crop insurance
Senate Republicans to target food stamps for big cuts
The budget package expected next week from Senate Republicans would convert the food-stamp program into something "similar to a block grant," says the Wall Street Journal, based on interviews with lawmakers and aides.
GAO: Crop insurance should cost more in high-risk counties
Crop insurance premiums should be raised "by as much as the full 20 percent annually that is allowed by law" in high-risk counties to improve the actuarial soundness of the federally subsidized program, said the Government Accountability Office.
USDA modifies NAP to reach more specialty-crop growers
The Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), which protects commodities not covered by crop insurance, is being modified to increase access for beginning, limited-resource and other producers who do not have risk protection from...
House ag-funding leader opposes crop insurance cuts
The chairman of the House Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture said he opposes the administration proposal for a 17 percent cut in crop insurance funding.
Large array of groups oppose food and farm cuts
Some 392 groups, ranging from bankers and equipment makers to farmers and antihunger activists, asked the Senate and House Budget committees to forgo any cuts in Agriculture Department programs.
Merrigan succeeds Hirshberg at AGree farm-policy project
Former deputy agriculture secretary Kathleen Merrigan will become a co-chair of the AGree farm-policy initiative, succeeding Gary Hirshberg, founder of the organic food company Stonyfield Farm. Hirshberg is a leader in the campaign to label GMO foods. As a Senate staff worker, Merrigan had a key role in legislation creating the national organic program in 1990 and in implementing it nearly a decade later at the USDA. She was deputy secretary from 2009-13.
FAA rules limit drones’ range, and appeal, to farmers
The FAA's proposed rules for drones are too restrictive for them to live up the farmers' hopes to search for stray cattle or monitor trouble spots in crops, says Reuters.
No cuts here, please, House Agriculture tells budgeteers
The House Agriculture Committee pointed to spending cuts enacted as part of the 2014 farm law, and asked the Budget Committee to look to the other 98 percent of the federal budget for savings. "From our perspective, we believe the Committee on Agriculture has done its part for now with respect to deficit reduction," says a letter approved on a voice vote by committee members. The farm law called for $23 billion in savings and the committee says the savings "remain intact."
Deficit hawks join Flake in pushing for crop insurance reform
A dozen conservative groups and the Environmental Working Group are backing proposals in Congress to eliminate premium subsidies for the Harvest Price Option in crop insurance.
“The wrong time to weaken crop insurance,” says Conaway
At the first House Agriculture Committee hearing of the year, chairman Mike Conaway told Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, "With commodity markets plummeting and crop producers struggling to find financing, now is precisely the wrong time to weaken crop insurance." It was the latest rebuff from the farm sector of White House proposals to reduce crop insurance spending by 17 percent through a lower premium subsidy on revenue policies that insure the price at harvest time, and by adjusting payment rates for prevented-planting claims.
“Their real end game is to kill crop insurance,” says Conaway
House Agriculture chairman Mike Conaway says that calls to reduce the cost of crop insurance are billed as reform, "but we know the real end game is to kill crop insurance."
Crop insurance cut of 17% is proposed in USDA budget
Two crop insurance reforms would cut the cost of the federally subsidized program by about 17 percent under the fiscal 2016 budget proposed for the Agriculture Department. The program is a routine target for cuts, most of which are rejected. This time, the administration proposed a lower premium subsidy for so-called revenue policies based on prices at harvest time, and reforms to prevented-planting coverage. Together, the changes would save $16 billion over 10 years.
Premium cap on crop insurance could hurt enrollment-Vilsack
The Senate proposal to place a $50,000 cap on premium subsidies for farmers buying crop insurance "could potentially impact participation" in the program, says Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The government pays an average of 62 cents of each $1 of premium, although the subsidy rate is as high as 80 percent on some policies. During a tele-conference, Vilsack said, "We don't want to go back to the days of ad hoc (disaster relief) legislation. That could potentially be much more expensive."
“The most challenging year” for crop insurance
One of the top lobbyists at the American Farm Bureau Federation says budget-cutting pressure means that, "This is probably the most challenging year for crop insurance in a long time," AgWeb reports in a story from the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau meeting.
Sticker shock in southern Plains, mid-South for SCO
Growers in the southern Plains and the mid-South express sticker shock at the price of the new Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO), created by the 2014 farm law to allow growers to boost their level of revenue protection, says DTN.
USDA offers more protection against loss of specialized crops
The Agriculture Department announced an expansion of the Noninsured Crop Disaster Program (NAP) to cover more crops and at higher levels of protection. NAP operates like insurance for crops not covered by the federally subsidized insurance program.
More than half of producers enroll in new dairy program
More than 23,000 dairy producers - over half of the dairy operations in the country - enrolled in the new Margin Protection Program, created by the 2014 farm law as a replacement to the previous dairy subsidies, said USDA.
Merkley is top Dem on Senate panel handling ag funds
Second-term Sen Jeff Merkley of Oregon is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture and FDA for the 114th Congress, said Sen Barbara Mikulski, the Democratic leader on the committee, in a statement.
Farmers to get $10 billion in economic assistance
President Biden signed a stop-gap government funding bill over the weekend that calls for speedy payment of $10 billion to farmers to buffer lower commodity prices and high production costs. Congress voted to fund the government through March 14 after a fight that showed the limits of President-elect Trump's control over Republican lawmakers.