Soybean farmers were well represented at the Ag Media Summit this week in Buffalo by American Soybean Association Communications Director Patrick Delaney and president Danny Murphy.

Since I do a daily audio report for Agri-Pulse, I was happy to get to chat with Danny about the policy issues on ASA’s plate at the moment, which start with the ongoing farm bill saga. “It’s really been frustrating, disappointing, I don’t know how many adjectives you can use to describe it,” he said. “It’s really time and I guess it’s easy to question whether the House is really committed to passing a farm bill. They don’t really appear to be.”

The Mississippi farmer says the House is holding up other legislation important to agriculture, like the transportation bill. “Funding bills have to originate in the House so even though the Senate seemed really interested in maybe increasing the barge fuel tax as a source of revenue to get some of the improvements done on the Mississippi on the locks and dams,” said Danny. “The House has been reluctant to have any kind of tax increase … even though the barge owners would really like to see it.”

ASA is encouraging producers to make their views known to their representatives during this August recess and urge them to get to work.

Listen to my interview with Danny from AMS here: Interview with ASA president Danny Murphy
2013 Ag Media Summit Photo Album