During debate of the Interior Appropriations Act (H.R. 2466) today, the Senate voted against an amendment by Senator Chuck Robb (D-VA). The amendment would have removed a provision in the bill which clarifies the authority Congress granted the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to conduct wildlife surveys under the National Forest Management Act (NFMA). "The defeat of this... Read more »
After months of repeated calls from farmers, Representatives and Senators for a proposal from the Clinton Administration, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman has failed to even reply to an invitation to appear before the House Agriculture Committee to review the crisis facing American farmers and ranchers. The complete text of Combest's letter to Secretary Glickman is available upon request. "... Read more »
As Congress readies to reconvene next week with farm emergency relief high on the list of priorities, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) today again called on the Clinton/Gore Administration to end its political campaign and submit to Congress a concrete plan for alleviating the current crisis affecting American farmers and ranchers. "In his budget, the President did not ask... Read more »
Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX), sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman criticizing the Administration for not effectively utilizing the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) to help drought stricken farmers and requested that the Administration submit to Congress an official recommendation addressing the farm crisis. The complete text ... Read more »
During today's House Agriculture Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight, Nutrition and Forestry hearing, led by Chairman Bob Goodlatte, the Food Stamp program was reviewed. Specifically, states asked Congress to provide them more flexibility, Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) interoperability, and caseload reduction. Today, three state welfare commissioners asked Congress to provide grea... Read more »
Two legislative measures in the House and Senate will separately address the deepening farm crisis, and House Agriculture Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) says both are well-timed to producers' needs. On Wednesday, the Senate passed a short-term emergency aid package for this crop year. Meanwhile, the House has slated action next month on "The Agricultural Risk Protection Act" offering new protection... Read more »
The U.S. House Committee on Agriculture on Tuesday, August 3, 1999 finalized proposed improvements to the federal crop insurance program, designing a bill to attract more farmers and ranchers purchasing policies through improved crop protection and the development of new coverage for lost market revenue, and livestock losses. H.R. 2559, "The Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 1999" meets the comm... Read more »
Today, the House Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight, Nutrition and Forestry, led by Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) reviewed the potentially adverse effects on public health that will result from the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) current process for implementing the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA). The Subcommittee also reviewed yesterday's announcement by Administrator Ca... Read more »
With the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) three months past the due date for providing a legally mandated report on country-of-origin labeling for meat, House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock and Horticulture Chairman Richard Pombo (R-CA) sent a letter to the General Accounting Office (GAO) requesting that it provide critical cost-benefit information on country-of-origin labeling to the ... Read more »
Today the House Agriculture Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Resource Conservation, and Credit, led by Chairman Bill Barrett (R-NE), reviewed the USDA's administration of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and considered legislation (H.R. 408) to increase acreage under the program. "For all its popularity within the conservation community and among farmers and ranchers, it has not bee... Read more »
