S. 278: Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color Act of 2021

117th Congress · introduced 2021-02-08 · Agriculture and Food · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2021-02-08 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
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.
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

Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color Act of 2021

Plain summary

Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color Act of 2021 This bill provides funds for the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide assistance to address historical discrimination and disparities in the agriculture sector. For example, USDA must provide debt forgiveness to help socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers pay off outstanding farm loan debts and address issues relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Additionally, USDA must provide a competitive grant to a school of law or legal research entity to establish the National Center for Minority Farmer Agricultural Law Research and Information. It must also provide grants and loans to resolve property issues relating to ownership and succession on farmland. The bill provides financial assistance to cooperative development centers, individual cooperatives, or groups of cooperatives that serve socially disadvantaged groups. It also provides financial assistance and technical assistance to certain nonprofit organizations that provide services to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. USDA must provide support for research, education, and extension at historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions. It must also provide grants to land-grant colleges and universities for student scholarships, including for students who are members of Indian tribes and pursuing an agricultural field of study. The bill also requires USDA to establish an equity commission to address and mitigate discrimination across its agency.

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.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color Act of 2021

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] · 9 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Tina Smith (D-MN), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] reported raising $3.6 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

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-117s278.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/117/s>

Record fed-us-cong117-s278 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong117 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong117