Farm bill
Perdue schedules a two-day, three-state ‘back to our roots’ tour
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue plans to visit three New England states today and Friday "to gather input for the 2018 farm bill and increasing rural prosperity," announced USDA. The "back to our roots" tour follows a swing through five Midwestern states at the start of August.
GAO says ‘significant savings’ possible in crop insurance costs
The government could pare as much as $464 million annually from the cost of running the taxpayer-subsidized crop insurance system if it set more stringent terms with insurers, said a congressional watchdog agency. The recommendations hit different areas than the White House has targeted, or that lawmakers are expected to pursue in writing the 2018 farm bill.
Food stamp enrollment to fall steadily in the decade ahead, says CBO
Enrollment in food stamps, the premiere U.S. antihunger program, soared after the 2008-09 recession, prompting conservative lawmakers to say middle-class taxpayers could not afford the program. With the economic recovery, CBO estimates food stamp participation this year will be the lowest since 2010 and will decline annually through 2027.
Small government, anti-waste groups want to slash farm program and crop insurance
A coalition of small-government, anti-tax, and anti-waste groups says the 2018 farm law should abolish many of the subsidies now available to producers and "only provide risk-related assistance for uncontrollable natural events," such as major crop losses. "Farmers — especially those with operations with a million dollars or more in sales that account for most agricultural production — are more than capable of competing in the marketplace," say the 15 groups in a letter to lawmakers.
Across the board, farm groups ask Congress for more farm bill money
The continuing slump in the farm economy and shortcomings in the U.S. farm program make it imperative for Congress to provide additional funding for the 2018 farm bill, said a powerhouse bloc of farm groups. Their appeal to congressional budget and appropriations leaders came two weeks after the House Agriculture Committee asked for more money so it could plug holes in the farm safety net.
Hot issues could put the chill on farm bill fever
The Senate Agriculture Committee holds its first farm bill hearing today in Kansas, 19 months before expiration of current law. Congress has not enacted a farm bill on time since 1990, so an early start seems prudent — the committee held its kickoff in Washington last week. Yet, it's too early to push to the side other issues that could dominate 2017.
Conaway sees no sign of improvement in farm income slump
Leaders of the House Agriculture Committee said they aim to enact the new farm bill on time in 2018, "the first time in 16 years we will have done that," according to chairman Michael Conaway. The Texas Republican said the slump in farm income that began in 2013 "shows no signs of letting up."
Senate panel heads to the heartland — Roberts’ home state — for farm bill hearing
Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts says the committee is "heading straight to the heartland to talk directly to producers" for its first field hearing for the 2018 farm bill. "We need clear direction in what is working and what is not working in farm country, and we will be listening to see what needs to be adjusted," said Roberts, in announcing the Feb. 23 hearing at Kansas State University in his home state.
Farm subsidies don’t influence food prices or help the poor, study says
Farm subsidy programs have little impact on food consumption, food security or nutrition of the poor in the United States, say three economists in a paper written for the American Enterprise Institute, which promotes the free-enterprise system. "When filtered through the food chain, their impacts on retail prices and food consumption are surely tiny," the paper said.
Corn growers say yes to revenue guarantees, no to yield protection
Given the choice, Corn Belt farmers vastly prefer revenue guarantees for their crop, whether through crop insurance or farm subsidies, over coverage that is based on yields, says economist Gary Schnitkey of the University of Illinois. The research shows why proposals to revamp the federally subsidized crop insurance program typically bog down in Congress.
Weeks from departure, Obama team revamps fair-play rules in livestock marketing
As quickly as the Obama administration unveiled a package of rules meant to make it easier for livestock producers to prove unfair treatment at the hands of processors and packers, the largest cattle and hog groups called on the incoming Trump administration to blunt their impact.
States should push food-stamp recipients to work, says Conaway
After two years of hearings on the "past, present and future" of food stamps, the premier U.S. antihunger program, the House Agriculture Committee chairman says states "must ensure those who can work do" so. "There is concern that general work requirements are not adequately enforced," said chairman Michael Conaway in a 66-page report, referring to provisions dating from 1971 that working-age recipients should register for work and accept a suitable job if it is offered.
Urban farmers would get a hand from USDA under Stabenow bill
Urban agriculture, a comparative newcomer to the American food system, would gain wider access to loans and farming advice from USDA experts under a bill announced by Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow, the lead Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee. The legislation is an early, if not the first, entry for inclusion in the 2018 farm bill.
Trump and Clinton camps agree: Keep food stamps in the farm bill
Donald Trump will not back a popular conservative proposal to split food stamps from the rest of the farm bill, said Sam Clovis, a senior advisor to the Republican presidential nominee. Speaking for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, former deputy agriculture secretary Kathleen Merrigan said food stamps are a key element of farm bills and Clinton would oppose cuts to the premiere U.S. anti-hunger program.
Ag crisis is on the horizon unless farm economy improves
U.S. farm income is down sharply from the records set in 2013, with little improvement forecast in the near term. "If something doesn't change between now and 2018, we will be in a big crisis," said Zippy Duvall, president of the largest U.S. farm group, during a luncheon session with reporters, referring to the target date for Congress to overhaul farm policy law.
A foe of farm subsidies, think tank would remove food stamps from USDA
The conservative Heritage Foundation, which wants to eliminate crop subsidies and revenue insurance policies, also is gunning for food stamps, the largest federal anti-hunger program. In its recent "Blueprint for reform" paper, the foundation says control of food stamps should be transferred to the Department of Health and Human Services and that Congress "should introduce work requirements" for able-bodied adults.
Access to land, not estate tax, is barrier for new farmers, says Vilsack
After a roundtable discussion with beginning farmers in Iowa, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said their chief concern is finding land so they can set up their operations. "The continued focus on the estate tax makes no sense to me," said Vilsack, referring to the idea, popular in the farm sector, of abolishing the estate tax.
Will the next farm bill ‘Make CRP great again’?
The Conservation Reserve, the largest U.S. land-idling program, has shrunk to its smallest size since the late 1980s, when it was only a couple of years old. With low commodity prices forecast for years into the future, putting a pinch on farm income, economist David Widmar says a proposal to expand the reserve, which pays landowners an annual rent in exchange for retiring fragile farmland for 10 years or longer, "is likely to capture broad political appeal."