Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good afternoon, and thank you all for gathering here this afternoon as the Committee continues its work to reauthorize the Farm Bill in advance of its expiration next fall. As was explained in this morning’s Conservation and Forestry subcommittee hearing, the plan is for each subcommittee to hold at least two hearings exploring the Farm Bill programs and issues un... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, Rep. Frank Lucas (OK-03), Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry, held the first hearing in a series designed to set the stage for the next farm bill. The subcommittee heard from a panel of witnesses, including farmers and ranchers, who shared their perspectives on the effectiveness of the conservation policies in the Agric... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning and welcome to today's hearing. For some of us, it's hard to believe that it's already farm bill time again. To some degree, it feels like we just finished hashing out the details of the last farm bill. But, it's true that we are already entering the 4th year of the Agricultural Act of 2014, and that means we must now set about the hard work of prepar... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today the Senate approved the nomination of Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway issued the following statement. "I am pleased with today's confirmation of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt," said Chairman Conaway. "For too long, farmers and ranchers have suffered from unnecessary, burdensome regulat... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing to explore the implications of restricting what can be purchased with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Members of the committee heard from a panel of witnesses who discussed the challenges of implementing product restrictions, the need for encouraging healthy purchasing habits, and the role that ince... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: I want to welcome our witnesses to today’s hearing and thank them for taking the time to share their views on a very timely and somewhat sensitive topic—the idea of restricting SNAP purchases. This hearing is a continuation of the conversation had in a Member roundtable last October. There are good arguments to be made on both sides of this issue, and this discuss... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today the House Agriculture Committee approved two measures regarding the regulation of pesticides. H.R. 953, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act, would clarify Congressional intent regarding pesticide regulation in or around waters of the United States. A 2009 court decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit erroneously applied the provisions of the National Po... Read more »
Now we will once again consider the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act. As many of you will remember, this Committee met two years ago to mark up this very same bill text. In fact, this is the fourth time this Committee has marked up this bill. The bill language was likewise included in the 2012 Farm Bill reported out of this committee, as well as in the 2013 Farm Bill the House sent to Conference. I... Read more »
Thank you for being here today as we consider H.R. 1029, The Pesticide Registration Enhancement Act of 2017, also known as PRIA. As we learned in our roundtable earlier this week, PRIA is a very technical bill, but the benefits are straightforward. It has produced predictable timelines for industry, new products for consumers, funds for completion of various registration activities, and funds for ... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, the grocery industry announced a nationwide effort to clear up consumer confusion regarding date labels on food packaging as part of an overarching effort to combat food waste. The initiative will streamline the phrasing used on food date labels by replacing over ten existing forms with two standard phrases. Most products will bear a “BEST If Used By” label that connotes ... Read more »
