S4168Referred to Committee

Livestock Consolidation Research Act of 2026

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Introduced
In Committee
3
Passed One Chamber
4
Passed Both
5
Signed into Law
119th
Congress
2026-03-24
Introduced
2
Cosponsors
S
ⓘ
Type

Sponsor

Tina Smith
Tina Smith
Democrat · MN · Senator
Votes with party: 66.6% (311 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/S001203

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (2)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

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

2026-03-24

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

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Plain-English Summary

Livestock Consolidation Research Act of 2026 This bill requires the Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Economic Research Service (ERS) to publish a report on consolidation and concentration in the livestock industry (i.e., beef, dairy, pork, and poultry production, including broilers, eggs, and turkeys). ERS must publish the report within one year of the Census of Agriculture being made publicly available. As background, USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) conducts the census every five years. NASS released the 2022 census in 2024. The ERS report must include (1) information on changes in the size and location of ranches, farms, processing facilities, and packers throughout the United States; and (2) the impact of these changes on farmers, ranchers, and downstream consumers.

Plain-English rewrite of the Congressional Research Service summary published on Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed.

Subjects

Agriculture and Food

Full Bill Text

Verbatim text published on Congress.gov via GovInfo. Use Cmd+F / Ctrl+F to search within this excerpt.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 4168 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4168 To require the Administrator of the Economic Research Service to conduct research on consolidation and concentration in the livestock industry, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 24, 2026 Ms. Smith (for herself, Mr. Grassley, and Ms. Slotkin) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To require the Administrator of the Economic Research Service to conduct research on consolidation and concentration in the livestock industry, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Livestock Consolidation Research Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. LIVESTOCK CONSOLIDATION RESEARCH. (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which each latest Census of Agriculture is made publicly available, the Administrator of the Economic Research Service shall publish a report on consolidation and concentration in the livestock industry, including-- (1) changes in the size and location of ranches, farms, processing facilities, and packers throughout the United States; and (2) the impact of the changes described in paragraph (1) on farmers, ranchers, and downstream consumers, including-- (A) financial impacts; (B) market entry impacts; (C) access to resources and inputs, including processing facilities; and (D) dietary impacts. (b) Sources of Information.--In preparing a report under subsection (a), the Administrator of the Economic Research Service shall draw on data available to the Secretary of Agriculture, including the Census of Agriculture, inspection records of the Food Safety and Inspection Service, and the packing plant data of the Packers and Stockyards Division of the Agricultural Marketing Service. (c) Report Organization.--The report under subsection (a) shall separate information on beef cattle by cow-calf and fed cattle operations. (d) Confidentiality.--A report published under subsection (a) shall not contain any confidential business information. (e) Definition of Livestock.--In this section, the term ``livestock'' includes beef, dairy, pork, and poultry production (including broilers, eggs, and turkeys). <all>
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