FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2007

Committee Republicans Unanimous in Support of America’s Farmers and Ranchers
Still no answers from Democrats on the “reserve funds” mystery

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Republican Members of the Agriculture Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management voted unanimously to extend the commodity provisions housed in Title I of the 2002 Farm Bill. The Subcommittee met this morning to consider draft language to reauthorize the provisions that create a safety net for America’s farmers and ranchers. The Chairman of the Subcommittee, Rep. Bob Etheridge, offered an amendment to strike the provisions of his own Chairman’s mark and replace it with an extension of the current Commodity Title. This morning’s meeting also brought up questions regarding the use of “reserve funds” and calls for the Committee Leadership to provide real answers about where those funds will come from.

Extension
Ranking Member Jerry Moran, R-KS, intended to offer a similar extension amendment; however, Subcommittee Chairman Etheridge amended his own bill before Rep. Moran was recognized to offer his amendment. Given the inherently risky nature of production agriculture, the programs within the commodity title create the safety net needed to ensure agricultural producers can continue to produce a safe, abundant, reliable, and affordable food and fiber supply. The tight budget conditions stand to jeopardize the ability of America’s producers to remain in business. Of the ten titles currently included in the 2002 Farm Bill, the Commodity Title was the only title in which funding was significantly diminished. The Democratic budget allocated $80 billion over ten years for the Commodity Title, a $60 billion reduction from the funding levels available for the 2002 Farm Bill.

“When compared to the actual amount of money spent under the 2002 Farm Bill, we have 58 percent less funds available in the budget baseline of the Commodity Title over the next five years. This budget failure makes it impossible to craft good farm policy that meets the needs of American farmers and ranchers as they work to meet the needs of a hungry world. An overriding goal must be to see that another generation of young men and women can earn a living on the farms and ranches of America. With a $60 billion reduction in the safety net, this unfortunately will not happen,” said Ranking Member Jerry Moran.

Producers have little to no control over a wide array of variables, including weather, disease, pest and insect invasion, which can damage or destroy crops and livestock without warning. Farm policy, namely price and income supports and marketing loans, is designed to provide producers stability in an increasing volatile environment so that, year after year, they can continue production in order to meet the food and fiber needs of our nation.

“The alternative proposals we considered today did little to provide America’s farmers and ranchers with the tools they need to continue their farming operations. Producers throughout the country have told this Committee that the current programs work for them. At this point, this is the only feasible option for our agriculture sector,” said Rep. Frank Lucas, R-OK.

Reserve Funds
While the Democratic Leadership failed to include real money in the budget for American agriculture, they did designate $20 billion in reserve funds. These reserve funds must be off-set by reductions in other federal spending for existing mandatory programs; therefore, the money does not exist until the offsets are located. At this point, the six subcommittees have approved roughly $13 billion in reserve funds with no indication of where the money will actually come from.

“It seems absolutely ridiculous to me to write in $13 billion to fund numerous programs and initiatives based on a promise. Out of what hat will these funds be pulled from? Venturing into the realm of realistic possibility for a moment: what happens if these funds do not materialize? What will happen to the programs funded by the magic beans? Will it come from the commodity title? At this point, my colleagues on this side of the aisle and I, along with America’s farmers and ranchers, are reduced to guessing and that’s not a position that any of us should be in,” said full Committee Ranking Republican Bob Goodlatte, R-VA.

The full Committee will consider the legislative products of each of the six Subcommittees in the coming weeks.

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