WASHINGTON, Sept. 13, 2016 - Congress is moving toward
passing a stopgap funding bill that would ensure that the government stays open
through the election.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has set up a likely vote Wednesday on a
continuing resolution that would keep the government funded until Dec. 9.
President Obama met with congressional leaders yesterday afternoon at the White
House and said later that he was encouraged by the “constructive work that’s
being done.”
The new fiscal year starts Oct. 1 but none of the appropriations bills needed
to fund the government then have yet to pass. The stopgap funding bill will
include money to combat the Zika virus.
Vilsack tells NFU to inform Congress about the need for stronger safety net. Congress
needs to hear from farmers about what should be done to improve safety net
programs in the next farm bill, Vilsack told members of the National Farmers
Union who are in D.C. for a three-day fly-in this week. Lawmakers started out
the process of the current farm bill asking how much money they could save, but
that can’t be repeated for the 2018 farm bill, he stressed.
Cotton farmers are not happy with the Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX)
and dairy farmers want improvements to the Margin Protection Program (MPP),
both of which are insurance programs that were adopted in the 2014 farm bill,
Vilsack said.
“It is much better to start the conversation … with what is the need out
there,” Vilsack said. “I think if you start out the conversation that way, then
you can have a much more robust debate – a much more unified opportunity – for
agriculture and rural America to speak with a single voice about the importance
of this (farm) bill and you end up with a stronger and a more
significantly-crafted farm bill.”
USDA is doing it all it can. Visiting NFU members pressed Vilsack
repeatedly on ways the Department could better help struggling farmers,
prompting an impassioned response from Secretary Vilsack.
“Every tool that I have, I have used,” Vilsack said and pounded the podium.
“It’s a little frustrating … I’ve been dealing with this damn thing for thirty
years. I absolutely understand it. I represented those farmers in the eighties.
I know the pain. I don’t have to go to a meeting. I don’t have to have a photo
op. I understand this, which is why every program, every opportunity, every
capacity I have is used. I’ll continue to do it until Jan. 20, 2017. And then
someone else is going to have to do it.”
Laying a foundation for GMO disclosure rule. The USDA will not be able to
finish work on the federal rule for the GMO disclosure law despite the hopes of
some, Secretary Vilsack said Monday. However, he did stress that the department
is working to get as much done as it can before the next administration takes
over.
Vilsack said the USDA is trying to “lay the foundation” for the eventual rule
that preempts any state laws dealing with labeling mandates for food with
genetically modified ingredients.
Currently USDA is preparing to publish a series of questions for public
feedback “that we think are essential to creating a system that makes sense,”
Vilsack said.
FDA mulls limits on antibiotic use. The Food and Drug Administration is
considering setting limits on how long some antibiotics can be given to
livestock and poultry for treatment of infections. There are currently no time
limits on some uses of the drugs.
The agency is soliciting
industry and public input on what the limits should be. But Steve
Roach of the consumer advocacy group Food Animal Concerns Trust said it could
take several years for FDA to finalize the restrictions.
FDA says its aim is to maximize the effectiveness of the drugs while curbing the
spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The drugs the agency is looking at
include tyrosine and chlortetracycline.
House Ag Committee’s minority staff director heads to NFU. Robert Larew
will be leaving his position in the House Agriculture Committee in November to
work for the National Farmers Union as the group’s senior vice president of
public policy and communications
Before working for the House Agriculture Committee Larew worked as a
legislative assistant and legislative director for Minnesota Rep. Collin
Peterson.
Peterson, who is the ranking Democrat on the committee, said Monday: “I’m sorry
to see him go but know that he will continue to play a role in shaping policy
that impacts rural America.”
Rep. DeLauro demands Justice investigate Chipotle for not paying employees. Thousands
of restaurant workers have filed a class action lawsuit against Chipotle
Mexican Grill for forcing them to work “off the clock” without pay and the
Connecticut Democrat has fired off a letter to the Justice Department, asking
it to investigate.
“These accusations are in direct contradiction to federal wage and hour law, as
defined in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, depriving workers of the wages
and earnings to which they are legally entitled,” DeLauro said in the letter.
Ways and Means to consider tax bills for citrus and irrigation. When the
House Ways and Means Committee marks up a slew of bills Wednesday, it will be
considering legislation to bring some tax relief to the citrus and irrigation
sectors.
The committee will be voting on the Emergency
Citrus Disease Response Act, sponsored by Florida Republican Vern Buchanan,
and the Water
and Agriculture Tax Reform Act of 2015, sponsored by Colorado Republican
Ken Buck.
Buchanan’s bill would allow citrus farmers to expense the cost of replanting
trees that have been destroyed by the citrus greening disease. Buck’s bill
would decrease the tax burden on ditch irrigation companies to “help promote
access to water.”
He said it: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, speaking to a gathering of
NFU members Monday about USDA’s purchase of $20 million worth of cheese and the
need to help dairy farmers: “The funny thing is that people think I purchased
it personally because I announced it. People come up to me and say, ‘Where are
you going to put all that cheese?’”
Phil Brasher contributed to this story.
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