Facing a severe time restriction and difficult budget and trade limitations, U.S. cotton producer leaders boldly guided the development — and industry-wide approval — of dramatically new farm policy. They believed this federal cotton program adjustment would immediately strengthen U.S. cotton producers’ ability to manage risk by making an affordable revenue-based crop insurance program available for purchase. The recommendation was submitted by the National Cotton Council (NCC) to Congress for 2012 farm law consideration.
Displaying determination and diplomacy in this process were American Cotton Producers (ACP) Chairman Jimmy Dodson, ACP Farm Policy Task Force Chairman Shawn Holladay, NCC Chairman Charles Parker, NCC Vice Chairman Chuck Coley and NCC Farm Policy Task Force Chairman Woody Anderson. The development process and debate featured a strong measure of support from multiple ACP regional leaders such as Bowen Flowers from Mississippi and Clyde Sharp from Arizona. Even though they were aware that cotton production regions would not be affected equally under the new approach, they made unity a priority.
All of these leaders, along with NCC staff, had been monitoring the political and budgetary environment in our nation’s capital. An anticipated challenge came with Budget Control Act of 2011 passage in August. The NCC quickly recognized that baseline spending for the next farm bill debate would be reduced by whatever portion of the $1.4 trillion savings amount that was assigned to agriculture by the Joint Commission. Thus, NCC leaders directed NCC staff to prepare cotton farm program delivery system options for consideration.
You can read the rest of this article and dozens of others when the 2012 Cotton International Annual Edition is published. Be sure to watch for it in your mailbox in January 2012!
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