Speeches
Pelosi: Landmark Farm Bill Ensures Future Farm Bills Will Never Again Look Like Those of the Past
07/27/2007
“Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to begin by congratulating our
distinguished Agriculture Committee chairman, Collin Peterson, and our
colleagues for bringing to the floor a farm bill that enjoys the support of the
American Farm Bureau, the National Farmers Union, and a wide array of
conservation and nutrition groups.
“I will support the Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act
because it begins to reform farm policy while investing in energy independence,
supporting conservation, strengthening nutrition assistance, and recognizing
the importance of specialty crops. It
recognizes the vital role of our farmers and ranchers in providing food, fiber,
and fuel for
“I strongly support the efforts Chairman Peterson has made
in this bill to ensure that
“The 2007 Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act makes an
historic $2.4 billion investment in renewable energy, including biofuels and
wind power. It boosts renewable energy
investments by 600 percent and provides loan guarantees for the development of
refineries that process renewable fuels.
These efforts will help ensure that we send our energy dollars to the
Midwest and across
“Energy independence is a national security issue, it is an
environmental issue, and it is an economic issue for our nation and
“This farm bill also recognizes that those who work the land
–
“In the area of conservation, the Farm, Nutrition and
Bioenergy Bill improves access to, and funding for, initiatives that take
environmentally sensitive lands out of production. It encourages environmentally friendly
practices on working lands. And it will
invest $4.3 billion in new mandatory spending to preserve farm and ranchland,
improve water quality, enhance soil conservation, air quality, and wildlife
habitats on working lands.
“While many conservation advocates push for more funding for
these valuable conservation initiatives, several organizations, including Ducks
Unlimited, the Nature Conservancy, and American Farm Trust support the
conservation funding in this bill.
“
“To aid in this effort, the Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy
bill invests over $11 billion over ten years in nutrition initiatives to help
low-income families. For the first time
in 30 years, this bill increases the minimum food stamp benefit and increases
and indexes to inflation the standard deduction, ensuring that rising food
costs do not erode a family’s purchasing power.
It also eliminates the cap on childcare costs to help the working
poor. The food stamp provisions in this
bill will prevent benefit cuts for more than 13 million Americans over next
five years.
“That is why the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities,
Catholic Charities USA,
“This bill makes a historic investment in specialty crops,
providing a $1.7 billion in new mandatory spending. This investment was made possible by the
leadership of Congressman Dennis Cardoza and many provisions in his bill, the EAT
Healthy America Act, were incorporated into the bill before us today. This legislation supports specialty crop
growers by increasing market access, encouraging and facilitating consumption
of nutritious agricultural products, funding research programs and increasing
opportunities for family farmers in conservation initiatives.
“Specifically, this bill invests $365 million for Specialty
Crop Block Grants, $350 million to expand the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable School
Snack Program to all 50 states, $215 million to create a new, dedicated research
program for specialty crops, $200 million to create a new initiative for early
detection, prevention and eradication for emerging pests and disease, and $55
million for organic agriculture.
“Specialty crops producers – our fruit and vegetable
growers - account for nearly half of all
the cash crop receipts in American, and are a part of the farm economy in all
50 states, especially important in Calfornia, the Northeast, Northwest, and
“This bill is supported by the Specialty Crop Farm Bill
Alliance, a national coalition of more than 120 specialty crop organizations.
“The farm bill also includes key provisions that invest in
rural communities, including economic development programs and access to
broadband telecommunication services to bridge the digital divide in rural,
underserved areas.
“It also addresses the health care, emergency, and first
responder needs of rural areas, as well as creating new markets and rebuilding
rural infrastructure.
“And it pays special attention to the area of minority
outreach and socially disadvantaged farmers by including an additional $150
million to provide greater outreach, coordination and technical assistance.
“Finally, this bill does take a critical step toward reform
by eliminating farm payments to millionaires and closing loopholes that for
decades have allowed some to evade farm payment limits.
“The Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act will ensure that
future farm bills will never again look like those of the past. And thanks to the efforts of Chairman
Peterson and many others, who have made a historic investment in energy
independence and nutrition assistance, this bill’s effects will also be felt
far from farm country.
“As George Washington said: ‘I know of no pursuit in which
more real and important services can be rendered to any country than by
improving its agriculture…’
“That was as true then, as it is now.
“Washington understood, as this bill’s authors understand,
that encouraging and investing in American agriculture pays dividends for the
entire nation. In this farm bill, we
will strengthen American agriculture, but we will also do much more.
“We will help reignite rural America’s economic engine and
create good paying jobs here it home. We
will fuel our nation’s energy needs through clean, American-made, renewable
energy. We will be better stewards of
the land and protect our environment.
And we will be a more caring nation by better meeting the needs of the
most vulnerable.
“These great goals can be achieved with the help of this legislation and with the strong, bipartisan support of the House today. I urge my colleagues to vote yes for this New Direction in American farm policy.”