View source for Hatch Act of 1887

{{Short description|United States federal law}}
{{Other uses|Hatch Act (disambiguation){{!}}Hatch Act}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2025}}
{{No footnotes|date=October 2024}}

{{Infobox U.S. legislation
| shorttitle        = Hatch Act of 1887
| othershorttitles  =
| longtitle         = An Act to establish agricultural experiment stations in connection with the colleges established in the several States under the provisions of an act approved July second, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, and of the acts supplementary thereto.
| colloquialacronym = 
| nickname          = 
| enacted by        = 49th
| effective date    = March 2, 1887
| public law url    = 
| cite public law   = {{uspl|49|314}}
| cite statutes at large = {{usstat|24|440}}, Chapter 314
| acts amended    = 
| acts repealed   = 
| title amended   = [[Title 7 of the United States Code|7 U.S.C.: Agriculture]]
| sections created = {{Usc-title-chap|7|14}} § 361a et seq.
| sections amended = 
| leghisturl      = 
| introducedin    = House
| introducedbill  = {{USBill|49|H.R.|3066}}
| introducedby    = [[William H. Hatch]] ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]]-[[Missouri|MO]])
| introduceddate  = 
| committees      = 
| passedbody1     = House
| passeddate1     = 
| passedvote1     = Passed
| passedbody2     = Senate
| passedas2       = <!-- used if the second body changes the name of the legislation -->
| passeddate2     = January 25, 1887
| passedvote2     = [https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/49-2/s349 25-16], in lieu of {{USBill|49|S.|372}}
| conferencedate  = 
| passedbody3     = 
| passeddate3     = 
| passedvote3     = 
| agreedbody3     = <!-- used when the other body agrees without going into committee -->
| agreeddate3     = <!-- used when the other body agrees without going into committee -->
| agreedvote3     = <!-- used when the other body agrees without going into committee -->
| agreedbody4     = <!-- used if agreedbody3 further amends legislation -->
| agreeddate4     = <!-- used if agreedbody3 further amends legislation -->
| agreedvote4     = <!-- used if agreedbody3 further amends legislation -->
| passedbody4     = 
| passeddate4     = 
| passedvote4     = 
| signedpresident = [[Grover Cleveland]]
| signeddate      = March 2, 1887
| unsignedpresident = <!-- used when passed without presidential signing -->
| unsigneddate    = <!-- used when passed without presidential signing -->
| vetoedpresident = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| vetoeddate      = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddenbody1 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddendate1 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddenvote1 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddenbody2 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddendate2 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| overriddenvote2 = <!-- used when passed by overriding presidential veto -->
| amendments      = 
| SCOTUS cases    = 
}}
The '''Hatch Act of 1887''' (ch. 314, {{USStat|24|440}}, enacted 1887-03-02, {{USC|7|361a}} et seq.) gave federal funds, initially $15,000 each, to state land-grant colleges in order to create a series of [[agricultural experiment station]]s, as well as pass along new information, especially in the areas of soil minerals and plant growth. The bill was named for Congressman [[William H. Hatch|William Hatch]], who chaired the [[United States House Committee on Agriculture|House Committee of Agriculture]] at the time the bill was introduced. State agricultural stations created under this act were usually connected with those [[Land-grant university|land-grant state colleges and universities]] founded under the [[Morrill Act of 1862]], with few exceptions.

Many stations founded under the Hatch Act later became the foundations for state [[cooperative extension service]]s under the [[Smith–Lever Act of 1914]].

Congress amended the act in 1955 to add a formula that uses rural and farm population factors to allocate the annual appropriation for [[agricultural experiment station]]s among the states. Under the [[2002 farm bill]] (P.L. 107–171, Sec. 7212), states will continue to be required to provide at least 100% matching funds (traditionally, most states have provided more). On average, Hatch Act formula funds constitute 10% of total funding for each experiment station. (7 U.S.C. 361a et seq.).

==See also==
* [[Adams Act]] of 1906
* [[Purnell Act]] of 1925
* [[Bankhead–Jones Act of 1935]]
* [[George W. Atherton]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/COMPS-10292/uslm/COMPS-10292.xml Hatch Act of 1887] as amended ([https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/COMPS-10292/pdf/COMPS-10292.pdf PDF]/[https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/COMPS-10292/ details]) in the [[United States Government Publishing Office|GPO]] [https://www.govinfo.gov/help/comps Statute Compilations collection]
* {{cite web |url=https://www.nifa.usda.gov/grants/programs/capacity-grants/hatch-act-1887 |title=The Hatch Act of 1887 |website=National Institute of Food and Agriculture |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture}}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.apsnet.org/publications/phytopathology/backissues/Documents/1988Articles/phyto78n01_36.pdf |title=Impacts of the Hatch Act on the Science of Plant Pathology |last=Barnes |first=John M. |year=1988 |trans-title=Hatch Act Observance |publisher=The American Phytopathological Society}}
* {{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/CAT1108451008/page/2 |title=Hatch Agricultural Experiment - Stations Act |year=1948 |trans-title=Abridged List of Federal Laws Applicable to Agriculture |website=Internet Archive |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |page=2 |oclc=1037726571}}

{{Grover Cleveland}}
{{US farm acts}}
{{Portal bar|United States|Law|Schools|Agriculture}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatch Act Of 1888}}
[[Category:United States federal agriculture legislation]]
[[Category:United States federal public land legislation]]
[[Category:1887 in American law]]
[[Category:49th United States Congress]]