S. 5303: Supporting Our Farm and Food System Workforce Act

This bill would create a new office inside the U.S. Department of Agriculture called the Office of the Farm and Food System Workforce. Its purpose would be to help farmworkers and other people who work across the food system learn about, access, and benefit from USDA programs and services.

What the new office would do

The office would be set up within 60 days after the law takes effect and would be led by a Farm and Food System Workforce Coordinator. That coordinator would be appointed by the Agriculture Secretary, with input from organizations that represent farm and food system workers.

The office would focus on workers involved in farming, food processing, packaging, transporting, marketing, forestry, fisheries, and similar agricultural work. In plain terms, it would cover people who help produce and move food and agricultural products from the field to storage, processing, and sale.

The office’s main responsibilities would include:

• Improving awareness of USDA programs among farm and food system workers.
• Making USDA communications easier to understand and more inclusive.
• Helping other federal agencies better serve these workers.
• Setting goals to increase participation in USDA programs.
• Coordinating outreach and services across USDA.
• Helping USDA respond to the needs of these workers during disasters and emergencies.
• Tracking how well USDA programs are working for these workers.
• Helping farmworkers move into roles as agricultural operators or landowners.
• Recommending new programs or policy changes.

Advisory committee

The bill would create a Farm and Food System Worker Advisory Committee inside the new office. This committee would give advice on how USDA can better include worker concerns in its programs, with a focus on:

• worker safety,
• research related to workers,
• agricultural education and technical training, and
• job training programs.

The committee could have up to 20 members and would include at least:

• 5 farm and food system workers,
• 2 civil rights representatives,
• 4 nonprofit representatives, including 2 with expertise on women farmworkers or food system workers,
• 2 labor union representatives, and
• 2 representatives from colleges or universities with relevant experience.

The committee members could not be federal government employees. The committee would generally meet in person at least twice a year and would have interpretation and translation available at meetings. It would also have to issue an annual public report.

Interagency coordination

The bill would also create a Farm and Food System Workforce Interagency Council. This council would bring together representatives from multiple federal agencies, including USDA, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Education, EPA, Homeland Security, Justice, Treasury, Commerce, and State, along with the USDA office coordinator.

The council would be meant to improve coordination across the federal government on services for farm and food system workers. It would meet at least twice a year, if practical, and would issue an annual report with recommendations for improving accountability, coordination, compliance, and government culture around issues affecting these workers.

Agency liaisons and reporting

The office would place staff liaisons with several USDA agencies and programs, such as the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, rural development agencies, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Agricultural Marketing Service, Forest Service, and National Agricultural Statistics Service. These staff would help develop plans to improve information, access, data, and accountability for farm and food system workers.

The coordinator would also have to submit an annual public report covering the office’s work, worker outcomes, effects of heat and disasters, barriers to USDA access, and recommendations for improving workers’ lives and work conditions.

Funding and related changes

The bill would authorize whatever money is needed to run the office for fiscal years 2027 through 2031. It would also say that the existing Farmworker Coordinator position ends once the Secretary certifies that the new office is properly staffed for farmworker-specific issues. In addition, it makes a technical change confirming USDA has authority to create the new office.

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