Coalition releases statement on Farm Bill expiration

In August, we reported on the formation of the Farm Bill Now coalition, more than 35 agricultural organizations, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, that have united to urge congressional lawmakers to pass a five-year farm bill before the current programs expire in September. The current Farm Bill expired on Sept. 28. The coalition has released the following statemet:

Nine members of Congress in Va. receive national award

Nine Virginia members of the 112th Congress received the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Friend of Farm Bureau Award.  

This year’s Virginia recipients are Sen. Mark Warner (D), Rep. Eric Cantor (R), Rep. Randy Forbes (R), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R), Rep. Morgan Griffith (R), Rep. Robert Hurt (R), Rep. Scott Rigell (R), Rep. Robert Wittman (R) and Rep. Frank Wolf (R).

The recipients were nominated for the award by the Virginia Farm Bureau, and approved by the American Farm Bureau Federation Board of Directors. The award was given based on their leadership on issues of importance to the Farm Bureau, as well as their accessibility and responsiveness to all Virginia Farm Bureau members.

AFBF is the unified national voice of agriculture, working through its grassroots organization to enhance and strengthen the lives of rural Americans and to build strong, prosperous agricultural communities. The organization's priority issues include the 2012 Farm Bill, the Clean Water Act, regulatory reform, rural redevelopment and the permamnent repeal of the estate tax.

“In their own unique way, each of these members of Congress has demonstrated leadership on issues affecting farmers and the commonwealth’s economic welfare,” said Virginia Farm Bureau Federation President Wayne F. Pryor.

"Their action on the budget, the environment, labor and trade issues helped maintain agriculture as Virginia’s largest economic sector. Attention to tedious amendments and the marathon pace of federal legislation are reflected in the designation as a friend of Farm Bureau,” Pryor said. “On behalf of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, we thank and commend each of them for their service.”

AFBF, Others Urge Senate to Refrain from Disaster Bill

The American Farm Bureau Federation has urged Senate leaders to “refrain from supporting” any legislation resembling the House-passed disaster bill if such a measure is presented in the Senate. Supporting such a measure would detract from the larger mission of passing a long-term farm bill.

In a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), AFBF and a dozen other national agriculture organizations said that passing the House disaster bill as a quick fix would do more harm than good to farmers and ranchers.

“This is something our groups do not support,” the letter stated. “We strongly urge you to refrain from this as we fear that passage of a bill similar to the House bill could result in further delays in completing a full five-year farm bill.”

According to the group, in comparison to a disaster bill, completing a five-year farm bill would deliver assistance to eligible livestock producers nearly as quickly and would put into place certainty for future years, and it is paid for in both the House and Senate versions. This highlights the House disaster bill’s $600 million price tag, which clearly would impact funding available for long-term agriculture needs.

The group urged the Senate leaders to reach agreement on a new farm bill before the current program expires on Sept. 30. The House Agriculture Committee’s bill, coupled with the Senate bill passed in June, would provide much needed disaster relief with long-term benefits.

“Both the Senate and the House Agriculture Committees have produced reform-minded, bipartisan bills that address many of the core principles we believe are important, such as strengthening crop insurance as a reliable risk management tool,” concluded the letter. “We remain committed to attempting to pass a five-year farm bill as soon as possible, including the long-term provisions it includes, which would help alleviate the emergency conditions we are seeing across the country.”

The letter was also signed by the following groups: American Soybean Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Barley Growers Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Farmers Union, National Milk Producers Federation, National Sunflower Association, Northarvest Bean Growers Association, United Fresh Produce Association, U.S. Canola Association, USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council and Western Growers.

Virginia Farm Bureau News Lead: Farm Bureau ‘concerned’ about court ruling on health care legislation

This story will appear in the July 5th edition of News Leads, the week's top ag stories sent out by the VFB Communications Department to media across the state.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5-4 ruling June 28 upholding President Obama’s health care legislation, which includes a requirement that all people have health insurance. That same day the nation’s largest agricultural organization voiced its apprehension.

“Farmers, ranchers and rural residents need affordable and accessible health care. We remain concerned that mandating individuals and businesses to buy insurance will impose an expense that creates economic hardship, particularly for self-employed individuals and small businesses,” said Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Stallman noted that Farm Bureau historically has supported market-based reforms as the best way to control costs and increase options for individuals and businesses that purchase health insurance. “The plan reviewed by the Supreme Court would impose a new financial burden on our members,” he said. “As the legal and political interpretation of this ruling is further analyzed and debated in the weeks and moths ahead, it is important to remember that access to affordable health care eludes many American families across the country.”

Moving forward, Stallman said, “Farm Bureau will encourage Congress and the president to work together to address concerns on this issue, which affects millions of small business owners and individuals throughout rural America.”

Virginia Farm Bureau Federation has in recent years monitored developments in federal health care legislation.

“While the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) does have provisions that will benefit rural Virginians, such as increased funding for rural hospitals, Virginia Farm Bureau has remained opposed to the legislation. It does not get to the root of the health care problem for our producer members, which is to place price controls on skyrocketing out-of-pocket costs and putting more doctors into rural areas," said Trey Davis, assistant director of Governmental Relations. “We look forward to engaging our legislative representation here in the General Assembly to ensure that Virginia’s farmers’ health care needs are addressed in the implementation of the PPACA.”