Sponsors (3)
The bill directs targeted federal funding and stronger reporting to help low-income and disadvantaged heirs resolve land succession and improve USDA policy, at the trade-off of recurring federal costs, increased administrative burdens, some provider restrictions, and modest privacy and program‑continuity risks.
Low-income and underserved heirs (including veterans and socially disadvantaged individuals) gain access to free legal and accounting assistance to resolve multi-owner land succession, increasing their ability to retain or farm land and access USDA programs.
The bill provides up to $60 million per year (FY2027–2031) to fund services that support rural land retention and farm continuity, channeling meaningful federal resources to these goals.
Administrative spending on the program is capped at 3%, maximizing the share of funds going to direct legal and accounting services rather than overhead.
Taxpayers incur a recurring federal cost of up to $60 million per year through FY2031, which could increase deficits or require offsets elsewhere in the budget.
Continued funding beyond initial multi‑year awards is discretionary, creating uncertainty for heirs and provider organizations that may rely on sustained assistance.
Annual and expanded reporting/data collection increase USDA administrative workload and recurring compliance costs, which could divert staff time from program delivery and raise costs borne by taxpayers.
Based on analysis of 10 sections of legislative text.
Authorizes USDA cooperative agreements with nonprofits to provide free legal/accounting services to heirs of multi-owner farmland, funds $60M/year FY2027–2031, and revises USDA reporting duties.
Official title: To reauthorize and improve the relending program to resolve ownership and succession on farmland, and for other purposes.
Introduced March 3, 2026 by Sanford Dixon Bishop · Last progress March 3, 2026
Creates a new USDA-authorized program to help heirs who jointly own farmland or forest land resolve ownership and succession problems by funding cooperative agreements with nonprofit organizations to deliver free legal and accounting services. The bill authorizes $60 million per year (FY2027–2031), adds program design, reporting, and certification requirements, and amends existing USDA farmland ownership reporting and heirs property relending statute language to require ongoing annual reporting and change reporting duties. It changes an existing heirs property intermediary relending statute (text not provided in the excerpt), requires annual public reporting to Congress, caps administrative spending at 3%, and allows limited assistance to some non-underserved heirs under narrow conditions. Several existing subsections are redesignated to accommodate the new insertion.