House Ag Committee Rejects Obama Budget Cuts

By Jim.Robinson|March 8, 2010

The House Agriculture Committee unanimously rejected President Obama’s budget proposals to reduce farm program payments and eligibility requirements to offset additional proposed spending for food and nutrition programs.

The Committee’s views were outlined in a letter to House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt (D-SC).

The budget views and estimates letter reflects the Committee’s position that the nutrition, farm, conservation, energy and rural development programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction are providing an essential safety net during a time of continuing economic difficulty.

The White House Budget proposed that storage credits be eliminated, direct payments be reduced by 25 percent from $40,000 to $30,000 per farmer, and that the payment eligibility rules be changed by making producers ineligible for payments if their Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) from off-farm sources exceeds $250,000 or $500,000 from on-farm sources.

Currently, the off-farm AGI limit is $500,000 and $750,000 from on farm AGI.