WASHINGTON,
Sept. 7, 2016 - Congress is back in Washington this week after a seven-week
hiatus, but the priorities of House and Senate leadership likely won’t leave
much room for the goals of the nation’s food and agriculture organizations.
For
starters, most legislators seem to want to fund the government and get back on
the campaign trail. It’s anyone’s guess how long it might take to get to a deal
on a continuing resolution that would avoid a government shutdown, but once
that deal is done, lawmakers can be expected to stick around just long enough
to approve it.
So where
does that leave the laundry list of issues important to agriculture? Some of
those priorities may be able to work their way into the so-called “CR,” but
some will prove too politically sensitive with an election now just two months
away.
With that
in mind, the leaders of several farm groups spoke with Agri-Pulse at the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa, last week
about their goals for the next several months. Several expressed a desire to
see some movement on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, but Mary Kay Thatcher, the
senior director for congressional relations with the American Farm Bureau
Federation, said based on remarks from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,
R-Ky., that might not happen.
Speaking
to members of the Kentucky Farm Bureau in August, McConnell said TPP “will not
be acted upon this year,” and Thatcher says that dims prospects for the deal’s
approval.
“We all
had very high hopes for the Trans-Pacific Partnership,” she said, but based on
McConnell’s comments, “I wouldn’t say there’s no chance, but I’d say the chance
got slimmer.”
Even
beyond the coming lame-duck session, Thatcher said passing TPP is going to be
“very difficult, especially if (Republican presidential nominee Donald) Trump
and (Democrat Hillary) Clinton both hold their positions.” Still, TPP looks to
be a priority for a number of ag groups. John Weber, president of the National
Pork Producers Council, called TPP, and trade more generally, “by far and away”
NPPC’s top issue. Leaders from the American Soybean Association, National
Association of Wheat Growers, and National Corn Growers Association all
concurred, stressing the oft-stated benefits of the deal for ag producers.
Aside from
TPP, the groups are also gearing up for another farm bill debate, but there
are differences of opinion on the timeline for that bill. ASA
leadership wants to see the bill completed early – preferably by the end of
next year – given the troubles in farm country, including low commodity prices.
ASA President Richard Wilkins told Agri-Pulse
that stems from a desire to avoid election-year politics in 2018, when the
current farm bill expires and mid-term elections could make it tough to deal
with sensitive issues.
But NCGA
and NPPC leaders were a little hesitant to buy into an accelerated timeline for
a new bill. Wesley Spurlock, NCGA’s first vice president, said the 2014 bill is
still basically “a brand new farm bill” with a few things left to understand,
so instituting new legislation before the current bill is fully understood
might be risky.
One key
issue that drew support from many of the groups was a desire to avoid splitting
the farm and nutrition programs into separate pieces of legislation.
“If you
don’t have the votes, you don’t get a farm bill,” NCGA President Chip Bowling
said. “In (NCGA’s) opinion, if you don’t keep the nutrition title as part of
the farm bill, it is going to be very, very hard to get the votes for it.”
ASA Vice
President Ron Moore agreed. He said he sees the farm bill as a food bill, so
including nutrition programs makes sense.
Behind the
scenes, a coalition of ag groups has already met several times to discuss the
next bill and what needs to be done to get it passed. Many groups are surveying
members to gauge opinions about the current bill and are also encouraging
producers to participate in USDA surveys so accurate data is available. But
until then, the groups are trying to hold together in hopes of winning what is
expected to be an uphill legislative battle.
#30
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