Federal Farm Policy and Reopening the Farm Bill

Prepared Floor Statement of Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa
Federal Farm Policy and Reopening the Farm Bill
Thursday, December 3, 2015

Mr. President, I rise to speak about the 2014 farm bill and attempts to change it by members of this Congress.  The farm bill process was a long, hard and frustrating exercise.  Nobody got everything they wanted, but in the end we got a new bill for farmers across the country.  

Our country needs good farm policy, which means an adequate, yet limited safety net for farmers.  Our farmers face real, uncontrollable risks every year.  The farm bill provides farmers with a number of programs that help mitigate those risks.  

That is why I was very concerned when I learned the budget deal was cutting $3 billion from the federal crop insurance program.  That cut would have forced the Risk Management Agency at the Department of Agriculture to renegotiate the Standard Reinsurance Agreement next year and save $300 million per year.  These cuts were almost universally opposed by rural America.  Lenders, commodity groups, input suppliers, and many others opposed the cuts to the crop insurance program.  

Beyond being bad policy, I opposed the crop insurance cuts, because like many of my colleagues on both the House and Senate Agriculture committees, I do not support reopening the 2014 Farm Bill.  I’m very glad the Highway Bill is going to reverse these cuts to the crop insurance program.  

I also want to speak to the importance of not reopening the farm bill in the Omnibus.  Section 739 of the House Agriculture Appropriations Bill reauthorized commodity certificates.  For those who don’t remember what commodity certificates are, they are a way around payment limits.  The language in the House bill specifically directs USDA to administer commodity certificates as they were in 2008 when they were not subject to any payment limits at all.

I want to be very clear so there is no misunderstanding by those in this body or the agriculture lobby – Section 739 of the House Ag Appropriations Bill brings back commodity certificates, which reopens the 2014 Farm Bill.

 If the agriculture community wants to be taken seriously, we should heed our own advice and not reopen the Farm Bill by reauthorizing commodity certificates.  I’m opposing cuts to the crop insurance program today because that would reopen the farm bill.  I hope tomorrow I don’t have to oppose commodity certificates in the Omnibus because a few people want to reinstate unlimited farm subsidies.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.  

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