Federal Lands Stewardship and Human Sustenance Act
Protecting family ranches and farms on federal lands. This law brings back families who were pushed off their land at Point Reyes. It gives ranchers and farmers the tools they need to stay on the land. It keeps our food supply safe. It makes communities safer from wildfires. Humans and nature work best together — this law makes that happen.
🎯 What This Act Does
Protecting families, food, and the land for generations to come
Family Farms Come First
Families who have worked the land for generations get priority for leases. Big corporations and wealthy non-profits can't push them out. Your family farm stays in your family.
Active Stewardship Works
Ranchers and farmers are good for the land. Grazing stops wildfires. Managed land stays healthy. This law recognizes that humans are part of nature, not separate from it.
Protect Our Food Supply
Food from federal lands is now a national security resource. Local food means less trucking, less pollution, and fresher meals for families. No more shipping food from far away.
Wildfire Safety Program
Farm waste and forest brush become energy and compost instead of fire fuel. Homeowners get grants to make their homes fire-safe. Voluntary program, no mandates.
🏡 Point Reyes Family Restoration
Bringing back families who were pushed off their land through unjust policies
Right to Return
Families who lost their ranches can come back. They get first choice on new 20-year leases. The land goes back to the people who built it.
Restitution Fund
Up to $75 million to pay back families for what they lost. Business value, cultural heritage payments, and $100,000 for moving costs.
Void Bad Settlements
The 2025 settlement that kicked families off the land is canceled. The pastoral zone comes back. Ranching returns to Point Reyes.
Heritage Family Priority
Families like the Kehoes (103 years), Mendozas (since 1919), Spalettas (since 1870s), and Nunes family get first priority. Their knowledge stays on the land.
💰 Tax Benefits and Financial Relief
Fair taxes and new income sources for family farmers and ranchers
Restitution is Tax-Free
Money families receive from the Restitution Fund is not taxed as income. It's treated as getting back what was taken from you — restoration of capital, not new income.
Sell Carbon Credits
Ranchers can sell carbon credits for good land practices. The money is yours — it doesn't count toward your lease rent. New income stream for doing things right.
Lower Lease Fees
Stewards who follow regenerative practices get up to 25% off their lease costs. Rent is based on what the land can produce for farming — not fancy real estate prices.
🌱 Regenerative Stewardship Standards
Good land practices that help you and help the environment
Healthy Soil
Keep or build soil organic matter. At least 3% in top 6 inches within 10 years. Healthy soil grows better food.
Clean Water
35-foot buffers along streams. Keep livestock from damaging waterways. Better water for everyone.
Wildlife Friendly
Habitat for bees and pollinators. Wildlife can move through farm lands. Nature and farming together.
Fire Safe
Keep fuel loads low through grazing. Less than 2 tons per acre of fine fuels in high-risk zones. Animals prevent fires.
Control Invasives
Keep invasive plants below 10% of your land. Annual monitoring and control. Native plants thrive.
Certification Benefits
Priority for lease renewal. Lower fees. Access to cost-share money. ESA safe harbor protection.
👷 How This Helps Workers and Communities
Support for the people who grow our food and keep our land healthy
👨🌾 Family Farm Priority
Family operations get first choice for federal land leases. Beginning farmers, veteran farmers, and socially disadvantaged farmers get priority too. Big corporations go to the back of the line.
Families First🌾 Farm Worker Protections
When family ranches stay, their workers stay too. Margarito Loza worked D Ranch for 34 years before being forced out. This law brings those jobs back.
Jobs Protected🌲 Timber Worker Jobs
50% increase in sustainable timber harvest creates jobs. Small businesses and local mills get priority. Work stays within 100 miles of harvest sites.
Local Jobs Priority🏫 School Lunch Program
Schools get priority to buy food from federal land stewards. Fresh, local food for kids. Better nutrition for students. Supports local ranchers and farmers.
Fresh Local Food🎖️ Veteran Rancher & Farmer Training
Helping veterans build new careers as land stewards
12-Month Apprenticeship
Learn from experienced federal land stewards. Get paid at least minimum wage while you train. Hands-on experience on real working land.
Classroom Learning
Land-grant university classes in regenerative agriculture, livestock management, and business planning. Learn the Stewardship Standards.
Startup Help
Assistance getting financing, equipment, and livestock for your own operation. Don't start from scratch — get real support.
Priority Placement
After completing training, veterans get priority for federal land steward positions. Your service leads to a new career on the land.
🔥 Biomass & Wildfire Safety Pilot
Turn fire danger into energy and safer homes
Forest Waste to Energy
Tree brush and slash that could burn in wildfires gets picked up and turned into biogas. Less fire fuel, more clean energy.
Manure to Compost
Livestock waste becomes valuable compost and soil amendments. Methane captured instead of released. Farmers get income from waste.
Defensible Space Grants
Homeowners get grants to make homes fire-safe. Up to 75% of costs, 90% for low-income and seniors. Protect your home from wildfires.
Self-Funding Program
Program pays for itself through compost sales and biogas fees. No taxpayer money after startup. Voluntary — no mandates on anyone.
🥩 Protecting Our Food Supply
Local food is safer, fresher, and better for the planet
National Security Resource
Food from federal lands is now officially a strategic national security resource. Can't be cut without careful review.
Carbon Leakage Analysis
Before shutting down local farms, agencies must study whether pollution just moves elsewhere. Local is usually better for the planet.
School Food Priority
Schools can give 10% preference to buying from local federal land stewards. Fresh food for kids, support for local ranchers.
Federal Facility Buying
Government cafeterias encouraged to buy from federal land stewards when prices are fair. Your tax dollars support local food.
Less Trucking
Local food means fewer long-haul trucks. Less pollution, fresher food, stronger local economies.
Climate Smart
Closing local farms doesn't help the planet — it just moves pollution elsewhere. Keep food production local.
Built-In Accountability
Responsible spending with sunset provisions and reviews
Families, Food, and the Land — Together
This isn't about keeping people off the land — it's about keeping the right people on it. Family ranchers and farmers who've cared for this land for generations deserve security. Their work feeds us, protects us from wildfires, and keeps our rural communities alive. Humans and nature work best together.