CONGRESSMAN
COLLIN C. PETERSON
Minnesota
- 7th District http://www.house.gov/collinpeterson/
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 26, 2002
CONTACT: Allison Myhre/218-847-5056 or 218-731-1657
Peterson
Announces Farm Bill Agreement
(Washington,
DC) – After weeks of discussion, Congressman Collin C. Peterson (DFL-7th
District) announced that the Farm Bill Conference Committee has reached an
agreement on a new Farm Bill.
The
six-year bill contains $73.5 billion in funding
over current spending levels to pay for programs in commodities, conservation,
rural development, nutrition, and trade. The
final bill is expected by next week, followed by approval of the full House and
Senate, and then signed by the President.
According
to Peterson, a senior member of the Farm Bill Conference Committee, the process
was long and difficult. “We waded
through thousands of pages of proposals and counter-proposals and carved out a
compromise,” Peterson said. “This
is the best deal we could put together at this time. No one got everything they
wanted and there was a lot of give and take on all sides.
Is it everything we wanted? No,
but it gives us a Farm Bill to work from.
“I
am disappointed that the disaster provision was not included in the Farm Bill,
however, I helped raise awareness of the problems facing many parts of rural
Minnesota. Because emergency disaster aid did not make it into this Farm Bill,
I’ve introduced legislation in the House that would
provide $1.8 billion for crop loss assistance. I’m cautiously
optimistic that the House Leadership will agree to include this assistance in
the Supplemental Appropriations bill moving through Congress right now.”
According
to Peterson, marketing loan rates are set for two years and then slightly
lowered afterwards, but are floored for the duration of the Farm Bill.
Although the final numbers may change, expected
loan rates are: wheat $2.80(2.75 after two years), corn $1.98(1.95), barley
$1.88(1.85), soybeans $5.03(4.96), minor oilseeds $.093, and oats $1.35.
Target prices and fixed payment levels are
still subject to final budget analysis by the Congressional Budget Office.
A new dairy safety net will be available with the
new Farm Bill as well. The bill
establishes a counter-cyclical National Dairy Program for three and a half years
that makes payments to all U.S. producers up to 2.4 million pounds of milk
(133-cow equivalent). The payments
will be set at 45% of the difference between the Boston Class I price and $16.94
per hundredweight. “We were able
to craft a national dairy payment system that treats all regions the same and is
targeted to smaller farms,” said Peterson.
Although
not resolved in the Conference Committee, the issue of packer ownership of
livestock will continue to have a voice. “I can assure everyone out there who
called for a ban that you have moved this issue forward. My colleagues on the
Agriculture Committee who opposed this effort heard the message that something
must be done.
“I
plan to draft legislation that would update the nearly 100-year old Packers
& Stockyards Act in order gain more market power and transparency for our
farmers,” Peterson said. “I also received assurances that we will hold
hearings that will eventually lead to legislation on this important issue.”
Peterson
was the only House member of the Farm Bill Conference Committee who voiced his
support for the elimination of packer ownership of livestock.
The
agreement also includes a new country of origin labeling requirement on fruits,
vegetables, and meat. On the meat
side, poultry is excluded but beef products will be required to be labeled as
born and raised in the United States. The
bill requires the creation of a voluntary system that would become mandatory in
two years. “Although I have some
concerns about the compromised version of country of origin labeling, I believe
this is a positive turn in the effort to get better labeling of our food.”
The
Conference Committee also agreed to significantly increase conservation program
spending 80 percent over current levels. “There has been strong support for
conservation in the Farm Bill discussions,” Peterson said. “I think farmers,
sportsmen and conservationists agree that we share common ground on increasing
these programs.”
Funding
levels for specific conservation programs may still be adjusted somewhat in
order to remain within the allocated $17.1 billion increase in conservation
spending.
Increases
in conservation spending tentatively include raising the cap on acreage in the
Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) from 36.4 to 39.2 million acres. The
committee also agreed to fix the problems with conservation priority areas in
CRP, elevate wildlife as a declared priority of the program, and to encourage
use of CRP land for developing wind energy and biomass, including hybrid poplar.
The
Wetland Reserve Program (WRP) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)
are expected to each see significant increases, with WRP acreage enrollment
doubling in size with an additional 1.35 million acres, and WHIP funded at $700
million over the life of the Farm Bill.
It
is anticipated that the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which provides
cost share assistance to farmers, will increase to $9.0 billion.
Tentative agreement was also reached to establish two brand new conservation programs. The two million acre Grassland Reserve Program will preserve and restore native prairies, and a $2.0 billion nationwide Conservation Security Program will provide incentive payments to producers for certain farm practices on working lands.
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