HR 5781
MATCH Act of 2025
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Bill overview
This bill, the Making Access To Cleanup Happen Act of 2025, changes how the USDA’s Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program works. It allows states, local governments, and Native American tribes to spend money on emergency watershed protection measures before getting a formal agreement with the USDA. The USDA will then count these pre-agreement costs as part of the sponsor’s contribution to the overall project, streamlining the process for addressing natural disasters.
Key provisions
- USDA must identify a list of emergency watershed protection measures.
- USDA must create a process for sponsors to request additional measures.
- Sponsors can incur costs for these measures before USDA agreements.
- USDA will consider these pre-agreement costs as part of the sponsor’s project contribution.
- The bill defines ‘sponsor’ to include states, local governments, and Indian tribes.
- USDA has 180 days to establish the list and procedure.
- Sponsors assume the risk of costs incurred before an agreement.
- USDA is not required to enter into an agreement with a sponsor.
Who is affected
- State and local governments
- Indian Tribes
- USDA
- Disaster relief organizations
- Property owners in areas prone to natural disasters
Notable changes
- Allows sponsors to spend money on watershed protection before USDA agreements.
- Counts pre-agreement costs toward the sponsor’s project contribution.
Sponsors
Official sponsors from legislative records.
Primary sponsor
Cosponsors
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119th CONGRESS — 1st Session
H. R. 5781
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
A BILL
To amend the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 with respect to preagreement costs of emergency watershed protection measures, and for other purposes.
This Act may be cited as the Making Access To Cleanup Happen Act of 2025 MATCH Act of 2025
or the
.
Section 403 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2203) is amended by adding at the end the following:
In this subsection, the term sponsor means—
a State or local government; and
an Indian Tribe (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)).
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall—
identify a list of emergency watershed protection measures the cost of which may be incurred by a sponsor prior to entering into an agreement with the Secretary under this section; and
develop a procedure, including appropriate deadlines, to be implemented at the State level, through which a sponsor may request, for a specified natural disaster, additional emergency watershed protection measures the cost of which may be incurred by a sponsor prior to entering into an agreement with the Secretary under this section.
If the Secretary and a sponsor enter into an agreement under this section, the Secretary shall consider any applicable preagreement costs incurred by the sponsor for undertaking emergency watershed protection measures identified under paragraph (2) as meeting part of the contribution of the sponsor toward the cost of the project.