FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 11, 1996
Contact: Jason Kelly (202)224-8440 or Dana Hagerty (202)225-2165
(WASHINGTON, DC) -- Senator Paul Wellstone and Representative Collin Peterson (DFL-7th District) met today with White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta and Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman to discuss the Northeast Dairy Compact. The Compact, which USDA would have to approve, sets up a special regional pricing scheme for New England dairy farmers. Wellstone and Peterson urged the Administration not to approve the Compact.
“There is simply no compelling reason to set up a special program for the Northeast region,” Wellstone said. “I made it clear to Mr. Panetta and Secretary Glickman that this Compact is potentially detrimental to Midwestern dairy farmers, and must not be approved.”
During debate on the 1996 Farm Bill, Senator Wellstone sponsored an amendment to strike the Northeast Compact. The amendment passed 50-46. However, the provision reappeared during the House-Senate conference on the bill.
“This provision was not in either the House or the Senate bill when they went to conference, and by adding it in, the Republicans violated the normal rules of the legislative process,” Peterson said. “In addition, California already has its own market system, and this would allow the Northeast and then other parts of the country to move in that direction, which is the opposite of what we asked the Secretary to do in the Farm Bill. This is truly a dumb idea.”
Secretary Glickman said the USDA hopes to make a final decision on the Northeast Compact in the near future.