When a flood, wildfire, or other natural disaster damages a local watershed, communities often need to act fast — but current rules typically require waiting for a formal USDA agreement before starting cleanup. This bill, the Senate companion to HR-5781, would let state, local, and tribal governments begin eligible emergency watershed protection work before that agreement is in place. If the USDA later signs an agreement, those early costs count toward the community's share. But the local government takes on the risk if no agreement materializes.
Congressional Summary
Making Access To Cleanup Happen Act of 2025 or the MATCH Act of 2025This bill modifies the Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program to allow sponsors (i.e., states, local governments, and Indian tribes) to undertake certain emergency watershed protection measures prior to entering into a project agreement with USDA and count the costs as part of the sponsor's share of the project cost once an agreement with USDA is in place.As background, USDA's EWP Program offers assistance to sponsors to carry out projects that help safeguard people and property from floods, drought, fires, windstorms, and other natural disasters that impair a watershed.This bill requires USDA to identify a list of emergency watershed protection measures that a sponsor may incur costs for prior to entering into a project agreement with USDA under the EWP Program. USDA must develop a procedure, to be implemented at the state level, through which these entities may request additional emergency watershed protection measures. The cost of undertaking these additional measures may be incurred by a sponsor prior to entering into an agreement with USDA.Further, USDA must consider pre-agreement costs incurred by a sponsor for undertaking the emergency watershed protection measures as meeting part of a sponsor's contribution towards the project costs.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in Senate
- Action Date
- 2025-03-25
- Date Added
- 2026-03-30