Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2008

Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2008 - Title I: Agricultural Programs - Appropriates FY2008 funds for the following Department of Agriculture (Department) programs and services: (1) Office of the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary); (2) executive operations; (3) National Appeals Division; (4) Office of Budget and Program Analysis; (5) Homeland Security Staff; (6) Office of the Chief Information Officer; (7) Office of the Chief Financial Officer; (8) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights; (9) Office of Civil Rights; (10) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration; (11) agriculture buildings and facilities and rental payments; (12) hazardous materials management; (13) departmental administration; (14) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations; (15) Office of Communications; (16) Office of the Inspector General; (17) Office of the General Counsel; (18) Office of the Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics; (19) Economic Research Service; (20) National Agricultural Statistics Service; (21) Agricultural Research Service; (22) Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service; (23) Office of the Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs; (24) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; (25) Agricultural Marketing Service; (26) Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration; (27) Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety; (28) Food Safety and Inspection Service; (29) Office of the Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services; (30) Farm Service Agency; (31) Risk Management Agency; (32) Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Fund; and (33) Commodity Credit Corporation Fund.

Title II: Conservation Programs - Appropriates funds for the following: (1) Office of the Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment; and (2) Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Title III: Rural Development Programs - Appropriates funds for the following: (1) Office of the Under Secretary for Rural Development; (2) Rural Community Advancement Program; (3) rural development salaries and expenses; (4) Rural Housing Service; (5) Rural Business-Cooperative Service; and (6) Rural Utilities Service.

Title IV: Domestic Food Programs - Appropriates funds for the following: (1) Office of the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services; and (2) Food and Nutrition Service.

Title V: Foreign Assistance and Related Programs - Appropriates funds for the following: (1) Foreign Agricultural Service; (2) Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (P.L. 480) program account, title I ocean freight differential grants, and title II grants; (3) Commodity Credit Corporation export loans program account; and (4) McGovern-Dole international food for education and child nutrition program grants.

Title VI: Related Agencies and Food and Drug Administration - Appropriates funds for the following: (1) Food and Drug Administration (FDA); (2) Commodity Futures Trading Commission; and (3) Farm Credit Administration.

Title VII: General Provisions - Specifies certain uses and limits on or prohibitions against the use of funds appropriated by this Act.

(Sec. 706) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to pay indirect costs charged against competitive agricultural research, education, or extension grant awards issued by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service that exceed 20% of total federal funds provided under each award.

(Sec. 709) Prohibits the use of funds under this Act for the Safe Meat and Poultry Inspection Panel.

(Sec. 715) Prohibits funds from being used to relocate a state Rural Development office until cost and operation effectiveness have been determined.

(Sec. 716) Authorizes the Secretary to use up to 22% of competitive research funds under this Act for a competitive grants program similar to the initiative for future agriculture and food systems.

(Sec. 717) Limits funds for the environmental quality incentives program.

(Sec. 718) Limits funds made available in FY2008 or preceding fiscal years under P.L. 480 to reimburse the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) for the release of certain commodities under the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust Act.

(Sec. 719) Prohibits fund use for CCC-funded rehabilitation of certain dams.

(Sec. 720) States that specified amounts of funds derived from interest under the cushion of credit program (section 313 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936): (1) shall not be obligated; and (2) are rescinded.

(Sec. 721) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to revise a proposed rule (July 8, 2003) respecting cost-sharing for animal and plant health emergency programs of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

(Sec. 722) Requires that funds made available in the current fiscal year be used to cover only obligations made in such fiscal year for the following Food Security Act of 1985 programs: (1) ground and surface water conservation program; (2) conservation reserve program; (3) wetlands reserve program; (4) conservation security program; (5) farmland protection program; (6) grassland reserve program; (7) environmental quality incentives program; and (8) wildlife habitat incentives program.

Requires that funds made available in FY2004-FY2008 for federal crop insurance education and management assistance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act be used to cover only obligations made in such fiscal years, except that FY2008 funds shall be available for new obligations.

Limits fund use for such assistance.

(Sec. 723) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to require rural status recertification for rural electrification and telecommunication loan program borrowers.

(Sec. 724) Prohibits fund use under this Act by any executive branch entity to produce a prepackaged news story for U.S. broadcast or distribution unless it contains audio or text notice that it was produced or funded by such executive entity.

(Sec. 725) Appropriates additional funds for specialty crop block grants, of which up to 5% may be used for administrative expenses.

(Sec. 726) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to prevent a person not in the prescription drug importing business, a wholesaler, or a pharmacist from importing complying prescription drugs.

(Sec. 727) Prohibits, without specific congressional authorization, funds under this Act from being used to study or enter into a contract with a private party for competitive sourcing activities relating to rural development or farm loan programs.

(Sec. 728) Rescinds specified amounts of unobligated balances and amounts available under the Act of August 24, 1935 to encourage exportation and domestic consumption of agricultural products.

(Sec. 729) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to: (1) grant a waiver of a financial conflict of interest requirement under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act for any voting member of an FDA advisory committee or panel; or (2) make a certification that the need for an individual's services outweighs the potential for a conflict of interest for any such voting member.

(Sec. 730) Sets forth funding allocations for the expanded food nutrition and education program.

(Sec. 731) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to allow the U.S. importation of poultry products from the People's Republic of China (PRC).

(Sec. 732) Rescinds specified amounts of unobligated balances in the high energy cost grant program.

(Sec. 733) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to implement the risk-based inspection program until specified issues are resolved.

(Sec. 734) Limits fund use under the Federal Crop Insurance Act for: (1) program compliance, including the data mining project; and (2) the common information management system.

(Sec. 735) Directs the Secretary to continue the water and waste systems direct loan program under the authority and conditions provided by the Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007.

(Sec. 736) Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to revise summer food service programs for children in service institutions provisions.

(Sec. 737) Appropriates funds to remain available until September 30, 2009, for a fresh fruit and vegetables in school program in states not currently served by such program.

(Sec. 738) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to inspect horses for slaughter purposes.

(Sec. 739) Rescinds a specified amount of unobligated funds from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) reserve account.

(Sec. 740) Appropriates additional amounts for the Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland Hunger Fellowships.

(Sec. 741) Rescinds a specified amount from non-mandatory funds transferred to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) upon its establishment.

(Sec. 742) Repeals, effective as of May 25, 2007, section 9012 of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007 (P.L. 110-28). (Such section requires forage producers, in order to receive crop disaster and livestock assistance compensation for a crop year under title IX [Agricultural Assistance] of such Act, to have participated in the crop insurance pilot program or the Non-Insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program during the crop year for which such assistance compensation is received.)

(Sec. 743) Includes West Virginia in the program for at-risk children.

(Sec. 744) Makes unexpended commodity assistance program funds available for: (1) the commodity supplemental food program; and (2) the emergency food assistance program.

(Sec. 745) Considers until receipt of the 2010 Census: (1) Alamo, Texas, Mercedes, Texas, Weslaco, Texas, Donna, Texas, and La Feria, Texas (including individuals and entities with projects within the cities) eligible for rural business and cooperative development loans and grants; (2) Bainbridge Island, Washington, and Havelock, North Carolina, (including individuals and entities with projects within the cities) eligible for rural community program loans and grants; (3) Freeport, Illinois, Kitsap County (except the City of Bremerton), Washington Atascadero, California, and Paso Robles, California, (including individuals and entities with projects within the cities) eligible for loans and grants funded through the rural housing insurance fund program account and the rural housing assistance grants account; and (4) Canton, Mississippi, (including individuals and entities with projects within the city) eligible for rural utilities program loans and grants.

(Sec. 746) Prohibits funds under this Act for the FDA from being used to authorize health claims for conventional foods.

(Sec. 747) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to contract with an entity that does not participate in the pilot program for employment eligibility confirmation.

(Sec. 748) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used for the Canaan Valley Institute in Thomas, West Virginia.

(Sec. 749) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to terminate or consolidate any of the FDA's 13 field laboratories or 20 District Offices (or any of the inspection or compliance functions of such District Offices) functioning as of January 1, 2007.

(Sec. 750) Prohibits funds under this Act from being used to purchase light bulbs that do not have the "ENERGY STAR" or "Federal Energy Management Program" designation.

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Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov