Congressmen Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. and Don Davis have introduced H.R. 8198, the Heirs Education and Investment to Resolve Succession (HEIRS) of Property Act. The bill aims to help families resolve heirs’ property issues, which can take months or years, so they can use their land for agriculture production. The bill aims to support family farmers, particularly Black farmers, who have lost land due to heirs’ property issues. The bill would also make it easier for local non-profit organizations to work with heirs in their fight to bring land back to agricultural use. The bill would amend existing law to direct the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to work with nonprofit organizations to provide pro-bono legal or accounting services.
The HEIRS Property Act is supported by twenty organizations, one of which, the Mississippi Center for Justice, will be featured in our upcoming documentary film.
- Agricultural Law Institute for Underrepresented and Underserved Communities at Southern University Law Center
- American Forest Foundation
- The Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation
- The Center for NYC Neighborhoods
- Georgia Heirs Property Law Center, Inc.
- Limited Resource Landowner Education and Assistance Network (LRLEAN)
- Livelihoods Knowledge Exchange Network (LiKEN Knowledge)
- Local Initiatives Support Corporation
- Louisiana Appleseed Center for Law and Justice
- Middle Georgia Access to Justice Council, Inc.
- Mississippi Center for Justice
- National Black Food and Justice Alliance
- National Consumer Law Center
- National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
- National Young Farmers Coalition
- North Carolina Association of Black Lawyers Land Loss Prevention Project
- Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA (RAFI-USA)
- The Rural Coalition
- Union of Concerned Scientists
- Winston County Self Help Cooperative
