FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 1, 2006

Subcommittee Hears from Pennsylvania Producers
Conservation, Credit and Rural Development Programs Examined

HARRISBURG, PA – Today Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural Development, and Research Chairman Frank Lucas chaired a field hearing in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to review programs under the Subcommittee’s jurisdiction in anticipation of reauthorizing the 2002 Farm Bill next year. Chairman Lucas was joined by Rep. Tim Holden, PA-17, and heard from two panels of witnesses representing Pennsylvania’s diverse agriculture sector.

“The Agriculture Committee is devoted to reach out to all regions of this nation to listen to the comments and concerns of producers that are affected by farm policy,” said Chairman Lucas. “Mr. Holden and I have traveled here today so that Pennsylvania producers may voice there concerns on Conservation, Credit, and Rural Development issues as well as other important topics that must be addressed. The testimony we hear today and the information we gather over the remainder of this year will be used by the Committee to draft legislation for the next farm bill.”

The field hearing was held at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg. At least 50 members of the community attended the hearing including local producers and agribusiness leaders. This is the Subcommittee’s first in a series of hearings to specifically review various conservation, credit, and rural development programs authorized by the 2002 Farm Bill which is set to expire in September 2007.

Witness testimony is available on the Committee website: http://agriculture.house.gov/hearings/index.html. A full transcript of the hearing will be available on the Committee website 4-6 weeks following the hearing.

Witness List
Panel I
Mr. Donald A. Coccia, Founder and Chairman, Agra Biofuels LLC, Middletown, Pennsylvania
Mr. John K. Shafer, Specialty Crop Producer, Tamaqua, Pennsylvania
Mr. Gregory E. Hostetter, Dairy Producer, Jonestown Pennsylvania

Panel II
Mr. Karl Laudenslager, Dairy Producer, Halifax, Pennsylvania
Mr. Glenn Seidel, Livestock Producer, Womelsdorf, Pennsylvania
Mr. Keith Masser, President, Sterman Masser Potato Farms, Sacramento, Pennsylvania

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