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House begins farm bill markup

May 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The House Agriculture Committee began markup of HR 1947, the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013 this morning.  In his opening comments, Committee Chairman Frank Lucas says their version of the farm bill is reform-minded and developed with true bipartisanship.  “No other authorizing committee in Congress is voluntarily cutting money from its jurisdiction to reduce the size and scope of the federal government,” he says. 

Lucas adds no one on the committee will like everything in the farm bill, including himself, but it will need both Republican and Democratic support to pass.  “The FARRM Act reforms the SNAP program for the first time since the welfare reforms of 1996,” he says.  “We also reform farm programs.  We eliminate direct payments; the FARRM Act reflects the belief in a true safety net – something used when disaster hits.”

Ranking member Colin Peterson says today is hopefully the ‘beginning of the end’ of a process that has gone on in his words ‘far too long’.  “I’m optimistic we’re going to be able to get this done,” he says.  “Hopefully in June it will go to the floor and then we can get the bill conferenced.  It would be nice to get this done before the August recess.  I think we could do that if we get on track here.”

Passing a farm bill, Lucas says, will “give certainty to an industry that has been a bright spot in an otherwise dismal economy” and offer taxpayers billions of dollars in deficit reduction.

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Human Interest, News, Top Stories, USDA/Government Tagged With: , ,

Donnelly pleased to see five-year farm bill

May 14, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Indiana Senator and Ag Committee member Joe Donnelly says he’s pleased that the committee has approved a common sense, five-year farm bill giving the Hoosier ag and rural communities the certainty they deserve. 

“While no bill is perfect, there are a few areas of this bill I worked to improve based on feedback from Hoosiers,” he says.  “I worked to maintain full planting flexibility for Hoosier farmers wanting to grow fruits and vegetables on their farms; introduced an amendment to give the next generation of bioenergy crops access to base levels of risk management so that a logical safety net will be in place for producers; and supported an amendment to give USDA more authority in determining conservation program technical assistance funding levels with input from the field and the stakeholder community.”

The amendment, introduced by Donnelly with Senator Pat Roberts, addresses the increasing use of crops for biofuels.  The bipartisan amendment would amend the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program to offer coverage for crops producing feedstock for energy purposes.  The amendment would direct USDA to research and develop risk management tools promising new sorghum crops. 

Donnelly is urging prompt passage of this bill by the full Senate and for the House to follow suit.  He says, “Indiana farmers deserve more than the partisan gridlock that prevented a five-year farm bill from passing last year.”

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Sugar policy should stay the course, study finds

May 13, 2013 By Leave a Comment

A study commissioned by the American Sugar Alliance shows the candy industry and makers of other sugar-containing products (SCP)s are thriving under the nation’s current sugar policy.

Alliance policy analyst Jack Roney says it’s important to maintain current sugar policy as lawmakers begin marking up 2013 farm bill versions this week. Claims by candy industry lobbyists that sugar policy and sugar prices have caused them economic hardship, Roney says, are debunked by this study.

Roney tells reporters, “It’s kind of ironic in many ways to have the sugar-using companies criticizing sugar policy, criticizing sugar farmers when they are enjoying one of the most profitable periods that they’ve ever had, regardless of where sugar prices are, and likely to be even more profitable.”

Study author Alex Triantis says the cost of sugar is only 4-percent of the cost of producing confectionary products. U.S. sugar prices are flat. Any change to US policy, he says, will result in more U.S. sugar industry jobs lost.

Dr. Triantis says, “If U.S. sugar policy were to be altered in any significant way, a large number of jobs supported by the sugar industry would be lost and there’s no evidence that job loss would be counter-balanced by consumers benefitting from lower SCP (sugar-containing product) prices.”

Roney says lobbyists are seeking policy changes that would, for example, require the USDA to keep the U.S. market oversupplied with foreign sugar, “effectively capping sugar prices at a low level forever.”

Roney says there are related amendments circulating that could threaten to harm U.S. sugar beet producers and the industry and they aim to fight them.

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

‘Egg bill’ not part of Senate Farm Bill draft

May 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The initial draft of the Senate Farm Bill, released on Thursday, does not include the so-called “egg bill” language dictating cage size for egg-laying hens. 

It confirms earlier speculation that Senate Ag Committee chair Debbie Stabenow would drop her plan to include the controversial provision in the farm bill markup. But National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) vice president of government affairs Colin Woodall expects it to come up again during the farm bill process.

The president of the United Egg Producers (UEP), Chad Gregory, has been highly critical of NCBA and other ag groups who are fighting against the egg bill.  But NCBA’s Woodall maintains the legislation sets “a dangerous precedent”.

“And in Washington, D.C., precedent is everything,” Woodall says. “So even though this is a deal between UEP and HSUS, HSUS didn’t make any deals with us or the pork producers or anybody else in livestock—and they will use that precedent to eventually come after all of us.”

UEP’s Gregory says the egg bill is critical to the egg industry’s survival.  Woodall argues federal legislation is not UEP’s only option.

“If this is really what the egg industry wants, then there are other mechanisms that they can use to push for adoption among their members—other than making Congress do the dirty work and force it upon their members,” Woodall says.

UEP represents farmers who produce nearly 90 percent of the eggs in the U.S.

Link to earlier story and interview with Colin Woodall

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NFU’s take on the Senate Ag Farm Bill draft

May 9, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The Senate Agriculture Committee released its 2013 farm bill draft Thursday and the National Farmers Union says they are pleased with it overall.

Chandler Ghoule, NFU vice president of governmental affairs, tells Brownfield it is very similar to the Senate-passed farm bill of 2012 and they are pleased that additional price protections were added to Title One. However, he says, “The target prices that they did add were fairly low and we’re concerned that they won’t actually be substantial in the long run. We have asked that they increase the target prices for ALL commodities, across all regions.”  Ghoule says rice and peanuts got a very good deal and that’s likely due to the Senate Ag Committee’s new Ranking Member Thad Cochran of Mississippi.

While there isn’t a total breakdown of the numbers yet, Ghoule says the draft does maintain 23-Billion dollars for deficit reduction spending. Because the Congressional Budget office found last year’s bill would have only represented $13-Billion in cuts THIS year, Ghoule says the committee had to find extra savings to make that work.

“They had to find an additional $10 Billion to get back to $23 (Billion), where they were last year,” Ghoule explains, “We’ve seen most of those cuts have come out of Title One, a little bit out of conservation and, then, the rest of it coming out of crop insurance programs – but none of them so substantial that it would move our support for the bill.”

It also includes some programs such as the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program from the 2008 farm bill which were not included in the 2012 version.  The National Milk Producers Federation is also happy because the draft includes the Dairy Security Act. The Senate Ag Committee is scheduled to mark-up the bill on Tuesday.

The most important thing, Ghoule says, is to get a five-year farm bill passed before the one-year extension runs out on September 30th, 2013.

AUDIO: Interview with Chandler Ghoule (4:00 mp3)

 

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

NCBA official: Egg bill fight not over

May 7, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Even though Senate Ag Committee chair Debbie Stabenow has apparently backed off on plans to incorporate the so-called “egg bill” language into the Senate Farm Bill markup, Colin Woodall of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) says the battle is far from over. 

“Late word is the language has been removed,” Woodall says. “But now we are worried about an amendment situation where an amendment could be offered either during the committee markup of the farm bill, or possibly on the floor of the Senate, that would also try to get that agreement put back in.

“So even though we’ve had kind of a short-term victory, it looks like, we’re still prepared to fight this as we move forward with the Senate Farm Bill process.”

Woodall disagrees with arguments put forth by United Egg Producers and the Humane Society of the United States that the egg bill only involves the egg industry.

“This sets a precedent of Congress dictating, or mandating, a production practice to all of us in livestock—and all of us in production agriculture—and that’s just unacceptable,” he says.

According to Woodall, who is vice president of government affairs for NCBA, the Senate Farm Bill markup is expected to take place this Thursday.

AUDIO: Colin Woodall (8:14 MP3)

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Stabenow backs off, but egg bill fight is not over

May 7, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Senate Ag Committee chair Debbie Stabenow has apparently backed off on plans to incorporate the so-called “egg bill” into the Senate farm bill markup. 

But Colin Woodall, vice president of government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, tells Brownfield that the battle is far from over.

“Late word is the language has been removed,” Woodall says. “But now we are worried about an amendment situation where an amendment could be offered either during the committee markup of the farm bill, or possibly on the floor of the Senate, that would also try to get that agreement put back in.

“So even though we’ve had kind of a short-term victory, it looks like, we’re still prepared to fight this as we move forward with the Senate Farm Bill process.”

The Senate Farm Bill markup is expected to take place this week.

AUDIO: Colin Woodall (8:14 MP3)

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Source: Stabenow reconsiders egg bill plan

May 6, 2013 By 1 Comment

Reports out of Washington indicate that Senate Ag Committee chair Debbie Stabenow may be backing off on plans to incorporate the so-called “egg bill” into the Senate farm bill markup.  That markup is expected to take place this week.

A source on Capitol Hill tells Brownfield that Stabenow has apparently changed her mind on including the controversial provision in the markup.  However, our source says the measure could resurface later on as an amendment to the farm bill.

Stabenow’s office and Senate Ag Committee staff did not respond to Brownfield’s request for confirmation.

Reports that Stabenow planned to include the measure, which would set national standards for cages that house egg-laying hens, generated a flurry of protests last week from many farm and livestock groups.  National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) president Scott George told Politico that his group would oppose the farm bill if the egg language were added. 

The egg bill is the result of an agreement between the Humane Society of the United States and United Egg Producers (UEP).  In comments made to Politico, UEP president Chad Gregory lashed out at NCBA and the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) for opposing for egg bill.

“It’s insane, ludicrous for a staff person of NCBA or NPPC to be deciding the fate of a family egg business that has been in business for several generations,” Gregory said. “This egg bill has nothing to do with them.”

NCBA, NPPC and other livestock groups are concerned that allowing the federal government to dictate production standards for eggs could set a precedent for other segment of the livestock industry.

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Indications House will take up a farm bill

May 6, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The leadership of the U.S. House reportedly intends to bring a farm bill up for debate this summer, according to a memo from House Majority Leader Eric Cantor to House Republicans last Friday. Markup of a farm bill in the House Agriculture Committee could begin May 15th – according to Committee Chairman Frank Lucas.

Last year, that Committee passed a farm bill but it was never allowed to be brought to the House floor for debate by House leadership.

Meanwhile, the Senate Ag Committee could begin its farm bill markup as early as this week. At issue are concerns over the federal Egg Bill possibly being made a part of the measure, although there are reports that Senate Ag Chair Debbie Stabenow may be backing away from that idea.

Nebraska Senator Mike Johanns says that including the egg bill – which would require colony cages for all egg laying hens nationwide – would kill the farm bill as other livestock groups are opposed the measure crafted by the United Egg Producers (UEP) and the Humane Society of the U.S.

UEP president Chad Gregory says egg producers “desperately need a federal standard for egg production” which has nothing to do with any other livestock production.

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

Nebraska Farm Bureau: Keep egg measure out of the farm bill

May 2, 2013 By Leave a Comment

The president of Nebraska Farm Bureau says federal legislation dictating the size of cages for egg-laying hens “has no place in the Farm Bill”.

Steve Nelson was reacting to reports that Senate Ag Committee chair Debbie Stabenow plans to include the so-called Egg Bill in her markup of the Senate Farm Bill, which is expected to take place next week.

“The fact that Debbie Stabenow would even consider starting  the discussion on a new farm bill by including legislation initiated and advocated for by extremist organizations is a slap in the face to American farm families,” Nelson says.  “Including legislation to set a ‘one size fits all’ standard for the housing and treatment of egg-laying hens would set a dangerous precedent and only encourage further bullying of farm families by activists through baseless legal actions and public smear campaigns.” 

Nelson says such action by Stabenow “threatens the prospects of passing a much needed farm bill”.

“This is a huge issue and it certainly takes the regulatory control of government well beyond where we’ve been and into an area where it’s just completely unnecessary to have this kind of regulation in the farm bill,” Nelson says. “I still hope that there’s some way that some common sense will prevail and they’ll say ‘no, this doesn’t need to be in the farm bill’—and then they can move on.”

Agri-Pulse says Stabenow is being pressured by the Michigan Agri-business Association and others who support the Egg Bill, which is the result of an agreement between the Humane Society of the United States and United Egg Producers. 

AUDIO: Steve Nelson (2:54 MP3)

Filed Under: Events/Organizations, Livestock, News Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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