Members of the American Seed Trade Association were on Capitol Hill today getting updates on farm legislation from Congressional leaders, including House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN). Chuck was there with them today during a busy day for progress on the 2012 Farm Bill, with the Senate whipping through amendments at lightning speed. …
Senate Cuts Farm Bill Amendments
The number of proposed amendments to the Senate farm bill shrank from nearly 300 to 73 yesterday as senators struck a deal to get debate back on track. “This is not a great agreement, but it’s a good agreement,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announcing the deal late last night. The good news is that the “rotten egg …
Egg Amendment is Top Priority for NCBA
As the amendments to the 2012 Farm Bill are piling up in the Senate, one of the more than 240 stands out as causing the most concern to many agricultural organizations, including the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), and that is the rotten egg amendment. A “dangerous piece of legislation” is what NCBA calls amendment #2252, put forward by Senator …
Pork Expo Farm Bill Update
Pork producers know what they want in a 2012 Farm Bill, they’re just not sure if and when it will happen. Former National Pork Producers Council president Sam Carney of Iowa, co-chair of the organization’s farm bill policy task force, gave an update on the legislation, which happened at almost the very moment the Senate voted to advance the bill …
POTNAFB Interviews POTUS
The president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting had the opportunity to interview the President of the United States today about a new report on the rural economy and farm policy. NAFB President Tom Steever of Brownfield Ag News not only asked President Obama about the Council of Economic Advisers report – Strengthening Rural Communities: Lessons From a Growing …
Farm Bill Work This Week
While farmers are busy getting crops in the ground this week, members of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees will be busy trying to get a 2012 Farm Bill off the ground. As the Senate Ag Committee released a draft proposal on Friday, several agricultural organizations sent a letter to the leadership thanking them, while at the same time expressing …
GROWMARK Legislative Priorities
GROWMARK government affairs director Chuck Spencer shared some of the agricultural cooperative’s top legislative priorities on both the state and national level during the media day tour this week. Chuck and other GROWMARK representatives participated in the Ag Day event Wednesday at the Illinois state capitol to talk with legislators about some of those priorities. “Obviously everyone in Illinois is …
Ag Groups Testify at Senate Farm Bill Hearing
The Senate Agriculture Committee heard testimony from farmers and farm organizations Thursday on risk management priorities for the 2012 Farm Bill. Among those who testified was National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) First Vice President Pam Johnson. “NCGA has invested time and resources to develop and analyze concepts for a new farm bill that would help farmers in times of need …
We Need Both RFS and Farm Bill According to Senator Stabenow
Addressing the attendees to the Agri-Pulse reception last night was Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwomen, U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. I visited with her briefly after her remarks. I first asked her what she thought about the importance of the work that’s being done by groups like USFRA which held a Food Dialogues event prior to the reception. …
Senator Pat Roberts Just Tells It Like It Is
The Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, Senator Pat Roberts, made comments during the Agri-Pulse reception last night. I got to visit with him briefly afterward. Senator Roberts says the idea of trying to get urban America better understand where their food comes from is “a mountain we’ve been trying to climb for years …