S.Amdt. 4443

SA 4443. Mr. WYDEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 1383, to establish the Veterans Advisory Committee
on Equal Access, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on
the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. __. AGRITOURISM.

(a) Findings; Sense of Congress.--
(1) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(A) agritourism provides a range of unique experiences to
the public, including--
(i) education, such as school tours, garden and nursery
tours, winery tours, historical agricultural exhibits, hops
and microbrewery tours, and distillery tours;
(ii) outdoor recreation, such as river activities, mountain
biking, horseback riding, wildlife viewing and photography,
fee fishing and hunting, wagon and sleigh rides, cross-
country skiing, game preserves, and clay bird shooting;
(iii) entertainment, such as concerts and special events,
culinary experiences, festivals, fairs, interaction with farm
animals, and weddings;
(iv) direct sales, such as on-farm sales, farm stands,
agriculture-related crafts and gifts, u-pick operations, u-
cut tree farms, wineries, breweries, cideries, distilleries,
and cut flowers;
(v) accommodations, such as bed-and-breakfast inns, farm
and ranch vacations, yurts, sheep wagons, and guest ranches;
and

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(vi) dining on a farm;
(B) agritourism has financial, educational, and social
benefits to communities; and
(C) agritourism continues--
(i) to offer educational opportunities for children and
families;
(ii) to generate supplemental income for owners of
agricultural enterprises, which are often small or family-run
businesses;
(iii) to spur economic development in rural communities;
(iv) to preserve agricultural heritage;
(v) to help farms diversify; and
(vi) to provide alternative revenue opportunities to keep
working farms in production.
(2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that,
to further realize the benefits of agritourism to
communities, the Secretary of Agriculture should incorporate
agritourism into the Department of Agriculture
comprehensively.
(b) Agritourism Advisor.--
(1) In general.--Subtitle C of the Department of
Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6941 et
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 237. AGRITOURISM ADVISOR.

``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Advisor.--The term `Advisor' means the Agritourism
Advisor described in subsection (b).
``(2) State.--The term `State' means--
``(A) each of the several States of the United States;
``(B) the District of Columbia; and
``(C) any territory of the United States.
``(b) Advisor.--The Secretary shall designate a senior
official in the Office of the Under Secretary for Rural
Development to serve as the Agritourism Advisor.
``(c) Duties.--The Advisor shall encourage and promote, in
each State and on land under the jurisdiction of Indian
Tribes (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)),
agritourism activities and agritourism businesses,
including--
``(1) educational experiences;
``(2) outdoor recreation;
``(3) entertainment and special events;
``(4) direct sales;
``(5) accommodations; and
``(6) any other activity or business relating to
agritourism, as determined by the Secretary.
``(d) Means of Achieving.--In carrying out subsection (c),
the Advisor shall--
``(1) coordinate with the agencies and officials of the
Department;
``(2) advise the Secretary on issues relating to
agritourism;
``(3) ensure that the programs of the Department are
updated to address best agritourism practices;
``(4) conduct outreach to stakeholders and coordinate
external partnerships to share best practices, provide
mentorship, and offer technical assistance to agritourism
businesses;
``(5) facilitate interagency program coordination and
develop interagency tools for the promotion of agritourism
programs and resources;
``(6) review and improve farm enterprise development
programs that provide information about financial literacy,
business planning, and marketing for agritourism;
``(7) coordinate networks of agritourism businesses;
``(8) consolidate access to Federal resources to help
agritourism businesses effectively navigate available
programs and assistance; and
``(9) collaborate with other Federal agencies, as
needed.''.
(2) Technical amendment.--The Department of Agriculture
Reorganization Act of 1994 is amended by redesignating the
first section 225 (7 U.S.C. 6925) (relating to the Food
Access Liaison) as section 224A.
(3) Conforming amendment.--Section 296(b) of the Department
of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7014(b))
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(11) The authority of the Secretary to carry out section
237.''.
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