Healthy Soil, Resilient Farmers Act of 2020

Healthy Soil, Resilient Farmers Act of 2020

This bill revises the conservation loan and loan guarantee program of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to authorize USDA to provide loans for soil health transition plans. A soil health transition plan is a comprehensive, whole-farm plan, approved by USDA, that, for a farming or ranching operation, identifies the conservation activities that will be addressed with loan funds provided or guaranteed to assist the borrower in making a transition to a farming or ranching production and conservation system.

USDA may limit eligibility for soil health transition loans to certain entities, including farmers or ranchers whose farm or ranch land is subject to the jurisdiction of an Indian tribe.

USDA must establish terms and conditions for making or guaranteeing soil health transition loans that waive principal and interest repayment for up to three years from the date on which the loan is made or guaranteed in order for the borrower to make a satisfactory transition to the farming or ranching production and conservation system under a soil health transition plan.