Checkoff Transparency Act

Key Points

• This bill, introduced by Rep. Spartz, requires the Department of Agriculture to post financial and performance records for "checkoff" programs online. These programs collect mandatory fees from farmers to fund famous advertising campaigns like "Got Milk?" or "Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner."
• The government would be required to publish yearly audit reports, approved budgets, and independent evaluations for every commodity board. This is intended to show farmers and the public exactly how millions of dollars in fees are being spent on marketing and research.
• If the bill becomes law, the Department of Agriculture must upload the last five years of records within 180 days. After that, new reports and spending plans must be posted every year so the public can track the money.
• The goal of this change is to make these programs more accountable to the farmers who are forced to pay into them. Currently, it can be difficult for the public or even the farmers themselves to see the full details of how these boards operate.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.