PSI Sci
New here? Follow the money and the votes · Not sure of your district? Find your U.S. House member · Find your state legislators

S. 4140: Local FARM Act of 2020

Before you vote › Federal bills

S. 4140: Local FARM Act of 2020

116th Congress · introduced 2020-07-01 · Agriculture and Food · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2020-07-01 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Local FARM Act of 2020

Plain summary

Local Food Assistance and Resilient Markets Act of 2020 or the Local FARM Act of 2020 This bill addresses provisions related to programs of the Department of Agriculture (USDA), including the Specialty Block Grant Program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program), the Loan Agriculture Market Program, and the Farm Microloan Program. USDA must provide grants to states under the Specialty Block Grant Program to procure and distribute specialty crops to needy persons at zero cost to those persons. Each grant distributed shall not exceed $2.5 million. The Food and Nutrition Service of USDA must distribute grants to state agencies to develop tools and provide technical assistance to (1) increase the quantity of retailers that accept and redeem SNAP benefits online, and (2) expand the capacity of retailers to accept and redeem SNAP benefits online. The bill temporarily reduces the matching funds requirement for certain nutrition programs under the Local Agriculture Market Program. Additionally, the bill expands funding under such program to include (1) providing grants to organizations that serve socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers, and (2) making payments to certain entities for COVID-19-related losses. The bill also extends the Farm Microloan Program and temporarily waives certain eligibility requirements for the program during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Local FARM Act of 2020

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

AI explanation – may be wrong, check the official text

No AI explanation yet. It takes up to a minute to write and is then saved for everyone.

Limited to a few requests an hour per person.

The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Arguments against (opponents)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Alternatives

Needs sources: no published alternatives yet (for example a different bill, a law instead of an amendment, or keeping current law). We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] · 2 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] reported raising $21.3 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong116-s4140 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116