Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
Strengthening Local Processing Act of 2025
A Democratic bill with 1 Republican cosponsor · See all 3 cosponsors
Last activity — Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
In committee
Introduced and handed to a committee in the chamber it started in.
The committee holds it, and most bills are never heard from again. A hearing or a committee vote would be news; silence is the usual outcome, and it kills the bill without anyone voting against it.
Its path through Congress
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The Strengthening Local Processing Act of 2025 aims to support small and very small meat and poultry processing establishments. It directs the Secretary of Agriculture to create a database of studies and publish scale-appropriate model plans to assist these businesses with safety requirements. The bill increases the Federal share for state inspection expenses and adjusts employee thresholds for cooperative interstate shipments. Additionally, it establishes a Processing Resilience Grant Program to help businesses increase capacity and safety. Finally, the Act funds career training programs through various educational institutions and meat processing establishments.
Yes· 3 of 10
- Scored +8
Does this make it easier to run a small business?
The bill provides scale-appropriate guidance, a database of studies, and competitive grants specifically for small and very small meat and poultry establishments.
- Scored +7
Would business owners be better off under this?
The bill provides financial assistance and technical guidance specifically to support small and very small meat and poultry establishments.
- Scored +6
Would farmers be better off under this?
The bill prioritizes grants that increase farmer and rancher access to local animal slaughter options.
The opposite
No question was scored the opposite.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Access to Resources for Small Businesses: The bill requires the Secretary to establish a free, searchable database of peer-sreviewed validation studies and publish online model plans for various types of establishments (Section 2). This could help smaller operations develop necessary safety plans more easily.
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Financial Support for Processing Facilities: The creation of a Processing Resilience Grant Program provides competitive grants of up to $500,000 to help entities increase processing capacity and support the health and safety of employees and customers (Section 5).
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Support for Local Farmers: Grant priority is given to proposals that increase farmer and rancher access to animal slaughter options within a 200-mile radius of their location (Section 5).
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Workforce Development: The bill provides grants to establish or expand career training programs, including structured apprenticeships, to build a workforce for meat and poultry processing (Section 6).
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Increased State Inspection Funding: The bill increases the maximum Federal share for state inspection expenses from 50 percent to 65 percent for both poultry and meat (Section 3).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
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Strict Safety Requirements: Establishments must meet specific requirements to receive approval for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points plans (Section 2).
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Requirement for Increased Capacity/Changes: The bill adjusts employee counts used to define certain programs, such as changing the threshold from 25 employees to 50 employees for specific interstate shipment provisions (Section 4).
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Tap or hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Would business owners be better off under this? — The bill provides financial assistance and technical guidance specifically to support small and very small meat and poultry establishments. Would farmers be better off under this? — The bill prioritizes grants that increase farmer and rancher access to local animal slaughter options. Would people in rural areas be better off under this? — The bill invests in local processing capacity which supports regional agricultural economies.
- Economy And Finance
- Does this make it easier to run a small business? — The bill provides scale-appropriate guidance, a database of studies, and competitive grants specifically for small and very small meat and poultry establishments. Is this likely to create jobs? — The bill funds career training programs and apprenticeships to build a workforce for meat and poultry processing. Is this likely to grow the economy? — The bill invests in increasing the capacity and resilience of the small meat and poultry processing sector.
- Environment Energy And Infrastructure
- Does this invest in rural communities? — The bill prioritizes grant proposals that increase farmer and rancher access to slaughter options within a 200-mile radius.
- Education And Technology
- Does this make college cost less? — The bill provides competitive grants to various educational institutions to establish or expand career training programs.
- Governance And Ideology
- Does this make what the government does easier for the public to see? — The bill mandates the publication of a searchable database of studies and online model plans.
- Social Issues And Justice
- Is this likely to lift people out of poverty? — The bill supports workforce development through vocational and technical training programs.
- 3/25/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 2/10/2026
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 4/29/2025
- Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- Introduced in House
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
James BairdRepublican · Indiana
Jared GoldenDemocrat · Maine
Kim SchrierDemocrat · Washington