Conference Agrees to New Farm Bill

A new Farm bill has been agreed to in conference.

Go to http://farmfutures.com/story-negotiators-return-conference-report-farm-bill-0-107932 to read more about it.

Here are some comments about the conference agreement:

“New York Farm Bureau is supportive of the Farm Bill that made its way out of conference committee in preparation for a final vote in both the House and Senate.  Our farmers have worked hard for the past three years advocating for a sensible bill that balances savings with an appropriate safety net for farmers and consumers alike. We appreciate the efforts of New York’s Congressional delegation who serve on their respective agriculture committees as well as those who fought hard in Washington for New York’s diverse agricultural community. The Farm Bill will be a benefit to New York agriculture and we encourage lawmakers to swiftly pass it for the greater good of America’s food system,” said Dean Norton, President of New York Farm Bureau.

“The bill includes reforms that could sow the seeds for a sustainable food and agriculture system. Programs that incentivize increasing access to healthy foods, developing regional food systems, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices are included and funded at higher levels. But these programs should be the core of this legislation instead of on the periphery. This Farm Bill, like many before it, still reinforces a food system rooted in overproduction of ingredients for processed food that tax our health and our environment.

“Transitioning to a sustainable food and farm system will not happen overnight. The Farm Bill is still the best avenue to start making this transition and this bill at least contains nuggets of improvement. There is always more work to be done, but for now, we urge Congress to put an end to the almost two years of uncertainty and pass the Farm Bill.” From Daniel J. Brito, senior Washington representative for Union for Concerned Scientist's Food & Environment Program

Ag Secretary: A Farm Bill Extension Won't Work

Weekly column from Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack:

In just a few days, Congress will come back to Washington, D.C. and rural America is counting on passage of a comprehensive, multiyear Food, Farm and Jobs Bill as soon as possible.

In January, Congress extended some of the 2008 Farm Bill programs for nine months. This didn’t include important disaster assistance programs for farmers and ranchers. On September 30, many of these programs will expire, leaving producers and rural communities without a wide variety of Farm Bill programs.

While Congress has already extended these programs once, another extension of current law isn’t common sense and it won’t solve this challenge.

An extension won’t provide the certainty that has for so long been a cornerstone of the Farm Bill. It would deny farmers and ranchers the ability to plan their operation around a predictable, long-term farm safety net. For rural communities, it would provide little certainty with regard to economic development programs. It would set no long-term standards for conservation or renewable energy programs.

And failure to pass a comprehensive Food, Farm and Jobs Bill would do nothing to solve the Brazil cotton trade dispute. Left unresolved, this situation threatens producers and small businesses in America with hundreds of millions of dollars annually in tariff penalties against U.S. agriculture products and other American-made goods.

All of this uncertainty would diminish the positive impacts that Farm Bill programs have in rural America. Another extension would not accomplish the many important goals that would be achieved through passage of a comprehensive, long-term bill. In many respects, it would simply reward failure on the part of Congress.

However, Congress has the opportunity to tackle this challenge and get a comprehensive bill done for rural America. A multi-year Food, Farm and Jobs Bill would lend the certainty and predictability that producers and rural communities deserve. It would put our farmers and ranchers in a position to continue a period of strong growth and growing exports, while providing a leg up for rural communities and working families.

Rural America is counting on Congress to get their job done as soon as possible on a new Food, Farm and Jobs Bill – not another extension.