7 U.S.C. § 1507 — Personnel of Corporation

(a) Appointment; civil-service exemption; compensation. The Secretary must appoint the officers and employees needed to conduct the Corporation's business under the civil-service laws and regulations. The Secretary must set their compensation under chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, define their authority and duties, and delegate to them powers vested in the Corporation as the Secretary considers appropriate. However, people paid by the hour, day, or month while actually employed may be appointed without regard to civil-service laws and regulations. (b) Application of employees' compensation law. To the extent it applies, subchapter I of chapter 81 of title 5 extends its benefits to people employed under this subchapter, including employees of the committees and associations mentioned in subsection (c) and members of those committees. (c) Use of associations of producers and private insurance companies; payment of administrative and program expenses; sale of crop insurance through private agents and brokers; renewals, exclusion of compensation from premium rates, indemnification for errors or omissions. In administering this subchapter, the Board must, to the maximum extent possible: (1) establish or use committees or associations of producers and pay them the administrative and program expenses that the Board determines they incur while cooperating in carrying out this subchapter; (2) contract with private insurance companies, private rating bureaus, and other appropriate organizations for actuarial services, services relating to loss adjustment and insurance rating plans, and other services, to avoid duplicating services that the Federal Government can obtain or that are readily available in the private sector and to let the Corporation focus on regulating insurance under this subchapter and evaluating new products and materials submitted under section 1508(h) or 1523 of this title. The Board must reimburse those companies for the administrative and program expenses the Board determines they incur, under terms, provisions, and compensation rates consistent with those generally prevailing in the insurance industry; and (3) encourage the sale of Federal crop insurance through licensed private insurance agents and brokers and give an insured the right to renew the insurance for successive terms through those agents and brokers. In that case, the agent or broker must receive reasonable compensation from premiums paid by the insured for the sales and renewals, recognizing the agent's or broker's continuing services while the insurance is in effect. That compensation may not be included in calculations used to set premium rates. The Board must provide those agents and brokers with indemnification from the Corporation, including costs and reasonable attorney fees, for Corporation or contractor errors or omissions for which the agent or broker is sued or held liable, except to the extent the agent or broker caused the error or omission. Nothing in this subsection allows the Corporation to contract with other people to perform the Corporation's duty to review and approve policies, rates, and other materials submitted under section 1508(h). (d) Allotment of funds to Federal and State agencies. The Secretary may allot to Department bureaus and offices, or transfer to other State and Federal agencies that the Secretary asks to help carry out this subchapter, funds made available under section 1516 of this title. (e) Utilization of producer cooperative associations. In carrying out this subchapter, the Board may, at its discretion, use producer-owned and producer-controlled cooperative associations. (f) Use of resources, data, boards, and committees of Federal agencies. If the Board determines that it is necessary, the Board must use, to the maximum extent practicable, the resources, data, boards, and committees of: (1) the Natural Resources Conservation Service, to help the Board (A) classify land by risk and production capability and (B) consider acceptable conservation practices, including good farming practices concerning conservation, such as ending cover crops; (2) the Forest Service, to help the Board develop a timber insurance plan; (3) the Farm Service Agency, to help the Board (A) determine individual producer yields, (B) share information about beginning farmers and ranchers and veteran farmers and ranchers, (C) investigate possible waste, fraud, or abuse, (D) share information supporting the transition of crops and counties from the noninsured crop disaster assistance program established by section 7333 of this title to insurance under this subchapter, and (E) serve as a local point of contact for sharing information about risk-management choices available to farmers and ranchers; and (4) other Federal agencies, to help the Board in any way the Board determines is necessary to carry out this subchapter. (g) Specialty Crops Coordinator. (1) In general. The Corporation must establish a management-level position called the Specialty Crops Coordinator. (2) The Coordinator's primary responsibility is to address the needs of specialty-crop producers and provide information and advice connected with the Corporation's activities to improve and expand the insurance program for specialty crops. In carrying out this responsibility, the Coordinator must act as the Corporation's liaison with representatives of specialty-crop producers and assist the Corporation with the producers' knowledge, expertise, and familiarity with risk-management and production issues concerning specialty crops. (3) The Coordinator must use information collected from Corporation field-office directors in States where specialty crops have a significant economic effect and from other sources, including the extension service and colleges and universities. (4) Specialty crop liaisons. The Coordinator must (A) designate a Specialty Crops Liaison in each regional field office and (B) share the liaisons' contact information with specialty-crop producers. (5) Website. The Coordinator must establish a website focused on the Corporation's efforts to provide and expand crop insurance for specialty-crop producers. This section does not define the terms "producer", "specialty crop", "good farming practices", or "extension service".