ST. LOUIS, Feb. 13, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) today called on the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate to make the necessary improvements to the revenue program outlined in the House conference proposal. NCGA acknowledges that the farm bill will require a fair amount of reciprocity with leadership and farm groups in order to provide a more robust, market-based farm safety net for producers.
"We are disappointed that the House farm bill proposal does not include a viable revenue countercyclical program for corn growers," said NCGA President Ron Litterer. "This framework does not contain a revenue program growers will view as an option. It simply fails to address the changes in our industry, the realities of today's marketplace, and the increasing levels of risk farmers are facing well into the future."
Added NCGA First Vice President Bob Dickey: "We understand the fiscal realities that House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and ranking member Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) must address. We applaud them for their initiative and pledge our support to help them arrive at a bill that fits within the proposed increase in baseline spending.
The House 2008 farm bill conference proposal:
* Extends the farm bill to ten years and eliminates tax increases * Retains countercyclical revenue option based on the administration's revenue proposal * Eliminates direct payments for the year 2016 and restores for 2017 to keep the baseline * Places a hard cap on Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) limits with no payments received if AGI is greater than $900,000 * Establishes 32 million acre total Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) cap beginning Oct. 1, 2009 * Restores CSP funding to at least baseline levels. Enrollment goal is 79.6 million acres
On a conference call today, Peterson and Goodlatte said they had bipartisan support in the House for the farm bill. Both expressed an inability in working with the Senate to arrive at a bill that the president and the administration can agree on by March 15 when the current farm bill extension expires.
At issue is how much money above the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) baseline that the farm bill can exceed.
NCGA remains optimistic the House and Senate will iron out the differences between their bills and arrive at an agreement the administration will support.
The National Corn Growers Association's mission is to create and increase opportunities for corn growers. NCGA represents more than 33,000 members and 48 affiliated state organizations and hundreds of thousands of growers who contribute to state checkoff programs. For more information on NCGA, log on to www.ncga.com.