SB 5474 — Expanding opportunities for organic, regenerative, climate-smart, and sustainable producers.

S-1193.5S-0780.1 SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5474 State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session By Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources (originally sponsored by Senators Liias, Muzzall, Chapman, Hasegawa, Nobles, and Stanford)Stanford READRead FIRSTfirst TIMEtime 02/21/25.01/24/25.

Referred to Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources.

adding a new sectionsections to chapter 15.86 RCW;

1 SSBSB 5474 ThesePractices environmentalsuch andas healthno-till effectsfarming, resultcover incropping, additionaland societalrotational economicgrazing benefitsimprove notsoil reflectedhealth inand thereduce directcarbon economicemissions. benefits to producers.

Decreasing the use of pesticides and petroleum-based fertilizers mitigates groundwater pollution, supports biodiversity, and reduces the risk of human, animal, and environmental exposure to toxic chemicals.

These environmental and health effects result in additional societal economic benefits not reflected in the direct economic benefits to producers.

(d) Inventorying existing extension, training, and technical resources and identifying gaps in extension, training, and technical resources to support farmers who are certified and seeking to transition to organic and regenerative practices;

2 SSBSB 5474 (e)(d) IdentifyingInventorying waysexisting extension, training, and technical resources and identifying gaps in extension, training, and technical resources to improvesupport organicfarmers infrastructurewho are certified and partnershipsseeking betweento organictransition producers,to processors,organic and distributors;regenerative practices;

(e) Identifying ways to improve organic infrastructure and partnerships between organic producers and processors, distributors, and financial institutions;

NEW SECTION.

A new section is added to chapter 15.86 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the department must contract with a nonprofit organization to administer a low barrier microgrant program to support the growth of organic, regenerative, and sustainable climate- smart agriculture.

(2) The nonprofit organization must be a 501(c)(3) organization that can demonstrate more than five years of experience awarding grants of less than $25,000 to state farm businesses with the primary purpose of supporting implementation of sustainable agricultural practices.

(3) The nonprofit organization's administrator:

(a) May award grants of up to $25,000 to any applicant that meets the following criteria:

p.

3 SB 5474 (i) Is a producer, as defined in RCW 15.86.020, that has been in operation for at least two years;

and (ii) Currently employs, is implementing, or is seeking to implement, practices adhering to regenerative, sustainable, climate- smart, or organic principles on at least some of the land farmed or ranched;

(b) Must prioritize:

(i) Projects that implement or enhance climate-smart and regenerative practices, measure and enhance carbon sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, restore soil health, utilize cover crops, preserve and create habitats, increase biodiversity, or employ environmentally safe waste management practices;

and (ii) Projects located in overburdened communities or led by members of vulnerable populations, as those terms are defined in RCW 70A.02.010;

(c) Is encouraged to facilitate accessibility of these microgrants by awarding more than one cycle of funding each year and supplementing this program with private philanthropic funding, if practicable;

(d) Must provide a report to the department by December 15th each year with the following information:

(i) The total amount of funds awarded and the number of farm businesses who received a grant that calendar year funded in whole or part by this section;

(ii) A brief description of the project funded and which of the priorities in (b)(i) of this subsection were addressed by the project;

(iii) The location of funded projects and a summary of the total number of projects and amounts awarded to projects located in overburdened communities led by members of vulnerable populations;

and (iv) Any amount of private philanthropic funding that was raised to supplement the funds provided through this program.

Sec.

4.

(2)p. The rules:

4 SB 5474 (2) The rules:

p.(3) All fees collected under this chapter shall be deposited in an account within the agricultural local fund.

3 SSB 5474 (3) All fees collected under this chapter shall be deposited in an account within the agricultural local fund.

45 SSBSB 5474