Rally Draws Over 80 Ag Groups to Press for Action as Time Before Congressional Recess Dwindles
Several hundred farmers and ranchers from across the country, representing over 80 farm groups, converged on Washington Wednesday to press Congress to pass a new five-year farm bill. Addressing the rally were Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Representative Kristi Noem (R-S.D.), and representatives from half a dozen agricultural organizations. In addition, several other members of Congress from both the House and Senate attended the rally. Speakers emphasized that farmers and ranchers across the country needed to contact their House members to express the importance of passing a farm bill. NCFC encourages its members and their producer-owners to make their voices hear; online petitions can be sent from the Farm Bill Now coalition web site at www.farmbillnow.com.
In addition, Representatives Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) and Rick Berg (R-N.D.) are circulating a farm bill discharge petition to their House colleagues. The petition, filed on Thursday, would force House leadership to bring H.R. 6083, the House Agriculture Committee passed farm bill, to the floor for a vote if 218 representatives sign it. Fifty one House members have added their names so far.
Finally, a group of over 40 House members this week joined in a letter asking House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) for a meeting to discuss the need to bring the farm bill to the floor. Representatives from the group met with Cantor today but no details have emerged.
These actions come as prospects dim for House passage of a new, five-year farm bill before Congress goes on recess ahead of the November elections. With the continuing resolution to fund government operations past September 30 expected to pass the Senate late next week, it is likely that Congress will cut short their time in Washington.
With the current farm bill expiring that the end of this month, House GOP leadership has been whipping their caucus to gauge support for two extension scenarios, one that would extend the current farm bill for three months, and one that would extend it for one year. Even if there is enough House support for an extension, support from the Senate would also be needed. The length of the extension would impact when a new farm bill would likely be written; an extension to the end of the year would necessitate passing a bill during the lame duck session after the elections while a one-year extension would reset the process and push it off until the new Congress.
House Passes Continuing Resolution to Fund Federal Government Past Sept. 30
By a vote of 329-91, the House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution that would fund federal government operations past the September 30th end to the fiscal year. The measure was needed since Congress failed to finish work on any of the twelve appropriations bills for FY 2013. The measure would fund the government for the first six months of the next fiscal year and sets spending at $1.047 trillion, a .6% increase over the current year. This funding level is equal to the one agreed to by the parties in the deal to raise the debt ceiling, but is higher than the level set in the House-passed budget resolution.
Ag Nutrients Policy Council Announces Webinar on Managing Crop Nutrients in the Aftermath of the 2012 Drought
The 2012 drought has been devastating for many in agriculture and it will be long remembered, especially by those farmers without crops to sell and livestock and poultry producers having to cull animals they can’t afford to feed. Consumers will soon feel the effects in the grocery store through higher prices for many months to come. But there are many other effects of the drought that most people never see or think about. One of these is how the devastatingly dry conditions have created fundamentally new set of even more complex decisions about how producers should best plan for, use and manage nutrients for crop production.
To help farmers and their crop advisors address these challenges the Agricultural Nutrients Policy Council, of which NCFC is a founding member, is sponsoring a free webinar to be hosted by the American Society of Agronomy and the Certified Crop Advisors. The webinar is intended for farmers, crop advisors and other interested parties, and a panel of top agronomic experts will present practical, useful guidance about how to best think through this fall’s and next spring’s nutrient management challenges.
The webinar will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 26 from 1 to 2:30 pm eastern. The panel will address a variety of situations and the goal is to help farmers and their advisors make the most of crop inputs while being a good steward of soil and water resources.
There are 1,000 spaces for the webinar, but we expect a lot of participation. Pre-registration is required and you may do so at www.agronomy.org/education/webinars.
If you have any questions, please contact NCFC Staff Lisa Kelley at lkelley@ncfc.org.
NCFC Announces Call for Entries in 2012 Cooperative Information Fair
NCFC announced this week that the organization is now accepting entries for the 2012 Cooperative Information Fair. The Info Fair recognizes those communications and marketing projects that effectively promote business, inform members, and disseminate information to the public. Professors from the journalism and mass communications school of a major university will judge entries in 34 categories, ranging from best press releases and best magazines to best marketing plans and best advertising campaigns and multi-media campaigns.
To help close out the International Year of Cooperatives and to complement NCFC’s Farmer Co-ops: Providing for America campaign, we will also be honoring the entry that best tells the farmer cooperative story with the third annual Chairman’s Prize. Judging criteria for entries in several of the writing and photography categories have been expanded to emphasize how well these stories, columns or photos communicate and promote the benefits of farmer co-ops.
Winning entries will be showcased to CEOs and co-op directors at the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives Annual Meeting, to be held February 6-8, 2013, at the Westin Kierland in Phoenix, Arizona.
The deadline to enter is Friday, October 12. All entries must have been completed between October 9, 2011 to October 12, 2012.
Info Fair entry rules and forms can be found online at http://www.ncfc.org/information/ncfc-cooperative-information-fair. Any questions can be directed to Justin Darisse, NCFC’s Communications Director, at jdarisse@ncfc.org.
Washington Roundup: NCFC Signs on to Bioeconomy Blueprint; Groups Signal Support for New Biotech Crops
- NCFC Signs on to Bioeconomy Blueprint: NCFC signed on to recommendations developed by a group of organizations designed to spur further development and spread the benefits of biotechnology. The recommendations were sent to the Obama Administration, and call for the development of sound regulations proportionate to risk, for U.S. leadership in seeking market access for biotech products, and for a renewed push for research and innovation.
- Groups Signal Support for New Biotech Crops: NCFC joined with other agricultural groups this week in signaling support for new auxin herbicide tolerant traits in soybeans that has been developed by Dow AgroSciences. The letter opposes petitions by opponents of biotechnology crops that would call for an environmental impact statement that would examine the impact of auxin.
Upcoming Events:
NCFC Meetings
- September 25-26, 2012—NCFC Executive Council Meeting—Liaison Hotel, Washington, D.C.
- October 4-5, 2012—NCFC LTA Subcommittee Chair & Vice Chair Meeting—Hyatt Regency Mission Bay, San Diego, Calif.
- November 14-16, 2012—NCFC Government Affairs Committee Meeting—Vintner’s Inn, Santa Rosa, Calif.
- February 6-8, 2013—NCFC 84th Annual Meeting—Westin Kierland, Scottsdale, Ariz.