A–PLUS Act

This bill directs the Secretary of Agriculture to revise section 201.67 of title 9, Code of Federal Regulations, within one year of enactment. The revision will clarify that market agencies , such as livestock auction owners, may have an ownership interest in, finance, or participate in the management or operation of a packer . This allowance is specifically for small meatpacking businesses, defined by cumulative slaughter capacities of less than 2,000 cattle and sheep per day or 700,000 per year, and less than 10,000 hogs per day or 3,000,000 per year. Market agencies with such interests are required to disclose these relationships to livestock sellers. The bill also includes a savings clause, affirming that it does not limit the Secretary's authority under the Packers and Stockyards Act to protect producers, competition, or market integrity.