Daily News Update, Jan. 25, 2008
Congressional schedule/farm bill update
Both houses
of Congress were back in session the week of Jan. 21-25 to open business
for the second session of the 110th Congress. Additionally,
President Bush will deliver his final State of the Union address before
all members of Congress on Monday, Jan. 28.
NCBA is
continuing to monitor the on-going farm bill negotiations to ensure
those in the cattle industry's priorities are addressed in the final
package. Conference meetings have begun on the staff level, attempting
to work out the differences between the House and Senate bills. The next
official step in the process is the naming of conference committee
members.
NCBA farm
bill priorities include:
▪
Packer Ban: Remove the ban on packer ownership of cattle that exists in
the current Senate version.
▪
Conservation Programs: Ensure adequate funding for cost-share
conservation programs, such as EQIP, similar to the language in the
House version of the bill; remove payment limitations and AGI caps,
which make many ranchers ineligible for programs.
▪
Tax Incentives for Conservation Easements: The language that exists in
the Senate-passed version must be included in the final package.
▪
Interstate Shipping: Allows for interstate shipment of beef from
state-inspected plants.
▪
Country-of-Origin Labeling: Include the compromise language which many
problems with the current law.
▪
Disaster Assistance: Create a permanent disaster assistance program as
defined in the Senate tax title.
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