AGRITOURISM Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The AGRITOURISM Act states that agritourism includes educational experiences, outdoor recreation, entertainment, direct sales, accommodations, and dining on farms, and that it can supplement income for small and family-run agricultural enterprises, spur rural economic development, preserve agricultural heritage, and help farms diversify. It amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act to establish a USDA Office of Agritourism led by a Director appointed by the Secretary. The Director must encourage and promote agritourism activities and businesses in each state, coordinate with USDA agencies and officials, advise the Secretary, update USDA programs for best agritourism practices, conduct stakeholder outreach, coordinate external partnerships for best practices, mentorship, and technical assistance, develop interagency tools for promoting agritourism programs and resources, review and improve farm enterprise development programs for financial literacy, business planning, and marketing, coordinate agritourism business networks, and collaborate with other federal agencies as needed.
Who Benefits and How
Farm-based tourism businesses benefit from a dedicated USDA office promoting education, recreation, events, direct sales, lodging, and dining activities. Small family farms benefit from technical assistance and business-development resources for supplemental income and diversification. Rural communities benefit if agritourism draws visitors, spending, and economic development. Farm wineries, breweries, u-pick operations, guest ranches, and similar enterprises benefit from federal coordination and promotion.
Who Bears the Burden and How
USDA leadership must establish the Office of Agritourism and appoint a senior Director. The Office of Agritourism must coordinate across USDA, update programs, build partnerships, and improve business-development resources. Other federal agencies may need to coordinate with USDA on agritourism tools and resources. Federal taxpayers bear the administrative cost of a new USDA office and program coordination.
Key Provisions
- Establishes a USDA Office of Agritourism led by a Director.
- Directs the office to promote agritourism activities and businesses in every state.
- Requires USDA program coordination, best-practices updates, stakeholder outreach, mentorship, and technical assistance.
- Requires review and improvement of farm enterprise development programs for financial literacy, business planning, and marketing.
- Requires agritourism business networks and interagency promotion tools.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Creates a USDA Office of Agritourism led by a senior Director to promote agritourism businesses in every state, coordinate USDA programs, provide outreach and technical assistance, improve farm enterprise development resources, build agritourism networks, and coordinate with other federal agencies.
Key Policy Areas
Agriculture, Rural Development, Tourism, Small Business
Primary Purpose
Creates a USDA Office of Agritourism led by a senior Director to promote agritourism businesses in every state, coordinate USDA programs, provide outreach and technical assistance, improve farm enterprise development resources, build agritourism networks, and coordinate with other federal agencies.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- Farm-based tourism businesses
- Small family farms
- Rural communities
- Agritourism venues
Identified Costs
- USDA leadership
- Office of Agritourism staff
- Other federal agencies
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeSponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR H2153)
Mr. Subramanyam (for himself, Mr. Rouzer, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Harder …
Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Farm-based tourism businesses, Small family farms
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology