|
 |
 |
|
Rice and peanut lobbies backing House farm bill
The House draft, released by the chamber's Agriculture Committee on Thursday, contains a new type of price-based farm subsidy included to appease rice and peanut growers.
It is very similar to existing counter-cyclical payments in which the government pays farmers if commodity prices fall below a target price set in law. The new price loss coverage (PLC) system covers multi-year losses only.
Rice and peanut growers said they were hurt by the elimination of direct payments in the Senate bill and could not benefit from a new revenue-based crop insurance program that the Senate created.
The Southern Peanut Farmers Federation, which represents 80 percent of U.S. peanut production said it “is very pleased” with the draft, which it said was “fiscally responsible.”
“Chairman [Frank] Lucas [(R-Okla.)] and Ranking Member [Collin] Peterson [(D-Minn.)] are to be commended for taking a national view of farm policy and, like the farm bills approved by Congress in the past, this farm bill is balanced for all regions of the nation and for all commodities,” the statement reads.
“The House Agriculture Committee’s Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach to farm policy is not workable for all producers and regions,” it stated.
The group said that while the House has new restrictions on benefits for wealthy farmers, the payment limitations are not “punitive.”
Southern senators led by Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.) voted against the Senate farm bill.
Southern support could be crucial in the House, where the 2012 farm bill will meet opposition from conservatives who want deeper budget cuts and liberals angry over $16 billion in cuts to food stamps in the bill.
To create the PLC system, the House scales back the revenue-loss coverage that is favored by other crops. The House bill contains a 15 percent dedcuctable instead of the 10 percent loss threshold in the Senate bill.
Other commodity groups have so far been largely silent on the approach.
The National Corn Growers Association said it is “assessing similarities and differences between the legislation and our grower-developed policy. NCGA continues to call on Congress to pass a new farm bill this year.”
Some deficit hawks oppose the creation of the new subsidies, which together cost in excess of $9 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Most Viewed RSS Feed »
