Articles by Sarah Gonzalez

The Senate passed legislation granting permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) with Russia and Moldova today. The bill, H.R. 6156, passed by a vote of 92 to 4 and will now be sent to the president for his approval.

Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said she would not support an extension of current farm bill policy during an address at the Farm Journal Forum on Thursday.

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., said he is preparing for a “transition period” in the farm bill process during an address at the Farm Journal Forum on Thursday morning.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., offered President Barack Obama’s deficit reduction proposal for a vote on the Senate floor Wednesday, but Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., blocked the motion, calling it a “Republican political stunt.”

Negotiations between the White House and the House of Representatives on finding a compromise to avert the “fiscal cliff” of sequestration and tax hikes set for the end of year are at a “stalemate,” the House Republican leader said Friday.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack met with the four principals of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees today, boosting optimism for passage of a five-year farm bill instead of an extension of current policy within the next month.

The National Council of Chain Restaurants (NCCR) today released a report on the impact of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) on the chain restaurant industry, which indicated the mandate increases costs throughout the food supply chain.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) denied a request to waive the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) mandate for the production of corn ethanol.

The House approved legislation Friday morning that clears the way for the United States to establish Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with Russia.

House Republicans released today outlined an “autopsy” of the MF Global collapse in a report that criticized the failure in oversight of federal regulatory agencies.