WASHINGTON, April 11, 2012 -Reports circulating around Washington indicate that the House Agriculture Committee will attempt to legislate regulatory certainty for farmers and ranchers through the next farm bill.
“We have recently learned that there is an effort to include some regulation relief in this legislation,” Dana Peterson, CEO of the National Association of Wheat Growers, said Tuesday during a farm bill webinar co-sponsored by NAWG and the Idaho Grain Producers Association.
Another D.C. farm lobbyist contacted by Agri-Pulse characterized such talk as wishful thinking, pointing out that many of the regulatory issues of greatest concern to the farm sector are not under the sole jurisdiction of the congressional agriculture committees.
According to NAWG’s Peterson, the regulatory language under consideration would block EPA implementation and enforcement of pending pesticide and chemical application rules, and also require USDA to speed up its approval of biotech crop traits. She said that regulatory relief was needed “so that our industry can operate a little easier,” and indicated that much of the push to write a regulatory title into a new farm bill was coming from the House. “We’re currently working with members of the Senate to increase their interest,” Peterson added.
A spokesperson for House Ag Chairman Frank Lucas told Agri-Pulse it was premature to talk about what may – or may not ‑ be included in the chairman’s mark before the committee completes its series of hearings on the 2012 Farm Bill being held in the field and in Washington.
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Original story printed in April 11th, 2012 Agri-Pulse Newsletter.
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