PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S7298-7299)
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Nov 16, 2017
Chesapeake Bay Farm Bill Enhancements Act of 2017
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to modify and increase funding for the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).
(The RCPP operates through several USDA conservation programs to provide funding for partners to join in efforts with producers to increase the restoration and sustainable use of soil, water, wildlife, and related natural resources on regional or watershed scales. The RCPP includes the purposes and functions of several conservation programs such as the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative.)
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
The bill modifies the RCPP to:
increase mandatory funding and revise the requirements for distributing funds,
allow in-kind support to count toward a partner's matching contribution,
allow partners to apply for a funding renewal of a partnership agreement,
authorize USDA to provide information and feedback to applicants throughout the application process,
authorize grants for partners to directly operate conservation projects,
authorize USDA to advance funding to partners for technical assistance for project development and outreach activities,
require USDA to make publicly available the amounts available for technical assistance under a partnership agreement,
limit USDA costs for technical assistance to costs specific and necessary to carry out the objectives of the partnership agreement,
modify the criteria for a critical conservation area, and
revise the requirements for prioritizing applications.
People & committees
Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] · D–MD
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S7298-7299)
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Dec 5, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze S.2139 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.2139 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine S.2139 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine S.2139 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.