Agriculture Panels Have Busy July

July 14, 2000

A flurry of hearings will make July a busy month for both the House and Senate agriculture committees, though major legislation sought by both panels remains in doubt.

In the next two weeks, Senators will review U.S. export program performance and look at how rising energy prices affect agriculture. The Senate committee will also hear about a possible international version of the U.S. school lunch program, an idea being promoted by former Senators and Presidential nominees George McGovern and Bob Dole. Finally, the committee will review the sugar price support program, the focus of increasing controversy and rising federal costs.

Meanwhile, House members will continue their wide-ranging review of farm policy, with hearings July 19 and 26. On July 27, the House Agriculture Committee will review the recent bribery scandal involving USDA inspectors at the Hunts Point Marketing Terminal in New York City.

Both committees have approved major legislation to reform futures trading laws and would like to shepherd the bills to final passage later this year. For this month, though, the focus of attention will be elsewhere, at least in the House. Both the Commerce and Banking committees have 30 days to consider the bill already passed by the Agriculture Committee. A Commerce markup, at least, could come sooner rather than later, according to committee sources. The Banking Committee has scheduled a hearing for Tuesday.

The reform bill’s ultimate fate is unclear, as are prospects for legislation to end the ban on interstate shipment of state-inspected meat. That legislation has been complicated by recent court decisions that weakened the basis of two major food safety regulatory initiatives.