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Dairy Pricing Reform Act proposed

April 3, 2013 By Leave a Comment

New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has introduced the Dairy Pricing Reform Act with co-sponsor Susan Collins of Maine. The aim is to restructure the USDA’s pricing system for dairy and is based on Gillibrand’s proposal in last year’s Senate-passed Farm Bill. According to her news release, the bipartisan measure would require the USDA to study different methods of price determination “including competitive pay pricing or shifting from a 4 class system to a 2 class system.”

Gillibrand says New York dairy farmers are being driven out of business with the lack of a comprehensive plan for long-term support and certainty. She says the bill will provide a “fair safety net for small producers” while improving “inventory reporting and transparency.”

Gillibrand says the Senate is expected to take up the farm bill in the next few weeks.

 

Filed Under: Dairy, News, Top Stories Tagged With: , , , , ,

Livestock disaster bill introduced in Senate

January 25, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Addressing drought concerns, a livestock disaster bill has been introduced (Thursday night) by Senators Max Baucus of Montana, Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow and Missouri Senator Roy Blunt. It would extend ag disaster assistance programs that expired at the end of the 2011 fiscal year which were not part of the nine-month 2008 Farm Bill extension.

Missouri Cattlemen’s Association executive vice president Mike Deering says they’re among the Missouri Ag groups pushing for this legislation. Deering tells Brownfield Ag News, “Along with Missouri Farm Bureau and Missouri Soybean, Missouri Pork, Missouri Corn, several other coalitions – we wrote a letter to our delegation in Washington, D.C. from Missouri and let them know that we have to allocate funding for disaster assistance. Yeah, it’s in the farm bill but there’s no funding for it.”

Deering says things are being done at the state level to provide assistance to drought-stricken cattle operations, but, he adds, no one can make it rain, “Looking for hay, we have a hay directory on our website. We’re doing everything we can to try to help our producers but we feel kind of helpless. There’s not a whole lot we can do.”

The bill would extend the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), the Livestock Forage Program (LFP), and, the Emergency Livestock Assistance Program. It would also extend the (ELAP), the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance program (NAP) and the Tree Assistance Program (TAP).

Senators Baucus and Stabenow included a provision for a permanent extension of those programs in the Senate Farm Bill that passed last June.

Senator Blunt says Missouri has the second highest number of farms in the nation and the drought has taken a devastating toll on farm families in Missouri and nationwide. He says he “won’t stop fighting for critical disaster relief” to get farmers and ranchers “back on their feet again.”

Filed Under: Livestock, News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Rice Federation applauds farm bill extension

January 3, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The USA Rice Federation applauds the extension of the 2008 Farm Bill by Congress. They cite the “critical importance” of continuing direct payments and market access promotion programs in the current legislation for the rice industry.

Acknowledging the hard work of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees on farm bill policy over the last few years, they are urging lawmakers to include a five-year farm bill “in broader deficit reduction legislation this year.”

They praised House Ag leaders Lucas (R-OK) and Peterson (D-MN) and rice state Senators Boozman (R-AR), Cochran (R-MS) and Chambliss (R-GA) for supporting legislation that they say works for rice farmers. The Federation urges the 113th Congress to come up with a farm bill that works “for all crops, in all regions” of the country.

Filed Under: Crops, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Senate passes fiscal cliff package

January 1, 2013 By 1 Comment

Certain portions of the 2008 Farm Bill would be extended as part of the fiscal cliff package being considered in Congress.  Although details of the extension are still somewhat sketchy, it apparently does include language that will keep milk prices from rising. 

Some of the details that have emerged:

Income Tax:   Tax rates will permanently rise to Clinton-era levels for families with income above $450,000 and individuals above $400,000. All income below the threshold will permanently be taxed at Bush-era rates.

Estate Tax: Estates would be taxed at a top rate of 40 percent, with the first $5 million in value exempted for individual estates and $10 million for family estates. In 2012, such estates were subject to a top rate of 35 percent.

Capital gains, dividends: Taxes on capital gains and dividend income exceeding $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for families would increase from 15 percent to 20 percent.

Farm Bill: A nine-month farm bill fix will be attached to the deal, and would avert the “dairy cliff”. 

The measure passed the Senate with strong bi-partisan support (89-8) and could be voted on in the House later today.

Filed Under: News, Top Stories, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Will there or won’t there..

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Monday morning’s Farm Bill update…

American Farm Bureau Federation Senior Director of Congressional Relations Mary Kay Thatcher says late Saturday night there were three bills put on the Extension Calendar in the House; which means they could be called for a vote today. 

“One of those bills is a lengthy bill that extends current programs,” she says.  “It does reduce the direct payments a little bit in order to pay for some of the extension of those 37 expiring provisions – including livestock disaster assistance.  It also puts in place the new dairy program – moving to a gross margin program and doing away with the price supports and the MILC program.”  The other two, she says are short, 30 day extensions.

Thatcher tells Brownfield Committee leaders are in agreement a five-year bill is not in the cards – and an extension, at this point, is the best option. “I strongly suspect none of the leaders are going to be very excited about a one month extension,” she says. “With Congress just coming back and 80 new members in the House; they’ll still be looking for the bathroom on the 31st of January – let along trying to pass a new Farm Bill.”

She says as of this morning Majority Leader Cantor did not have any of the bills on the schedule for the House today – so the farm bill still may not see a vote today.

AUDIO: Mary Kay Thatcher, AFBF - Farm Bill Update (4:03mp3)

 

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Rural Issues Tagged With: , ,

Farm Bill talks continue

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Will there be a Farm Bill today?  That’s still uncertain. 

American Farm Bureau Federation Senior Director of Congressional Relations Mary Kay Thatcher says late Saturday night there were three bills put on the Extension Calendar in the House; which means they could be called for a vote today. 

“One of those bills is a lengthy bill that extends current programs,” she says.  “It does reduce the direct payments a little bit in order to pay for some of the extension of those 37 expiring provisions – including livestock disaster assistance.  It also puts in place the new dairy program – moving to a gross margin program and doing away with the price supports and the MILC program.”  The other two, she says are short, 30 day extensions.

Thatcher tells Brownfield Committee leaders are in agreement a five-year bill is not in the cards – and an extension, at this point, is the best option. “I strongly suspect none of the leaders are going to be very excited about a one month extension,” she says. “With Congress just coming back and 80 new members in the House; they’ll still be looking for the bathroom on the 31st of January – let along trying to pass a new Farm Bill.”

She says as of this morning Majority Leader Cantor did not have any of the bills on the schedule for the House today – so the farm bill still may not see a vote today.

AUDIO: Mary Kay Thatcher, AFBF - Farm Bill Update (4:03mp3)

 

Filed Under: Human Interest, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , , ,

Stabenow blasts House leader over farm bill

December 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Senate Ag committee chairwoman Debbie Stabenow blasted House GOP leaders during a speech on the Senate floor for ongoing inaction on a five-year farm bill.  On Wednesday, taking a stronger tone than normal, Stabenow said she is “appalled” that Speaker John Boehner has done nothing to move it forward.  Stabenow

“The 16-Million people across America who work because of agriculture, deserve to be a priority.”  Stabenow said the question isn’t whether the House and Senate Ag leaders can come together on a commodity title, because she says they can and they will. She says the question is, “Whether or not as we are seeing efforts to being worked on for a larger deficit reduction package, whether the House leadership will think rural America and agriculture are important enough to include. That’s the question.”

Stabenow pointed out that it’s been 80 days since the 2008 farm bill expired.  The Senate-passed farm bill and the House Ag-approved farm bill propose significant budget savings, but aides to Boehner tell Politico that the speaker doesn’t want to include a farm bill in a fiscal cliff package for fear of losing more Republican votes.

Filed Under: Crops, Dairy, Human Interest, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Livestock disaster amendment tabled

December 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

An attempt to extend livestock and specialty crop disaster assistance into next year, in lieu of a five-year farm bill, was made Tuesday in the U.S. Senate.  But DTN reports the amendment to Hurricane Sandy disaster legislation has been tabled and likely won’t be a part of the final disaster bill.

The amendment would have extended livestock disaster assistance and the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) for one year. It was sponsored by Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon and co-sponsored by several other democrats including Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Max Baucus of Montana and Claire McCaskill of Missouri.  Passage this year of a five-year farm bill remains uncertain.

Filed Under: Crops, Livestock, News Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Supplemental Coverage Option worth a look

December 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When it comes to proposed changes to the farm safety net, Dr. Carl Zulauf, Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics at the Ohio State University says one that farmers need to take a look at is the Supplemental Coverage Option or SCO, a program found in both the House and Senate version of the Farm Bill.

Audio: Dr. Carl Zulauf, Ohio State University (3:00 mp3)

Filed Under: Feature Programs, Managing for Profit Tagged With: , , ,

Indications that Congress may do something

December 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Speaking at the Ohio Pork Producer Council’s (OPPC) annual meeting Tuesday, December 11, Chris Wall, Assistant Vice President, Domestic Public Policy for the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said there are indications that Congress may actually do something before the end of the year that would satisfy both parties, including passing a 5-year Farm Bill. But the likelihood of that happening is in the hands of leadership.

“Chairwoman Stabenow and Chairman Lucas are working daily to have a product ready to go when leadership asks them,” said Wall. “It’s really just a will of leadership to make a commitment to pass this Farm Bill and make a commitment to America’s farmers.”

Looking to 2013, Wall tells Brownfield the major issues NPPC will be focusing on includes passing the 2012 Farm Bill, number two on their priority list will be energy policy and third an issue that could have a significant impact on pork producers, antibiotic usage.

“There’s going to be a vehicle moving through Congress that will allow our detractors a place to play mischief with antibiotic usage, so we’re going to have to a lot of work and education on that front as well,” Wall said.

What will make it somewhat more challenging is the fact that the debate will take place in committees not as familiar to agriculture.

“We’re going to be out of our comfort zone a little bit, but it’s incumbent upon us to nurture and foster those relationships and again it’s all about education,” said Wall. “Educating these members on the importance of tools that producers have to raise livestock.”

Audio: Chris Wall, National Pork Producers Council (4:20 mp3)

Filed Under: Livestock, News Tagged With: , , , ,
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