Committee advances bill directing ISDA to build one-stop online portal and five-year farmland inventory

Committee members advanced House Bill 1149 on a 9-0 vote after lawmakers and agency staff described a proposal to create a centralized online portal for farmers and a recurring inventory of land converted out of agriculture.

Representative Culp, sponsor of House Bill 11 49, told the committee the bill “directs the Department of Agriculture to create an online portal which would be similar to 1 stop shopping for farmers and rural communities to easily search for information for funding opportunities or other information that's available on the web.” She said the site would include links to state and federal agencies, a public comment forum for federal notices and five‑year updates to the inventory of lost farmland.

Supporters said the portal is intended to reduce the…