The House is expected to consider a bill this week that would cut food stamps by an estimated $4 billion annually and allow states to put broad new work requirements in place for recipients.
Read about innovative farmers in Western Innovators, a new Capital Press ebook available on iPad.
A package of legislation is moving through the U.S. House of Representatives that seeks to improve forest management and reduce the threat of wildfire on federal lands.
Read about how farmers are confronting controversy over biotechnology in "Surviving a Biotech Backlash," available at http://bit.ly/BiotechBacklash
Agricultural groups hope legislation that includes both farm and nutrition policy with a defined expiration date emerges when Senate and House farm bills go to conference.
Read about how farmers are confronting controversy over biotechnology in "Surviving a Biotech Backlash," available at http://bit.ly/BiotechBacklash
The House and its conservative majority are coming under pressure to act after the Senate passed a landmark immigration bill opening the door to U.S. citizenship to millions while pouring billions of dollars into securing the border with Mexico.
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Political leaders are angling to push through a farm bill.
This podcast is sponsored by Western Innovators, the latest ebook from Capital Press: http://bit.ly/WesternInnovators2012
American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman opened the organization's annual meeting Sunday by calling on Congress to "enact the kind of (farm bill) reforms that the Senate and House Agriculture Committee have approved."
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Minnesota U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson said Jan. 2 he’s so upset that Congress passed only a short extension of the 2008 Farm Bill that he won’t work on a new version without assurances from congressional leaders it will get a vote.
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Commodity groups say they are disappointed with an extension of the 2008 Farm Bill passed by Congress. The stopgap measure prevents a major hike in crop price support levels — including one that could have sent milk prices spiraling — but will retain subsidies that seemed destined for change last year.
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A potential doubling of milk prices will be averted as part of the compromise that White House and congressional bargainers reached on wide-ranging legislation to avert the "fiscal cliff."
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Fears about the "fiscal cliff" triggering higher tax rates have farmers rushing to transfer property to heirs and complete other transactions before the end of 2012, experts say.
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A farmer and rancher will battle for the House speaker position during the 2013 Idaho Legislature. Farm groups aren't taking sides on the upcoming battle between the current speaker of the House, Rep. Lawerence Denney, a farmer from Midvale, and the Assistant Majority Leader, Rep. Scott Bedke, a rancher from Oakley.
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A proposal to increase the national lamb checkoff fee by 40 percent has been delayed at least six months, the apparent victim of controversy surrounding similar proposals for other commodities.
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Idaho's recent primary election didn't appear to contain any bad news for agriculture and could have helped pave the way for an ag jobs bill that easily passed the House this year but died in the Senate.
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Bill Gates has a terse response to criticism that the high-tech solutions he advocates for world hunger are too expensive or bad for the environment: Countries can embrace modern seed technology and genetic modification or their citizens will starve.
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Western Republicans seem pleased with the fact that the budget deal reached over the weekend apparently blocks funding for the Obama administration's "Wild Lands" initiative, which many had considered detrimental to public lands ranchers and rural communities.
The Congressional Western Caucus issued this press release today:
Washington, D.C. – Today, Western Caucus Chairman Stevan Pearce (R-NM) released the following statement regarding language included in H.R. 1473, the final budget bill for fiscal year 2011, which will prohibit the Department of the Interior from using taxpayer money to fund the controversial Wild Lands initiative:Separately, Rep. Rob Bishop, chairman of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee that oversees Public Lands, stated:
“The ‘Wild Lands’ proposal issued by Secretary Salazar last December was another attempt by the Obama Administration to circumvent congressional authority in the Administration’s ‘War on Western Jobs.’ It would have had tremendous negative impacts on job creation, energy production and recreation throughout the West and its defunding is a victory for all western states.
“On behalf of the Congressional Western Caucus, I would like to thank Speaker Boehner for ensuring this key provision was included in the final negotiated bill. Speaker Boehner and Republican leadership understand that there is a ‘War on Western Jobs’ and we will continue to work with them to stop these types of job-killing initiatives while putting forward legislation to bring jobs back to the West.
“Additionally, Congressional Western Caucus members Chairmen Mike Simpson and Rob Bishop should be applauded for their leadership on the ‘Wild Lands’ issue.
"As Chairman of the House Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, Mike Simpson played a key role in defunding this dangerous initiative. Congressman Simpson and the House Appropriations Committee deserve the gratitude of all westerner job creators for leading the effort to prevent taxpayer funding of this job killing initiative.
“Chairman Rob Bishop must also be recognized for his tireless work in exposing Secretary Salazar’s effort to circumvent congressional authority to create de facto wilderness areas. As Chairman of the Public Lands Subcommittee, Rob Bishop was one of the earliest and most vocal critics of Secretarial Order 3310 and his vigorous oversight efforts should be applauded.”
The Wild Lands policy, established by Secretarial Order 3310, asserts that the Bureau of Land Management has the authority to “designate appropriate areas with wilderness characteristics under its jurisdiction as ‘Wild Lands’ and to manage them to protect their wilderness value.” The Wilderness Act of 1964 gives Congress the sole authority to designate public lands as Wilderness areas.
The Wilderness designation is the most restrictive land use policy that can be taken as it places severe limitations on public access to public lands. In addition to the impacts on jobs and the economy, many forms of popular recreation and access could be prohibited.
Section 1769 of the FY2011 CR states:
“none of the funds made available by this division or any other Act may be used to implement, administer, or enforce Secretarial Order No. 3310 issued by the Secretary of the Interior on December 22, 2010.”
“Implementation of the Secretarial Order would take hard-earned taxpayer dollars and put them toward a policy that would lock up millions of acres of public lands and destroy thousands of jobs. The creation of new de-facto wilderness throughout the West would be severely detrimental to state and local economies and create a paralyzing uncertainty for western communities. Since the time it was announced, elected officials throughout the West recognized it was essential that this proposal be halted in its tracks. With the passage of this CR, we do just that. [...]
“The provision to defund Wild Lands is a victory for Utah and all public lands states. I thank my colleagues on the House Appropriations Committee, including Rep. Mike Simpson, for recognizing that funding the Wild Lands policy would be a wasteful use of taxpayer dollars and government resources."
It's not often you see an organization that promotes a sector of major production agriculture praise a story in the New York Times.
Then again, it's not often the paper runs a story with the headline, "Rush to Use Crops as Fuel Raises Food Prices and Hunger Fears," which includes this quote:
“The policy really has to be food first,” said Hans Timmer, director of the Development Prospects Group of the World Bank. “The problems occur when you set targets for biofuels irrespective of the prices of other commodities.”
From Rasmussen Reports:
With gas prices soaring, the pressure's on the Obama administration to increase the number of permits for deepwater oil drilling. Right now, just 16% of Likely U.S. Voters have a favorable opinion of the man who'll grant those permits, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, with a scant one percent (1%) who regard him Very Favorably.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 27% view the former Colorado senator unfavorably, including 11% with a Very Unfavorable view of him. But like many of his fellow Cabinet members, Salazar is an unknown commodity to many voters: 57% don't know enough about him to venture any kind of opinion. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Rasmussen Reports has been regularly asking voters in recent weeks what they think of the president's Cabinet members. Despite the importance of many of their positions and the actions they take, most of these political appointees are little known to voters in general. A list of these findings is available here. With 60% favorables, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is the best-known and most popular member of the Cabinet.
By contrast, only 20% of voters have a favorable opinion of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, with two percent (2%) who view him Very Favorably. The former Iowa governor is seen unfavorably by 17%, including seven percent (7%) with a Very Unfavorable impression. However, 63% don't venture any kind of opinion of Vilsack.
From the National Cattlemen's Beef Association:
Karl Rove, former senior advisor and deputy White House Chief of Staff for President George W. Bush, and incoming National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President Bill Donald told NCBA members that our country and the beef industry are at a crossroads. However, both Rove and Donald challenged cattlemen and women to step up to the challenge and determine the path forward.
In his keynote address during the Second General Session of the 2011 Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show, Rove said the United States “cannot be prosperous if we only sell to each other.” He said America can compete anywhere in the world as long as we are on a level playing field. Additionally, he noted that consumers worldwide want to buy “American quality” products. He said it is in our country’s strategic and economic interest to finish pending trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama.
“Unfortunately, that’s where the easy stuff stops,” Rove said. “We are currently dealing with a government that thinks it knows better and knows more than the rest of us. That’s wrong for America.”
Incoming NCBA President and Montana rancher Bill Donald said the government’s overreach in the beef industry was unprecedented. He said current proposals to regulate greenhouse gases, water and dust are not based on sound science.
“Basically, we have a lot of agencies imposing regulations without truly understanding the implications,” said Donald. “However, as an industry we have to do a better job telling out story. We must educate these government officials and the public about this industry.”
Despite all of these challenges, Rove said NCBA members have the opportunity to change the course our country is currently taking. He encouraged NCBA members to “get involved and stay involved.” Rove and Donald said NCBA members must work to educate the growing number of urban and suburban elected officials who do not understand the beef industry. Rove encouraged NCBA members contribute to the NCBA PAC to help “elect leaders who understand your business and send home those who don’t.” Rove and Donald challenged NCBA members to step up and take an active role in determining the future of their operation and their industry.
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, issued this statement about President Obama's State of the Union address:
“In the spirit of bipartisanship, I was happy to sit with my Republican colleague from the Senate Agriculture Committee, Senator Pat Roberts from Kansas. The unity that was demonstrated tonight by members of both parties is very encouraging.
“I am pleased that the President focused on the most important issue for Michigan: helping our businesses grow and create jobs. As he said tonight, the way we do this is by out-innovating, out-building, and out-educating our competition. I am also happy he will continue to seek bipartisan action to address the budget deficit in a responsible way.
“I will continue to work with the President and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to keep our focus on jobs, expanding opportunities for small businesses, advanced manufacturing, and agriculture. Our top priority needs to be a focus on jobs for everyone who wants and needs to work and creating opportunities for every family and every business to succeed and prosper.”
Western ranchers, you have a new ally in your push to end the federal ethanol subsidies that many believe contribute greatly to escalating input costs. Want to know who it is?
Wait for it.
Wait for it ...
Al Gore.
"It is not a good policy to have these massive subsidies for first-generation ethanol," Reuters quoted Gore saying of the U.S. policy that is about to come up for congressional review. "First-generation ethanol I think was a mistake. The energy conversion ratios are at best very small.
"One of the reasons I made that mistake is that I paid particular attention to the farmers in my home state of Tennessee, and I had a certain fondness for the farmers in the state of Iowa because I was about to run for president," the wire service reported Gore saying.
