty, and raises privacy concerns around the maintained database.
Aspiring farmers and retiring/transitioning farmers: gain a centralized USDA-hosted matching service to find available farms and willing successors, making it easier to transfer operations and preserve farm continuity.
Rural communities: are more likely to retain agricultural activity and jobs because smoother farm succession reduces the risk of farm closures or fragmentation.
Taxpayers and Congress: receive required reports and regular oversight information, improving transparency and program accountability.
Taxpayers and rural communities: the program will require USDA staffing and resources, creating federal costs or diverting funds from other programs.
Aspiring and transitioning farmers: the bill's five-year sunset could limit long-term continuity for succession planning and create uncertainty unless the program is extended.
Farmers and property owners: maintaining a database of individuals and farm properties could raise privacy and liability concerns if data handling and protections are insufficient.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires USDA to create a Farm Land Link Program to connect transitioning farmers with prospective new farmers, maintain a database, facilitate transfers, and report to Congress.
Official title: To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program to connect individuals seeking to transition away from farming with individuals seeking to become farmers, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 22, 2026 by Greg Landsman · Last progress April 22, 2026
Creates a Farm Land Link Program at USDA to match people leaving farming with those who want to start farming. The Secretary of Agriculture must set up a database, help facilitate transfers of farm businesses and property, publish guidance, and consider prior federal study results. The program must be established within 180 days of enactment, reports to congressional agriculture committees start 30 months after enactment and continue annually, and the program sunsets five years after enactment unless extended for one additional five-year term by the Secretary.