In 2017, there were 48,697 farmers and ranchers who identified as Black - either alone or in combination with another race. These Americans, accounting for only about 1.4% of our 3.4 million producers, mostly reside in Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina and Georgia. However, slavery, sharecropping, discriminatory lending practices and a long history of racial discrimination have created challenges unique to their race. These challenges have long-deterred many prospective Black farmers from either owning farms or prospering from farms they do own. Many Black-owned farms are smaller, more labor intensive, and generate less sales and profits per farm than their peers. Many rely on family members to work and contribute, restricting their ability to invest in education. Advocates say the growth of Black farms is often hindered by insufficient land, capital, and access to credit and business services as well as their lack of access, awareness, and participation in the USDA and other programs that would likely make a significant difference. They also claim the inability of Black Americans to fully participate in the land market has resulted in a lost opportunity for generational wealth creation.

Proposed Legislation: Reintroduction of Pending Legislation: S.96 - Justice for Black Farmers Act of 2023
Prospective Sponsor: Sen. Cory Booker (NJ)

• I oppose reforming current Black farmer policy and wish to donate resources to the campaign committee of Leader John Thune (SD).
• I support directing the USDA to provide a variety of assistance to address historical discrimination and disparities in the agricultural sector by:
  
  1.) Establishing an equity commission in USDA to examine discrimination by the agency against Black farmers and ranchers and recommend actions to end these systematic disparities.
  
  2.) Establishing a Farm Conservation Corps to provide young adults who are from socially disadvantaged groups with the skills necessary to pursue careers in farming and ranching.
  
  3.) Providing funding for historically Black colleges and universities to commence and expand courses of study that are focused on careers in agriculture or related disciplines.
  
  4.) Increasing appropriations for a program to resolve issues relating to ownership and succession on farmland.
  
  5.) Expanding credit assistance for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.
  
  6.) Establishing that a minimum of 50% of a covered packer's (not including a packer that owns only one livestock processing plant) daily volume of livestock slaughter must be purchased through spot market sales from nonaffiliated producers.
  
  7.) Increasing funding for the Local Agriculture Market Program.
  
  8.) Giving priority to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers for conservation technical assistance, the Conservation Stewardship Program, and the Rural Energy for America Program.
  
  And wish to donate resources to Sen. Cory Booker (NJ) and/or to an advocate group currently working with this issue.