Farm Bill Reforms Fail in the Senate
Here's What Happened
On Friday, Dec. 14, the 2007 U.S. Farm Bill passed the Senate
on a vote of 79 to 14. The bill does not contain much-needed
reforms that would have targeted commodity support programs to
the farmers who need them most, and continues to support prices
in a way that undercuts the efforts of struggling farmers in
other countries to make a living from farming. The final
Senate bill does provide increases in funding for a number of
our priorities, including food stamps and farm conservation
programs.
The votes on the following two key reform proposals were much
closer than anticipated, one falling short by only four votes
and actually achieving support from a majority of senators.
Lugar-Lautenberg FRESH
Amendment
As debate on the Farm Bill began on Dec. 11, the FRESH
amendment, sponsored by Senators Lugar (R-IN) and Lautenberg
(D-NJ), garnered 37 votes. This sweeping reform proposal, which
would have replaced the current commodity program with a system
of subsidized “whole farm” revenue insurance
designed to provide a true safety net for farmers, was a long
shot for passage. However, support from 37 senators indicates a
real and growing interest in the need for changes in our
nation’s farm policies.
Grassley-Dorgan Payment Limits
Amendment
On Dec. 12, the payment limits amendment sponsored by
Senators Dorgan (D-ND) and Grassley (R-IA) received 56 votes;
however, under an agreement with Senate leadership, the
Dorgan-Grassley amendment needed to receive 60 votes to pass.
While short of the 60 votes, a majority of senators did support
limiting commodity payments to $250,000 per year. This vote was
a disappointment, but the close margin indicates a strong
interest in farm policy reform.
Other Amendments
Other amendments that failed to pass included an effort to
cut administrative payments to crop insurance companies and add
the savings to nutrition and conservation program funding.
Currently, crop insurance companies are making high profits on
these taxpayer-subsidized programs. An amendment to lower the
adjusted gross income cap for farm payment eligibility sponsored
by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) also failed to pass.
The 2007 Farm Bill will now go to a House-Senate conference
committee which will work out a compromise between the different
bills passed by the House and the Senate. The White House has
expressed concerns about both bills, noting their opposition to
tax provisions in both bills and their concerns about the trade
impacts of the commodity subsidy programs.
Your Calls Made a Real
Difference
Thanks to those of you who called or emailed your senators in
response to our action alerts!
Although the Senate failed to pass reforms to the Farm Bill
to make farm programs more effective and more equitable, the
votes indicate that there is solid support for these reforms --
and we succeeded in changing the debate! Although the final
outcome was disappointing, our elected leaders are on notice
that people of faith are concerned about the future of rural
America, about struggling family farms and about those who go
hungry in our own country and around the world. In
addition, our focus on Farm Bill programs to combat hunger,
protect God’s creation, and help struggling rural
communities resulted in increases in funding for all of these
priorities: a victory that we all can celebrate!
Thank you for giving your voice to this important issue! We
will keep you updated as the bill goes to the conference
committee.
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