Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee released details of their spending plan on Thursday, including $23 billion to combat wildfires and millions more to battle climate change. The committee is set to mark up the legislation on Friday, part of the budget reconciliation, or Build Back Better bill, expected to total $3.5 trillion.
In the draft legislation, the committee allocated $14 billion to combat wildfires and protect communities, with an additional $9 billion going to state governments and other entities fighting forest fires.
It also allocated $2.25 billion for staffing a Civilian Climate Corps, which would employ thousands of young people to address the threat of climate change, strengthen the country’s natural defenses, and maintain public lands. It would spend $3 billion on tree planting.
The bill also includes $2.6 billion for the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, which funds research at universities.
Research, especially on climate change, was recognized in the spending plan. For example, the bill allocated $250 million for fiscal 2022 for research relating to climate change, including long-term agroecosystem research, nutrient use, and soil carbon data collection. The USDA’s Economic Research Service would get $45 million for climate-related economic studies and another $40 million for data collection.
The plan put $15 million toward research on organic agriculture in fiscal 2022. Urban, indoor, and other emerging agricultural production got $65 million for research, education, and extension services. For technical assistance, technology adoption, and other extension activities relating to climate change, the committee allocated $60 million for fiscal 2022.
Nearly $1 billion in grant funds would go to retrofit distribution systems and gas stations so they could sell gasoline with more than 10 percent ethanol content.
Although the draft language of the bill did not include conservation spending, Agri-Pulse reported that it is expected to total $28 billion.
The House ag committee draft language is part of the $89.1 billion portion of the budget reconciliation bill it controls. House committees were told to submit their proposals by Sept. 15.