Goal: The participants will attempt to reach consensus on the general principles that will govern risk management legislation this year.

 
Ground Rules:  Following opening statements from Members, the Moderator will make a brief introductory statement, introduce panelists, and begin the Roundtable discussion by calling on panelists to discuss the first of a group of key issues.  Panelists are encouraged to be concise and brief in their remarks.  Individual statements by panelists will be limited to no more than five minutes through the use of a time clock.   The audience will be invited to submit written questions on each issue area to the panelists. A staff member from the Congressional Research Service knowledgeable about crop insurance and farm risk management issues will assist the Moderator.  Ample time will be left at the end of the day to summarize the Roundtable
discussion.

Agenda: Morning Session

9:00   - 10:00  Opening statements by Chairman Lugar, Senator Harkin, and other Members.

10:00 - 10:10  Moderator’s introductory remarks.

10:10 - 11:05  Continue Federal Crop Insurance or Replace It With A Different Approach? 
Can an insurance-based program where farmers pay at least some portion of an actuarially sound risk-based premium be a successful safety net program?  Would a permanent disaster program be preferable?  Or focusing the Federal agricultural support budget on programs other than insurance, and leaving provision of crop insurance to the private sector, or to States that wish to establish such programs tuned to the particular agricultural situations they face?  If we retain Federal crop insurance, should it be delivered by the private sector or through the federal government?

11:05 - 12:00  What Should Be the Private Sector’s Role in Farm Risk Management?
What is the role of forward contracts, exchange-traded futures and options, and other private sector instruments in helping farmers manage risk, and how can they work in conjunction with Federal crop insurance?

12:00 - 1:00  Lunch.

Agenda: Afternoon Session

1:00 - 2:00  Continue An Insurance-Based Federal Crop Insurance Program, But Make Major Changes –  Alternative One:  Continue individual farm insurance subsidies, but shift away from insuring specific crops and toward insuring whole farm revenue which would include specialty crops and livestock.   Alternative Two:   Shift from a USDA centrally managed insurance program to one that features private sector innovation based on exclusive marketing rights and open premium rate competition among insurers.

2:00 - 3:00  Continue An Insurance-Based Program, With Modest Changes – Expanding Coverage.
Currently, Federal crop insurance has high deductibles, little coverage for multiple year crop losses, and does not extend to livestock and many specialty crops.  Should coverage be expanded?  If so, how?

3:00 - 4:00  Continue An Insurance-Based Program, With Modest Changes – Equity Across Regions.
Some argue that the USDA Risk Management Agency’s approach to setting premium rates and Federal reinsurance provisions established in the Standard Reinsurance Agreement favor some “high risk” regions over other regions.  If so, is some special treatment for high risk regions justified?  Should regions be treated more equitably and, if so, how?

4:00 - 5:00   Discussion of areas of consensus and disagreement.

Risk Management Roundtable
9:00 am, April 28, 1999 Rm. 106 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Moderator and Panelists Information

Moderator

Dr. Bruce Gardner
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics
University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland 20742
ph: (301) 405-1271 fax: (301) 314-9091 email: bruceg@arec.umd.edu
staff contact:  Liesl Koch ph: (301) 405-0057 email: lkoch@arec.umd.edu

Assistant Moderator

Ralph Chite
Congressional Research Service
ph: 707-7296 fax: 707-3342 email: rchite@crs.loc.gov

Panelists

Dr. Jerry Skees
Dept. of Agricultural Economics
University of Kentucky
310 Ag. Engr. Bldg
Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0276
ph: (606) 257-7262 fax: (606) 257-7210 email: jskees@pop.uky.edu

Dr. Keith Coble
Mississippi State University
P.O. Box 5187
321 Lloyd-Ricks
Mississippi State, Mississippi 39762
ph: (601) 325-6670 fax: (601) 325-8777, email: coble@agecon.msstate.edu

Neal E. Kottke
President
Kottke Associates, Inc.
141 West Jackson Blvd.
Rm. 1636
Chicago, Illinois 60604
ph: (312) 697-2969 fax: (312) 697-9562 email: nealkottke@kottkeassociates.com
staff contacts: Celeste Jurkovich, Chicago Board of Trade, ph: 783-1190 fax: 347-5835, email: cjur75@cbot.com
and Heather McFarland, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, ph: (202) 638-3838 fax: (202) 638-5799
email: hamcfarland@erols.com

Jerry Gulke
Farmer and President, Strategic Marketing Services, Inc.
5717 Fitzgerald Rd.
Rockford, Illinois 61102
ph: (815) 418-6420 fax (815) 962-6672 email: smsjgulke@aol.com

Doug Schmale
Farmer
President, Nebraska Wheat Board
3664 Rd. 139
Lodgepole, Nebraska 69149-5035
ph: (308) 483-5505 fax:(308) 483-5815
staff contact: Bev Paul with Senator Kerrey, ph: 224-3529 and Mike Seyfert with Senator
Roberts, ph: 224-4948

Phil Cyre
Farmer
44094 178th Street
Hazel, South Dakota 57242
ph: (605)628-2246, fax: (605)628-3354 or (605)352-6768, email: Phillip@Basec.net
staff contact: Stephanie Mercier with Senator Harkin, ph: 224-0014,

Joe Fletcher
President, Georgia Fruit and Vegetables Growers Association.
458 Lacrosse Road
Americus, Georgia 31709
ph: (912) 924-4744, fax: (912) 924-5556 or (912) 931-0865
staff contact: Richard Gumpton with Senator Coverdell, ph: 224-3643

Carole Brookins
Chairman and CEO
World Perspectives, Inc.
1150 18th Street N.W.
Suite 275
Washington, DC 20036
email: anitac@agrilink.com
staff contact: Greg Doud, ph: 785-3345, fax: 659-6891, email: gdoud@agrilink.com

John Joyce
President, Rain and Hail, L.L.C.
Regency West 1
Suite 200
1501 50th Street
West Des Moines, Iowa 50266-5925
email: john.joyce@rainhail.com
staff contact: Stephen Frerichs, American Association of Crop Insurers,
ph: 789-4100 fax: 408-7763 email: aaci@erols.com

Ken Ackerman
Administrator, Risk Management Agency
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Avenue
Washington, DC 20250-2351
ph: 690-2803, fax: 690-2002, email: ken_ackerman@wdc.fsa.usda.gov
staff contact: Alex Fischer, ph: 690-2495, fax: 690-2002

Robert Fulwider
Independent Insurance Agents of America
P.O. Box 198
West Liberty, Iowa 52776
(319) 627-2184 fax: (319) 627-2186 email: rjfwai@netins.net
staff contact: Tom McCrocklin, ph: (202) 863-7000, fax: 863-7015
email: tmccrocklin@iiaa.net