The MATCH Act of 2025 would modify the Emergency Watershed Protection provisions of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978. It allows State or local government sponsors and Indian Tribes to incur certain emergency watershed protection costs before they formalize an agreement with the Secretary under the Emergency Watershed Protection Program. If an agreement is later reached, the preagreement costs identified by the bill can count toward the sponsor’s share of project costs. The bill also makes clear that the sponsor bears the risk of those early costs, and that the Secretary is not obligated to enter into an agreement. In practical terms, this bill aims to speed up disaster-response work by permitting early action on protective measures, while preserving the federal framework for cost-sharing and the Secretary’s discretion to proceed or not with an agreement.
Key Points
- 1The bill adds a new subsection (c) to Section 403 of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1978 to authorize “preagreement costs” for emergency watershed protection measures.
- 2“Sponsor” is defined to include States, local governments, and Indian Tribes (as defined in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act).
- 3Within 180 days after enactment, the Secretary must identify which emergency watershed protection measures can be undertaken before an agreement and establish a state-level process with deadlines for requesting additional measures for a specific natural disaster.
- 4If an agreement is later made under this section, the Secretary must treat applicable preagreement costs as part of the sponsor’s contribution toward the project.
- 5The sponsor assumes the risk of incurring preagreement costs, and nothing in the bill requires the Secretary to enter into an agreement with any sponsor.