Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) wants to help farmers threatened by foreclose due to land reappraisals.  More specifically, his bill would apply to foreclosures due to land reappraisals required by "shared appreciation agreements” (SAAs) signed a decade ago and that now are coming due.

When the SAAs were signed originally, farmers faced poor market conditions and were unable to meet their financial obligations.  SAAs allowed them to write down a portion of their debt to the federal government in exchange for repaying a percentage of the reappraised value of their property within 10 years.

The SAAs now are coming due, and many farmers are unable to repay the federal government because of low farm prices and "staggering reappraisal values," says Burns.  In some cases, the amount owed has nearly doubled.
 
I don't believe farmers should be penalized for the capital improvements they've made over the years, nor should they be
forced to accept a reappraisal from a company that has little knowledge of land values," Burns adds.