Congress·In Committee·S. 1385

Senate Bill Would Boost Organic Farming Research Funding to $100M Annually by 2030

Organic Science and Research Investment Act of 2025

12 months ago·View on Congress.gov

Part of: U.S. Lawmakers Propose Major Funding Surge for Organic Agriculture

⏸

Stalled

No legislative action in over 90 days.

Legislative Progress

Senate

House

President

Law

Key Points

Creates a new USDA-wide team to coordinate organic farming research across four USDA research and data agencies.
Requires regular surveys and reports on what organic research USDA is doing, plus plans for what to study next and how to improve results.
Expands grant goals to include climate-smart organic practices and the use of Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge, with consent and proper credit.
Boosts funding for organic research and extension grants over time, reaching $100 million a year by 2030 and beyond.
Adds new grants and studies focused on helping farms switch from conventional to organic, and funds better organic market and economic data.

AgricultureClimate ChangeEnvironment

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

How this policy affects specific groups of people

Mixed Impacts(2)

Tribal Member

Neutral

Federal Employee

Neutral

Positive Impacts(2)

Small Business Owner

Helps

Farmer Rancher

Helps

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Apr 9, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

Apr 9, 2025

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

Soon after the bill becomes law

USDA sets up the Coordinating and Expanding Organic Research Initiative and appoints 12–18 federal members.

Organic research across USDA agencies should become more coordinated, which can speed up useful guidance for farmers (but also adds planning/reporting work).

FY 2025 through FY 2030

USDA Organic Production and Market Data funding runs for fiscal years 2025–2030 at the higher authorized level.

More data collection and analysis can improve market transparency for farmers and businesses (like acreage, prices, and trends), depending on how USDA spends it.

Within 1 year after the bill becomes law

USDA submits a plan to Congress for an economic impact analysis of organic farming and certification.

Sets the scope for studying how organic farming affects jobs, local economies, and land ownership—information that can influence later programs.

Within 3 years after the analysis plan is submitted

USDA delivers the economic impact analysis results report to Congress.

Could drive future changes in organic policy, grants, and data priorities; not an immediate benefit but a key decision input.

No later than 3 years after the initiative is established

USDA runs the first full survey of all USDA organic research and submits the first initiative report with recommendations.

Creates a public-ish snapshot of what USDA is doing on organic and what gaps exist; can steer future research and extension help.

Starts in FY 2026 and increases each year through FY 2030+

Higher authorized funding begins for the Organic Research and Extension Initiative (OREI): $60M in FY 2026, rising to $100M by FY 2030 and after.

More chances for competitive organic research and extension projects (often run by universities with farmer partners).

Earliest awards could start in FY 2026 if Congress appropriates the funds

USDA begins awarding “transition to organic” competitive grants: $10M in FY 2026–2027; $20M in FY 2028 and after (if funded).

More research and practical training focused on switching to organic, which can reduce risk for farms thinking about transitioning.

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Farm Progress·5 months ago

Robotics, Biologicals and Precision Equipment highlighted at the 2025 Organic Grower Summit

The 2025 Organic Grower Summit featured discussions on the Organic Science and Research Investment Act, highlighting its role in expanding federal investment in organic-applicable research, which currently receives less than 2% of USDA research budgets despite representing 6% of food sales.