I’ll bet we see this look a lot next week when the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry holds a hearing titled, “Looking Ahead: Kansas and the 2012 Farm Bill.” Ranking committee member Senator Pat Roberts will be hosting. He sort of set the tone for the hearing in a letter to President Obama in advance of next week’s event. Click on the link for the full letter to see the list of regulations that will be addressed.
Dear Mr. President:
I write to provide you with insight into actions your Administration is considering that could negatively impact rural America.
At a town hall meeting you hosted in Illinois earlier this week, a farmer expressed the concerns of many producers related to proposed regulations and directives impacting their farming operations. You asked the producer if there was a specific issue concerning him. He mentioned issues including dust pollution, noise pollution and water runoff. You responded, “Yes. Here’s what I’d suggest is the – if you hear something is happening, but it hasn’t happened, don’t always believe what you hear.” You then went on to imply that many of these concerns were created by lobbyists and associations in Washington.
I want to assure you that this farmer’s concerns are justified. To better inform you about the actions being taken by your Administration, included below is a list of proposed rules, directives and actions impacting rural America since your inauguration. While this list is not complete or comprehensive, it provides an overview of the increased regulations and resulting costs American agriculture and rural America face due to actual or proposed actions taken by federal agencies under your direction. The partial list of concerns is as follows:
GIPSA Rule Impacting Livestock Producers – USDA has proposed a new regulation for livestock marketing that will undo years of progress and innovation in the livestock industry. Many of the provisions of this proposed rule were rejected on a bipartisan basis during debate on the last Farm Bill, which was signed into law when you were serving in the United States Senate. (find the rest of the letter here)
The meeting will take place Thursday, August 25 2011, 9:00am – 12:00pm at the Hilton Wichita Airport Hotel, 2098 Airport Road, Wichita, KS 67209. You may participate in the hearing by submitting written testimony which will be included in the official record of the hearing. A copy of your testimony can be submitted at the hearing or can be sent to the committee no later than Sept. 1. Send your testimony to aghearing@ag.senate.gov or to U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry, 328A Russell Senate Office Bldg, Washington, D.C. 20510.