Food and Farm Policy

March 2008

Congress is in the final stages of renewing legislation known as “The Farm Bill.” NETWORK chooses to call this bill “The Food and Farm Bill” because it covers many aspects of our food system. This bill affects not just farmers but all people who eat, pay taxes, and/or are concerned about the environment. It also affects millions of people around the world who do not have a voice in our Congress, but who can be harmed by what our Congress does. We need to make our voices heard in Congress and we need to also be a voice for people around the world who are affected by U.S. policy.

Current Status

You Can Help

Background Information

Organizations Advocating for Food and Farm Policies

NETWORK's Food & Farm Bill Workshop

NETWORK’s Vision and Values

NETWORK envisions food and farm policies that ensure:

• Healthy food for all families
• Conservation of our land, water and air
• Vibrant rural communities
• Fairness for U.S. and global farmers.

Our vision comes from principles of Catholic social teaching, which call us to:

• Care for people who are poor and vulnerable
• Be good stewards of God’s creation
• Promote the common good
• Be in solidarity with our neighbors around the world.

Our faith also calls us to participate in the social and political decisions that affect our lives. Food and farm policies affect all of our lives. But in the past, groups who participated in forming food and farm policies in the U.S. represented mostly the special interests of large food producers. This time, Member of Congress need to hear from people of faith who believe that food and farm policies must be based on values of fairness, care for people who are poor, care for the earth, and the common good of local and global communities.

NETWORK's Food & Farm Bill Workshop

Current Status

March 17, 2008

The House passed their version of the Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act (H.R. 2419) on July 27, 2007. The Senate passed their amended version on December 14, 2007. Normally, the next step would be to send the bill a conference committee to work out the differences in the House and Senate versions of the bill. However, Congress has not yet taken that step. Instead, several key members of Congress have been trying to negotiate behind the scenes to get agreement on a final bill. They have not yet been successfull and missed their own March 15, 2008 deadline to finalize the bill.

Both the House and Senate added money to fund various parts of the farm bill, but each bill had different funding and different ways to pay for the new funding. This means that members of the House Ways & Means Committee and the Senate Finance committee are now part of the discussion along with members of the Agriculture Committees. Another complication is that the Bush Administration has threatened to veto legislation that raises funding levels without finding offsets for the funding.

Just before leaving for Spring/Easter recess on March 14, Congress extended the 2002 version of the farm bill until April 18, 2008, to give themselves more time to work on a compromise version of the bill. President Bush signed the extension and noted that he expected the final bill to reform farm subsidies and not raise taxes to pay for new programs.

 

NETWORK's Position

NETWORK is disappointed in the farm bill that passed the Senate, as well as the bill that passed the House. Neither the House nor the Senate version reforms commodity subsidies to reduce trade-distorting subsidies, and in some cases even increases them. These subsidies contribute to a global agriculture system that creates significant hardships for people in developing countries who depend on farming to make a living.

NETWORK supported amendments that would have reformed and/or limited commodity subsidy payments, and invested the savings in much needed nutrition, conservation, and rural development programs. These amendments failed to pass.

Although we find once again that it is very hard to change entrenched systems based largely on money and politics, we are pleased with the unprecedented momentum for reform that resulted from the collaborative efforts of religious, environmental, and family farm groups.

 

The Senate Vote

NETWORK supported two amendments to the farm bill in the Senate:

1. The Lugar-Lautenberg Farm Ranch Equity Stewardship and Health (FRESH) amendment would have provided a more equitable safety net for all U.S. farmers by phasing out commodity payments and providing a crop revenue-based insurance program for all farmers, not just growers of certain commodities (e.g. corn, soy, wheat, rice, cotton). This would also bring our farm policy into compliance with international trade rules and therefore be more fair to farmers in developing countries. And it would have produced several billion dollars in savings to invest in other pressing needs such as nutirtion and conservation programs.

The Senate rejected the Lugar-Lautenberg amendment by a vote of 37-58 on December 11, 1007. Find out how senators voted at http://capwiz.com/networklobby/vote.xc/?votenum=417&chamber=S&congress=1101&voteid=10674636&state=US

2. The Dorgan-Grassley Payment Limitation amendment would have limited annual commodity subsidy payment to $250,000 per individual. farmers. It would have closed loopholes and set specific limits for the various types of subsidy payments, and required individuals to be actively engaged in farming to receive payments. Savings would be invested in nutrition, conservation, beginning farmer and rural development programs.

NETWORK believed that the Grassley-Dorgan amendment represented the least the Senate could do to reform the inequitable farm subsidy system. NETWORK and other advocates worked hard to pass this amendment, and a majority of senators did vote for the amendment. But, due to a political deal between Senate leadership and a few senators from farm states, 60 votes were required to pass the amendment. So in the end, the Senate rejected the Dorgan-Grassley amendment by a vote of 56-43 on December 13, 2007. Find out how your senators voted at http://capwiz.com/networklobby/vote.xc/?votenum=424&chamber=S&congress=1101&voteid=10674676&state=US#summary

The House Vote

NETWORK supported an alternative “Fairness in Farm and Food Policy” amendment, sponsored by Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) and Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) which would have reduced subsidy payments to large producers and provided a more equitable safety net for farmers. The House rejected the amendment by a vote of 117-309 on July 26, 2007. This reform amendment was seen as too radical for most representatives, including House leadership.

The House passed the “Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act”, HR 2419, by a vote of 231-191 on July 27, 2007. This bill has some good provisions for nutrition programs and rural development, but NETWORK is disappointed that there was very little reform of farm subsidy payments. The current subsidy payment structure favors large agribusiness, does not help most family farmers, and harms farmers in developing countries.

 

You Can Help

Tell your members of Congress that a Farm and Food bill must be fair for all farmers and all hungry people, in the U.S. and around the world. The farm subsidy payment system should be reformed to make sure that those who need the help are getting help, and those who do not need help do not continue to get automatic government payments. The Farm Bill must include new investments to improve food stamp benefits and food stamp access for those who are being hurt most by our economy.

You can find contact information for your members of Congress at http://capwiz.com/networklobby/dbq/officials/

 

Background Information

Sources

Why a Farm Bill?

Congress first enacted the system of price supports, subsidy payments and supply controls that we recognize as the farm bill with one of the earliest pieces of New Deal legislation in 1933.

Farm income and commodity price support policies are at the heart of every farm bill, but recent iterations have typically included titles on agricultural trade and foreign food aid, conservation and environment, domestic food assistance (primarily food stamps), and rural development.

The most recent comprehensive law governing farm support passed in 2002, and its provisions will expire in 2007.

What’s in the Farm Bill?

• Nutritional Assistance—The farm bill usually includes funding the for the food stamp program, nutrition assistance block grants to states and some territories, the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), Community Food Projects, and some rules governing the provision of federally acquired food commodities to domestic feeding programs such as school meal programs. The 2002 bill created a Seniors Farmers’ Market Nutrition program, a fruit and vegetable pilot program for schools, a program to increase domestic consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables, and provisions to encourage schools to purchase locally produced foods.

• Price supports—These are concentrated on “food grains” such as wheat and rice, “feed grains” such as corn, barley and oats, “oilseeds” such as soybeans and canola, and “upland cotton.” Other crops, including peanuts, wool, mohair, honey, chickpeas and dry beans, are eligible for some assistance, but not direct price support.

• Supply controls and import quotas—These apply to milk and sugar in the current bill, and they act to maintain prices for these commodities above what the market might otherwise dictate. Given the cost to maintain the programs and the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules for fair trade, these are at risk in the new bill. However, past efforts to significantly alter or phase out these programs have not been successful.

• Green Payments--The 2002 farm bill included a Conservation Security Program aimed at encouraging integrated whole-farm planning and rewarding producers who conserve resources across their entire operation. Tight requirements and relatively low financial incentives have combined to limit participation in this program.

• Trade and Export Promotion—Export credit guarantees for commercial agricultural sales, export subsidies for grains and dairy products, and funding for promotion of U.S. farm products in overseas markets.

What’s In Play for 2007?

• Since the passage of the last farm bill, the federal budget deficit has increased significantly, reducing the funds available to support all federal programs, including agricultural support.

• Commodity prices have increased since 2002, reducing the amount of funds needed for direct crop subsidies.

• The World Trade Organization (WTO) has ruled that certain aspects of U.S. support to cotton farmers are illegal subsidies and must be removed. This development may cause legislators to question the effect of every new U.S. farm policy proposal on trade commitments to the WTO.

• Payment limits—In 2005, 6.2% of the farms receiving payments got 36% of the payments. Over $5.7 billion went to farms with annual sales over $500,000. Congress will be under some pressure to reduce the outflow of money to these larger farms and to address concerns that these subsidies are contributing to the absorption of smaller family farms by larger corporate operations.

• Green Payments—Replacing some existing subsidies with environmentally focused incentives may be a more attractive option in this farm bill than in previous bills because farm supports that are focused on conservation and environmental improvement are viewed more favorably under WTO rules.

• Energy—Current interest in renewable energy is likely to spark debate on incentives for producing biofuels such as ethanol.

• Export Promotion—These face a real bang-for-the-buck challenge in this round of farm bill debate. They are increasingly limited, due to international trade agreements, and legislators may be less likely to commit funds to a program that may cause more harm in terms of international trade protests than good in terms of benefits to American agriculture.

• Rural Development —The bulk of rural development funding in past farm bills has focused on crop subsidies that improve the lot of farmers living in rural areas as the key to improving rural economies--a sort of rural trickle-down concept. But there is growing support for the concept that farmers actually depend on a healthier and more diverse rural economy as a predecessor to the success of the farm. Several development issues may be in play for 2007, such as developing new sources of economic growth for rural areas, stemming rural population out-migration, and conservation and environmental restoration as rural employment opportunities.

Sources

Congressional Research Service, “Food Stamps and Nutrition Programs in the 2002 Farm Bill,” Order Code RL33690, available online from the National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas School of Law Website, http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL33690.pdf.

Congressional Research Service, “Previewing a 2007 Farm Bill,” Order Code RL33037, available online from the National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas School of Law Website, http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/RL33037.pdf.

Senator Tom Harkin’s Summary of the 2002 Farm Bill http://harkin.senate.gov/agriculture/farm-bill-summary.cfm

Take the Food Stamp Challenge on Catholic Charities USA’s Web site: http://povertyinamerica.typepad.com/campaign/hunger/index.html

To learn more about international food aid, go to: http://donate.crs.org/site/DocServer/Final_Farm_Bill_Backgrounder.pdf?docID=1541&AddInterest=1101&JServSessionIdr009=3dt13vqg78.app13a

U.S. Department of Agriculture www.usda.gov

Organizations advocating for improved food and farm policies:

Oxfam America’s Farm Bill Campaign www.oxfamamerica.org/whatwedo/campaigns/agriculture

Bread for the World www.bread.org

National Catholic Rural Life Coalition www.ncrlc.com

Farm & Food Policy Project www.farmandfoodproject.org

Sustainable Agriculture Coalition www.sustainableagriculturecoalition.org

National Family Farm Coalition www.nffc.net

National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture www.agmatters.net

NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby
www.networklobby.org/issues/alsoofinterest/FarmBill.htm
NETWORK's Messages for U.S. Food and Farm Policy
NETWORK's "Farm Subsidies 101"

Religious Working Group on the Farm Bill
Religious Working Group Principles for the Farm Bill
Also see: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0507/3892.html

Rural Coalition ruralco.org/action/policycenter/farmbill.html

Food Research and Action Center www.frac.org

Environmental Working Group – database on subsidies www.ewg.org/farm/

Public Health Action on the Farm Bill http://www.publichealthaction.org/