National Update
10-Year Agricultural Projections
The U. S. Department of Agriculture will release new 10-year agricultural projections Feb. 13 at noon. The USDA Agricultural Projections to 2021 report will be released on the Office of the Chief Economist website at www.usda.gov/oce . USDA publishes the projections each year in February.
Action on Egg Products Inspection Act-H.R. 3798
On Jan. 23, U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., introduced H.R. 3798, the Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012 . This legislation implements the agreement reached last summer by the United Egg Producers (UEP) and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) regarding animal care standards for egg-laying hens. Farm Bureau recently sent a letter-to the full U.S. House of Representatives-opposing this prescriptive, one-size-fits-all mandate. The estimated industry cost of this action over the next 15-17 years is $4 billion. The bill preempts state laws, including mandatory state standards in Michigan and Ohio. It also contains a special provision for California to recognize the implementation of Prop 2 in 2015. This legislation would set a dangerous precedent from the standpoint of content, and it also creates a statute that is easily amendable in the future.
AFBF Immigration Policy Focus of Talks
North Carolina Farm Bureau proposed immigration language that was voted into American Farm Bureau's policy book during its 93rd Annual Meeting. Recently, state Farm Bureau policy officials discussed the policy and how it could impact their particular farming sectors. A consensus was reached for the creation of a multi-state Farm Bureau working group to help determine how American Farm Bureau policymakers will approach their efforts on the issue in Congress and at the White House.
Beginning Farmer Land Contract Program
The Beginning and Socially Disadvantaged Farmer and Rancher Land Contract Guarantee Program launched nationwide in January. The program is designed to help new farmers buy land; it provides sellers a federal guarantee on land contract sales of up to $500,000, shielding sellers from the risk of buyer default and encouraging them to enter into such agreements with new and disadvantaged farmers. The beginning farmer land contract program initially was established in nine states through the 2002 farm bill. The 2008 farm bill expanded it nationwide and made it permanent. USDA's Farm Service Agency issued the final rule for the program last December. AFBF has partnered with USDA's National Agricultural Library to provide information and training to beginning farmers and ranchers through the Start2Farm program and website. USDA Program Fact Sheet
Congressman Brad Miller Re-Election a No-Go
U.S. Rep. Brad Miller, 13th Dist.-NC, announced Jan. 26 that he will not seek another term in Congress. The five-term veteran's announcement stated how new redistricting maps, which are in effect but currently the subject of legal action, placed him in the same district as U.S. Rep. David Price, 4th Dist.-NC. Democratic supporters reportedly didn't want to see a primary matchup between the two veteran Congressmen.
Lawmakers Hold EPA to Task for 'Sue & Settle' Tactic
A group of Congressional Republicans have accused the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of choosing to settle activist lawsuits under terms EPA then uses to expand its regulatory authority. Leaders of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee recently wrote to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson about the issue. EPA reportedly is negotiating with environmental groups to settle two lawsuits concerning the agency's regulatory authority under the Clean Water Act. One of the lawsuits alleges that EPA has a duty to regulate groundwater pollution under the CWA. The other lawsuit alleges that EPA must mandate that states regulate nonpoint source pollution. "Since neither allegation is true, we were very surprised to learn that EPA is choosing to settle these cases, rather than to honor the limits of its authority under the Clean Water Act and vigorously defend these cases," wrote U.S. Reps. John Mica, Fla., and Bob Gibbs, Ohio; as well as U.S. Sens. James Inhofe, Okla., and Jeff Sessions, Ala. Mica, in a news release, stated that the "sue and settle" tactic is becoming an EPA tool for "backdoor jurisdiction grabs."