NFU urges House appropriators to avoid GIPSA rider, expresses other concerns
July 08, 2015 |09:35 AM
The National Farmers Union on Tuesday sent a letter to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., and ranking member Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., urging the committee to follow the lead of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee and exclude a rider prohibiting the implementation of livestock and poultry industry regulations by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyard Administration (GIPSA).
Agriculture appropriations bills have included the rider for several years but did not include it this year.
“These protections, such as notice of termination of contract and recourse from retaliation, are essential to ensuring farmers have fair conditions in an increasingly consolidated marketplace,” National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson wrote.
Johnson pointed out that while the 2014 farm bill ordered USDA to provide these protections for livestock and poultry growers, implementing regulations have yet to be promulgated due to appropriations riders.
The letter also expressed concerns with budget cuts to mandatory programming as it relates to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP), and the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) and flat funding for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
“The integrity of these markets is central to commodity producers,” Johnson said.
“Since 2008, when CFTC’s authority expanded by roughly $400 trillion when over-the-counter swaps became a part of its jurisdiction, CFTC’s resources have been inadequate.”
NFU raised concerns that the bill would also prohibit penalties from being issued in the 2016 reinsurance year for those who are deemed non-compliant with conservation requirements mandated under the farm bill.
“NFU recognizes that there are problems resulting from a lack of coordination between the Risk Management Agency and the Farm Service Agency, but those problems are administrative, not legislative in nature,” Johnson wrote.
Agriculture appropriations bills have included the rider for several years but did not include it this year.
“These protections, such as notice of termination of contract and recourse from retaliation, are essential to ensuring farmers have fair conditions in an increasingly consolidated marketplace,” National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson wrote.
Johnson pointed out that while the 2014 farm bill ordered USDA to provide these protections for livestock and poultry growers, implementing regulations have yet to be promulgated due to appropriations riders.
The letter also expressed concerns with budget cuts to mandatory programming as it relates to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP), and the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) and flat funding for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
“The integrity of these markets is central to commodity producers,” Johnson said.
“Since 2008, when CFTC’s authority expanded by roughly $400 trillion when over-the-counter swaps became a part of its jurisdiction, CFTC’s resources have been inadequate.”
NFU raised concerns that the bill would also prohibit penalties from being issued in the 2016 reinsurance year for those who are deemed non-compliant with conservation requirements mandated under the farm bill.
“NFU recognizes that there are problems resulting from a lack of coordination between the Risk Management Agency and the Farm Service Agency, but those problems are administrative, not legislative in nature,” Johnson wrote.
