I 118th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 6921 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 9, 2024 Ms. De La Cruz (for herself, Mr. Cuellar , Mr. Tony Gonzales of Texas , and Mr. Vicente Gonzalez of Texas ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to authorize payments under the environmental quality incentives program to assist producers in implementing certain conservation practices along the southern border of Texas, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Southern Border Farmers and Ranchers Protection Act . 2. Southern Border Initiative Section 1240B of the Food Security Act of 1985 ( 16 U.S.C. 3839aa–2 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (k) Southern Border Initiative (1) In general The Secretary shall provide payments to producers under the program to implement conservation practices to address and repair damage, to agricultural land and farming infrastructure on covered land of such producers, that contributes to natural resource concerns or problems. (2) Contract term A contract to provide payments under paragraph (1) shall have a term of 1 year. (3) Covered land defined In this subsection, the term covered land means land in a county at or near the southern border of Texas, including the following counties: (A) Brewster. (B) Brooks. (C) Cameron. (D) Crockett. (E) Culberson. (F) Dimmit. (G) Duval. (H) Edwards. (I) El Paso. (J) Frio. (K) Hidalgo. (L) Hudspeth. (M) Jeff Davis. (N) Jim Hogg. (O) Jim Wells. (P) Karnes. (Q) Kenedy. (R) Kinney. (S) Kleberg. (T) La Salle. (U) Live Oak. (V) Maverick. (W) McMullen. (X) Pecos. (Y) Presidio. (Z) Reeves. (AA) Starr. (BB) Sutton. (CC) Terrell. (DD) Uvalde. (EE) Val Verde. (FF) Webb. (GG) Willacy. (HH) Zapata. (II) Zavala. .