Ag Programs Spared the Knife as Congress Approves 2010 Budget Resolution
May 5, 2009 The FY2010 Budget Resolution that was agreed upon by House and Senate conferees earlier this week, and subsequently approved by Congress, will not require cuts to commodity support programs authorized under the 2008 Farm Bill.
Confirmation that agriculture programs would be excluded from the many budget areas that will be tasked with providing spending reductions under the FY2010 Congressional Budget Resolution was welcome news for growers.
Producer concern about agriculture’s potential treatment under the resolution stemmed from knowledge of renewed efforts to undermine commodity program provisions through the budget writing process and the fact that the Obama Administration’s first budget blueprint highlighted changes in farm programs.
With this first hurdle cleared it is important to note that this is probably not the only bullet that agriculture will have to dodge before current the legislative cycle or the FY2010 Agriculture Appropriations process is completed. It does however set aside as unworkable several potentially damaging proposals including the Obama Administration’s suggestion to eliminate Direct payments to all farms with more than $500,000 in gross sales and capping DCP and loan benefit payments at $250,000 per individual.
Fortunately the same Congressional leaders, namely Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad and House Agriculture committee Chairman Collin Peterson, that supported agriculture so strongly during the farm bill debate led the charge to clarify the fact that when it comes to providing budget savings and value on investment agriculture has delivered its fair share.
Agriculture’s success in this round was aided by strong arguments against these proposals and supporting the implementation of the 2008 Farm Bill as approved by Congress before significant changes are considered. These arguments were put forth by a coalition of agriculture groups including Plains Cotton Growers, the National Cotton Council and the Southwest Council of Agribusiness.
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