S. 3870: Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022

117th Congress · introduced 2022-03-17 · Agriculture and Food · Latest: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 436.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2022-03-17 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 436. 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

Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022

Plain summary

Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022 This bill establishes within the Department of Agriculture (USDA) the Office of the Special Investigator for Competition Matters. Specifically, the office must use all available tools (e.g., subpoenas) to investigate and prosecute violations of the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921 by packers and live poultry dealers. Further, the bill grants the office the authority to bring any civil or administrative action authorized by that act against a packer or live poultry dealer. Additionally, the office must serve as a liaison to the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission with respect to competition and trade practices in the food and agricultural sector, consult with the Department of Homeland Security on national security and critical infrastructure security in the food and agricultural sector, maintain a staff of attorneys and other professionals with appropriate expertise, and coordinate with the USDA Office of the General Counsel and the Packers and Stockyards Division of the Agricultural Marketing Service.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to 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

Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate)

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT] · 12 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Steve Daines (R-MT), John Hoeven (R-ND), John Thune (R-SD), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS)

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 (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization: A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
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).
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-117s3870.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/117/s>

Record fed-us-cong117-s3870 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong117 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong117