Cotton Industry Dismayed by House Farm Bill Failure
June 20, 2013 The House of Representatives rejected the proposed 2013 farm bill in a June 20 vote amid opposition from both sides of the chamber, including 62 House Republicans who voted against the bill. The legislation was defeated 234-195.
The defeat came as a surprise to lawmakers, as well as to commodity organizations and other associations who had worked closely with leadership of the House Agriculture Committee to develop legislation that included substantial savings, policy reforms and trade facilitation.
In a statement released following the vote, the National Cotton Council (NCC) expressed deep disappointment in the action, pointing out that the farm legislation rejected by the House would have provided a predictable, long-term safety net, savings of more than $40 billion over the next 10 years, and reform and streamlining of programs – as well as establishing a basis for the resolution of a long-standing trade dispute with Brazil.
“The U.S. cotton industry is deeply disappointed that the House failed to approve the legislation approved by the Agriculture Committee on a strong bipartisan vote after two years of extensive debate and consideration of hundreds of amendments,” said NCC Chairman Jimmy Dodson, a South Texas cotton producer. “U.S. farmers need a stable, long term policy in order to continue to make the substantial investments necessary to continue to adopt new technology necessary to provide safe, affordable food and fiber to U.S. processors and consumers and to maintain competitiveness in world markets.”
NCC leadership expressed their gratitude to House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN) and many Cotton Belt members for their tireless efforts to develop and promote approval of this important legislation, which would have eliminated the uncertainty associated with one-year extensions.
NCC also commended the House for rejecting proposals to apply income tests and limitations on crop insurance, as well as a proposal to terminate the highly-effective export promotion program (MAP), during the debate. Likewise, the Council expressed disappointment in House approval of a proposal to add more qualifications and further tighten a limitation on farm program benefits delivered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency.
The House Agriculture Committee and the full House thoroughly debated more than 200 amendments during the legislation’s development. NCC Chairman Dodson said Chairman Lucas and Ranking Member Peterson are to be commended for the open process under which the legislation was developed and debated.
Rep. Peterson did not mince words in his reaction to the vote.
“The farm bill failed to pass the House because the House Republicans could not control the extreme right wing of their party,” he stated. “From day one, I cautioned my colleagues that to pass a farm bill we would have to work together. Instead, the House adopted a partisan amendment process, playing political games with extreme policies that have no chance of becoming law.
“This flies in the face of nearly four years of bipartisan work done by the Agriculture Committee,” he added. “I’ll continue to do everything I can to get a farm bill passed, but I have a hard time seeing where we go from here.”
The cotton industry urged House leaders to allow the bipartisan farm bill produced by the Agriculture Committee to be reconsidered by the full House so that a Conference Committee can resolve differences between the Senate and House bills, and new farm law can be enacted before the expiration of current law. But Rep. Lucas conceded there may not be another chance to craft a farm bill this year.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, suggested that House leadership look at the Senate Farm Bill as an option for moving ahead. That legislation – titled the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act – passed the chamber earlier in June with overwhelming bipartisan support on a 66-27 vote.
“Twice the Senate has overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan Farm Bill that reforms farm programs, ends direct payments, cuts spending, and creates American agriculture jobs,” said Stabenow. “The House needs to find a way to get a five-year Farm Bill done. The Speaker needs to work in a bipartisan way and present a bill that Democrats and Republicans can support. He could start by bringing the Senate bill to the floor for a vote.
“Maintaining the status quo means no reform, no deficit reduction, and further uncertainty that slows growth in our agriculture industry. This is totally unacceptable.”
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