House passes farm bill by veto proof margin

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The White House made no secret of its opposition to the farm bill compromise reached between the House and Senate. Wednesday House members on both sides of the aisle sent a strong signal to President Bush in support of the farm bill, passing the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 by a final vote of 318-106. The House needed 290 votes (two-thirds majority) to override a presidential veto. The Senate began debate Wednesday evening and a vote is scheduled for later today.

The five-year farm bill funding totals $307 billion. Nearly 70% of the bill's spending goes towards domestic nutritional needs, while only 17% of the total budget funds farm programs. And as a part of the total federal budget, farm programs account for only one-quarter of one percent--a two-fold decrease from the 2002 Farm Bill.

Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer said in a statement the bill was "a bloated, earmark laden bill that spends nearly $20 billion over its original cost and continues to balance subsidy payments to the wealthy on the backs of the middle class taxpayer.

"It does not target help for the farmers who really need it, and it increases the size and cost of government while jeopardizing the future of legitimate farm programs by damaging the credibility of farm bills in general. At a time of record setting income for farmers, it sends the wrong message to the rest of the country who are not experiencing the boom of the agriculture sector. This bill is loaded with taxpayer funded pet projects at a time when Americans are struggling to buy groceries and afford gas to get to work," Schafer said.

In a statement from House Agriculture committee ranking member Bob Goodlatte, Virginia, he said the farm bill is the "most reform-minded farm bill that the House has considered."

In regard to payment issues, Goodlatte said the bill eliminates the three-entity rule that allowed producers, as multiple "entities•bCrLf, to collect more than one payment.  Now, all program payments will be directly attributed to the individual receiving the benefit. 

The bill also reduces the current adjusted gross income (AGI) soft-cap of $2.5 million down to a hard-cap of $500,000 for off-farm income which represents an 80% reduction.  Additionally, the bill imposes an AGI hard-cap of $750,000 for on-farm income which has been unlimited since the program was created. 

"These reforms, along with numerous others, are part of the historic shift in the evolution of our farm policy," Goodlatte said.  

Other highlights of the bill include:

• Rebalances loan rates and target prices among commodities, achieving greater regional equity.
• Offers farmers participating in commodity programs with a choice between the traditional price protection safety net and new, market-oriented revenue coverage payments
• Requires mandatory Country of Origin Labeling for fruit, vegetables and meat
• Devotes more than $1.3 billion in funding for organic agriculture, fruit and vegetable programs, and local food networks o Includes a new title dedicated to the needs of specialty crops and organic agriculture, including nutrition, research, pest management and trade promotion programs
• Extends and provides $7.9 billion of new funding for popular conservation programs, including the Environmental Quality Incentive Program, Farm Protection Program, Wetlands Reserve Program, and the Conservation Reserve Program
• Invests an additional $1 billion in renewable energy research, development and production and encourages the transition from corn-based ethanol to cellulosic ethanol by reducing the tax credit for corn ethanol (down to 46 cents from 51 cents) and increasing the credit for cellulosic ethanol production ($1.01)

The conference report and related materials are available on the Committee's website at http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/FarmBill.html.

 A one-page summary is available at agriculture.house.gov/inside/Legislation/110/FB/Conf/ConfOnePager.pdf.