Majority of Farm Bill becomes law

TSCRA Daily News Update, May 23, 2008

Majority of Farm Bill becomes law via override

On Wednesday, May 21, President Bush followed through on his threat to veto the Farm Bill (H.R. 2419), saying, "At a time of high food prices and record farm income, this bill lacks program reform and fiscal discipline."

The House of Representatives moved quickly to immediately override the veto by a margin of 316 – 108. The Senate followed suit with a strong vote of 82 – 13.

With these votes, most of the new Farm Bill became law. However, one portion of the bill remains outstanding. An enrollment error occurred when the Farm Bill was printed, so the actual bill vetoed by the President - and subsequently passed into law today - was missing Title III, which deals with trade and food aid.

Questions are now being raised about how Congress should best address Title III, and NCBA will continue to monitor that issue. But cattle producers are pleased that the other portions of the bill are now enacted. While NCBA agrees with some criticisms of the legislation, it is strongly preferred over a reversion to the permanent farm policy law passed in 1949, or a long-term extension of the 2002 Farm Bill.

"Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle have worked very hard to deliver a Farm Bill that provides a certain level of stability and consistency for agricultural producers." said Colin Woodall, NCBA's executive director of legislative affairs. "No agricultural group is coming away with everything it wanted, but it's a bill we can all live with."

The new Farm Bill clarifies and simplifies livestock record-keeping requirements for mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL), which is set to take effect this fall. It also moves the grandfather date for domestic livestock in the COOL law from Jan. 1, 2008, to July 15, 2008.

The Conservation title provides additional funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) - conservation programs that have benefited many cattle operations, as well as the general public.

Cattlemen also support a provision of the Farm Bill that allows for meat processed at state-inspected plants to be shipped to customers across state lines – a practice currently permitted only for federally inspected facilities. This will allow many small processing plants the opportunity to grow their business presence, and could increase local marketing options for cattle producers.

NCBA also applauds inclusion of $3.807 billion for a permanent ag disaster aid program. Under this program, farmers and ranchers who purchase Non-insured Agricultural Program (NAP) coverage could be eligible to receive compensation for extreme forage or livestock losses resulting from disasters such as drought, wildfires and floods.

Importantly, the new Farm Bill does not limit marketing options for livestock producers by banning packer ownership of livestock more than 14 days before slaughter. This provision had been included in the Senate version of the bill, but was voted down by the Conference Committee and did not become law.

"Through the grassroots efforts of our members, NCBA achieved some very important victories in this Farm Bill - both in terms of what was included and also what we were able to keep out of the legislation," said Woodall. "Overriding the President's veto and passing this bill into law was the best option right now for the nation's cattle producers."