S. 1495 · 119th Congress
NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act
Key: what the circles and colors mean
Each circle is a bill. The ring fills as it moves through Congress:
Under the number: the Yea · Nay count of its final (or latest) recorded vote. On a member's page, the small badge is how that member voted: Y Yea / Aye, N Nay / No, P Present, – Not voting.
Gold and violet are only for Yea and Nay; they never mean a party. A member's party is the letter on their photo.
Not yet voted on. This bill is still a proposal: it hasn't reached a floor vote, and its text can change in committee or on the floor before any vote.
R
RoundsSponsor2 cosponsors · 2 R
2 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
This bill revises provisions related to compliance and the appeals process for the wetland certification program at the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in Senate · Apr 10, 2025
NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act
This bill revises provisions related to compliance and the appeals process for the wetland certification program at the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
Among other things, this bill
- prohibits the NRCS from acquiring any permanent easement;
- prohibits the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from imposing penalties retroactively for newly determined wetlands;
- revises the appeals process of the NRCS for wetland certification requests;
- prohibits USDA from using new rationale for a wetland determination if a person has previously successfully appealed a final wetland determination;
- establishes that USDA bears the burden of proof, by clear and convincing evidence, that a person has violated certain wetland conservation provisions;
- requires USDA to establish oversight committees in each state that will oversee the appeals of wetland determinations; and
- requires that each individual who interacts with the NRCS have the option to participate in a customer satisfaction survey provided by an independent survey company.
In addition, USDA must modify the appeals process to provide the person appealing with certain USDA records or documentation relating to the compliance violations.
Further, in an appeal that is related to a delineation, determination, or certification of a wetland, USDA must modify the process to (1) allow a person to call NRCS technical staff as a witness, (2) accept evidence provided by the person bringing the appeal as reliable absent substantial evidence that it is not reliable, and (3) compensate a person who successfully appeals for fees and expenses.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act
Latest action (Apr 10, 2025): Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Policy area: Agriculture and Food · Origin: Senate · Introduced: Apr 10, 2025
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.