Bill > S1078

This bill, the NRCS Wetland Compliance and Appeals Reform Act, aims to implement several reforms to the programs of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Key provisions include: allowing the removal of woody vegetation without it being considered an activity that makes agricultural production possible, prohibiting retroactive penalties for wetland conversion, shifting the burden of proof to the Secretary to demonstrate violations, preventing the use of new rationales for wetland determinations previously refuted, establishing an appeals process for non-accepted wetland certification requests, requiring multiple on-site visits for wetland determinations, mandating customer satisfaction surveys, creating state-level oversight committees to review wetland determination appeals, and reforming the USDA appeals process. The bill also prohibits the NRCS from acquiring permanent easements.