Remarks as prepared for delivery: Chairman Roberts, Ranking Members Peterson and Stabenow, fellow members of the conference committee, good morning. And good morning to all who have gathered here today to discuss a matter of great importance and urgency: the 2018 Farm Bill. Many of you read last week that USDA is projecting that net farm income will be down another 13 percent this year. Producer i... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. I want to welcome you all to today’s hearing examining the upcoming agenda at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. I’d like to start by welcoming back Chairman Giancarlo. Chris, it’s great to have you back here. The committee last met with you in October and at that time, you were working on a number of important initiatives at the commission, n... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. I see a lot of new faces today as we tackle a cutting-edge topic for the committee: digital assets. For those of you who have not joined us before, welcome. We are happy to have you as we discuss an emerging policy area that is of deep interest to our members, to the emerging cryptocurrency industry, and…we hope…to Americans of all stripes. Digital a... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery for general debate on H.R.2 on the House floor: Mr. Chairman/Madam Chairwoman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018—more commonly known as the Farm Bill. I do so proudly because I still believe that rural America and our farm and ranch families are the backbone of this country. Our farmers and ranchers ensure that Amer... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway offered the below remarks before the House Rules Committee regarding the 2018 Farm Bill, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act (H.R.2): Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member McGovern, and members of the committee. I appreciate the opportunity to come before you today concerning the farm bill. H.R. 2—the Agriculture & N... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: All of you know the economic condition of rural America right now. We have seen a 52-percent drop in net farm income over the past 5 years. Chapter 12 bankruptcies are up 33 percent over the past 2 years alone. And not long ago, two key universities informed us that two-thirds of the representative farms they use to model the economic conditions of agriculture are... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: We have one heck of a task before us this year, and that is getting a farm bill done—and done on time. Given the state of the ag economy, it can’t come soon enough for producers. With a 52 percent drop in net farm income over the past 5 years, and USDA predicting another drop in farm income to the lowest level in 12 years, the American farmer and rancher is at ser... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: I would like to thank our star witness, the Honorable Sonny Perdue, for being with us today. It is customary for the Secretary of Agriculture to help the committee kick off a new year. This hearing is an opportunity for the secretary to offer his assessment of the rural economy and to visit with members of the committee about the full range of issues impacting rur... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. I would like to thank Chairman Giancarlo for being here today to highlight his plans for the CFTC. I first want to congratulate him on his nomination and confirmation. I count Chris as a friend; I have enjoyed his counsel and the opportunity to work with him the past three years. He is going to make a fine Chairman of the CFTC and I have all the con... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. Thank you all for being here today as we consider five straightforward bills. H.R. 2936, the Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017, gives the Forest Service more authority and much needed flexibility to improve and expedite forest management activities in federal forests. The past two fire seasons were among the most expensive on record, and this yea... Read more »
