Appropriations amendment to S.60 would create Farm and Forest Operations Security Fund but tie implementation to future appropriations

Michael Grady, counsel with the Office of Legislative Council, briefed the committee on the House Appropriations Committee amendment to Senate bill S.60, which would establish a Farm and Forest Operations Security Special Fund to provide payments for farm and forestry operation losses due to weather conditions. Grady said the amendment contains five types of edits: technical renumbering, removal of references to climate, incorporation of an information‑disclosure amendment, adjustments to administrative authority, and a contingency clause tied to appropriations.

Grady told the committee that references to "climate" or "climate‑fueled" in the bill were replaced with "weather‑based" (and in some places with the shorter term "resilience") to avoid creating floor controversy. He read the bill's definition of "eligible weather condition," which lists high winds, excessive moisture or…