Easter Bunny May Bring a Farm Bill

January 15, 2002

The National Corn Growers Association believes a new farm bill could be finalized around Easter. One of the goals of the Bush administration was to have a new farm law enacted before the end of 2001. Because of disagreements in the Republican and Democrat camps, this didn't happen. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) pulled the farm bill from consideration before the holiday break after three failed attempts to end debate and proceed to a floor vote.

"Indications from USDA are that the (Bush) administration (and Congress) will agree on a farm bill by March," said Sam Willett, NCGA director of public policy "Without a farm bill in place, the USDA has held off on determining 2002 annual loan rates for crops. Agency officials have said they will wait up to two months in the hopes Congress can reach an agreement by then."

Currently, three factors dictate the eventual outcome of the farm bill in the Senate, according to the NCGA.

--The anticipated bleak federal budget projections by the Congressional Budget Office which could be out as early as Jan. 24. The projection is expected to show a deficit for fiscal year 2003, compared to the surpluses projected when Congress adopted its budget resolution for fiscal year 2002 that allotted billions of additional dollars for agriculture spending above and beyond current levels during the next 10 years.

--The lack of a consensus in the Senate after it rejected by a party-line 12-9 vote in November separate amendments offered by Sens. Richard Lugar (R-IN), Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Thad Cochran (R-MS) that would have fundamentally altered the farm bill adopted by the Senate Agriculture Committee.

--And the Senate's rejection, by a 59-38 vote, of an amendment offered by Sen. Tim Hutchison (R-AR) that would have replaced the current Senate version of the farm bill with one modeled after the House-passed version.

Willett said there is some optimism about the new legislation. "House Agriculture Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) has said the Bush administration would support the $73.5 billion in additional farm spending over the next 10 years that is in the fiscal year 2002 congressional budget resolution.

National Farmers Union (NFU) President Leland Swenson, in speeches to the Utah Farmers Union and Kansas Farmers Union state conventions last weekend, issued a passionate call for Congress to act swiftly to pass a new farm bill that provides an adequate safety net "to avert further economic strife in rural America."

Swenson said, "Congress must act immediately upon reconvening Jan. 23 to pass a farm bill with a significantly improved safety net. The passage of the farm bill is equal in priority to the consideration and passage of any other type of economic stimulus package."

"The economic devastation facing rural America extends well beyond the individual family farmers and ranchers operations," Swenson stated. "The increase in bankruptcies and declining rural populations results in the deterioration of the whole rural infrastructure. Its impact will be the continued loss of rural businesses, increased consolidations of schools, loss of health care services and facilities and the loss of rural transportation services. The ultimate results will be greater concentration and a contract production agriculture system."