Farm Policy News

The Senate passed a $286 billion farm bill on Friday, December 14, 2007 by a margin of 79-14. A roll call vote, which indicates how each Senator voted, is available from the Senate website.
 
Following passage in the House earlier in the year, the far-reaching piece of legislation now goes to conference committee, where members from both the House and Senate Agriculture Committees meet to negotiate the many differences between the two bills. The full conference proceedings may move forward quickly or may become bogged down over critical issues like funding.
 
From there, the final bill and conference report must be voted on and pass both the House and Senate floors in order to go to the President for his signature. President Bush has threatened to veto (reject) this legislation. If a veto does occur, more negotiation will take place. A two-thirds vote in each chamber is required to override a presidential veto and enact the legislation.
 
On the Senate floor, some amendments (proposed changes) were considered and most were defeated. Additional amendments, including some that would have strengthened fair markets and fair contract provisions and others that would have weakened them, were not considered owing to a cloture vote initiated by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to expedite the Bill as a whole. Key debates included consideration of amendments by Senators Byron Dorgan and Charles Grassley, as well as by Senator Amy Klobuchar, aimed at reforming commodity payment programs. The Dorgan-Grassley amendment would have capped commodity payments at $250,000 per farm, closed existing loopholes, and redirected the funds to a variety of programs, including those for beginning farmers. Klobuchar’s would have reduced the adjusted gross income level at which farmers become ineligible to receive payments and used the savings to provide additional funding for certain programs and reduce the Federal deficit. Both were defeated. For information on the votes on these and other amendments, see here.
Amendments relating to the farm bill are listed by the bill identification number from the House, or HR 2419.

A comparison of the current provisions affecting socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, including immigrant farmers and ranchers, contained in the farm bill as passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate can be found on Rural Coalition's website.
 
Other Outcomes of Senate Bill

• Set-aside for conservation programs for socially disadvantaged producers was included in the Senate bill (without amendment)

• Big differences in program provisions between House and Senate versions of the following programs: Beginning Farmers and Ranchers; 2501 Program (For Socially Disadvantaged Farmers & Ranchers); Value-Added Producer Grants; Environmental Quality Incentives program (EQIP), and the Conservation Security Program (CSP)

• Difference between Senate and House CSP funding

• Differences between House and Senate funding for other programs (Disaster Bill difference of $5B; Fresh Fruit & Vegetable program difference of $800M; disagreements over tax provisions) 

• Different House and Senate benefit levels for the Nutrition Program (though overall funding level is similar), and a Senate-only new funding baseline that ends after 5 years

• Difference in House and Senate increases in direct commodity payment limits of $60K vs., $40K, respectively

Resources for Farm Bill Advocacy:
For additional information on the Farm Bill, current action alerts, and pointers for writing letters or making calls to Members of Congress, visit:
 
Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s Farm Bill Action Center: www.sustainableagriculturecoalition.org
Community Food Security Coalition: www.foodsecurity.org
National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture: www.sustainableagriculture.net
Center for Rural Affairs: www.cfra.org
Farm and Food Policy Project: www.farmandfoodproject.org
Senate Agriculture Committee: http://agriculture.senate.gov/
 
SSAWG 2008 Policy Committee Conference Calls: 

Please join our calls for up-to-the-minute news on the Farm Bill.

January 9
February 13
March 12
April 9
May 14
June 11
July 9
August 13
September 10
October 8
November 12
December 10

Calls generally take place at 9:00 am (central), 10:00 am (eastern) on the second Wednesday of the month.  

To participate or if you have questions, contact Lydia Villanueva: 806.364.4445; toll-free: 866.684.4445; or email policy@ssawg.org.

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