Senate Passes Farm Bill

February 13, 2002

By a 58-40 vote, the Senate today passed its farm bill. It is expected that conferees will be named immediately, but the conference will take some time to complete. There are several major differences between the two bills, including commodity loan rates and payment limitations. Tuesday, several amendments were considered, the approval of one bringing a pledge of opposition from the American Farm Bureau Federation not to support the Senate bill. A complete copy of the bill with amendments will be available on this web site when it is available.

Western senators added an amendment that would put $500 million of emergency funding in the Livestock Assistance Program (LAP). LAP provides financial relief to livestock producers who are experiencing livestock production loss due to drought and other disasters. Other provisions in the emergency funding amendment include $1.8 billion to the Commodity Credit Corporation for farmers suffering crop losses due to army worms, $100 million for apple producers who suffer from the loss of various markets and $50 million for the USDA's administration expenses.

Farmers would be subsidized to reduce irrigation water use in an effort to protect endangered fish under another amendment that angered western agricultural interests and brought a pledge from the Farm Bureau not to support the entire Senate farm bill. The $1 billion program was restricted to seven states: Maine, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Washington. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) predicted that "all the other states will be fighting to get in" the water conservation program once they see the benefits. The program is not included in a House-passed farm bill.

Bob Stallman, president of the AFBF, said the provision poses "an extraordinary new threat to agriculture and the ability of farmers and ranchers to remain economically viable. For that reason, we will oppose the Senate farm bill. We are also disappointed that the Senate voted last week to impose stringent limitations on farm payments. We believe that action will hurt family farmers, the group that payment limitation proponents say they are trying to help. It is unfortunate that the Senate farm bill is encumbered by these provisions, which jeopardize passage of a farm bill this year. The fact remains, farmers and ranchers need a farm bill sooner not later, one that provides assurances to their lenders that adequate government assistance will be forthcoming for the 2002 crops."

An amendment from Sen. Mitch McConnell also was adopted. It would provide $500 million in Food Stamp Program assistance by lowering planned increases in price supports and loan rates for farmers. The farm bill had called for farmers to receive a price support payment equal to $3.45 per bushel for wheat and $2.35 for corn. Under McConnell's plan, price supports would change to $3.445 per bushel for wheat and $2.347 for corn -- less than 1% per bushel.

Among its provisions, McConnell's proposal would allow low-income disabled individuals and their families with assets of up to $3,000 to be eligible for food stamps. Currently, households with disabled members are subject to a $2,000 resource eligibility limit. "Many children and families rely on food stamps for the greater part of their nutritional assistance," said McConnell. "I have been a long-time supporter of the Food Stamp Program."