Press Releases

House Ag Committee Names Commission Members on Payment Limitations

September 26, 2002 – Announcing its three appointments to a new Commission on Application of Payment Limitations, the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture on Thursday named Gary Ward Black of Commerce, Georgia; Gary Dyer of Phoenix, Arizona; and Richard Newman of Anson, Texas. The Secretary of Agriculture, House Committee on Agriculture, and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry each appoint three members who will serve with the USDA's chief economist on the ten-member commission.

As part of the new farm bill, the commission is directed to conduct a study on the potential impacts of further payment limitations on the receipt of direct payments, counter-cyclical payments, and marketing loan gains and loan deficiency payments on farm income, land values, rural communities, agribusiness infrastructure, planting decisions of producers affected, and the supply and prices of covered commodities, loan commodities, specialty crops (including fruits and vegetables), and other agricultural commodities.

"The Committee thought it was necessary that those who were appointed be able to represent different agricultural areas of the country and various aspects of the agricultural industry. It was also important that each member have considerable knowledge of farm programs; and fully understand how government payments affect farm income, rural communities, land values, and agribusiness. The Commission has an important duty and will generate valuable information that will shape the future of agricultural policy. We are confident each person will approach this opportunity responsibly, professionally and fairly," said House Agriculture Committee Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) and Ranking Minority Member Charlie Stenholm (D-TX) in announcing the three commission members named by the House Agriculture Committee.

Mr. Gary Ward Black from Commerce, Georgia, will offer the Commission a perspective from the agriculture business world and the impact limitations would have not only on producers, but the communities in which they live, and other agriculture-related industries. Since 1989, Mr. Black has served as the President of the Georgia Agribusiness Council, Inc., a statewide trade association of the food and fiber industry. He is the founder of a specialty food marketing company located in Macon, Georgia, and from 1980-88, Mr. Black was the assistant director of field services and young farmer coordinator for the Georgia Farm Bureau Federation. His practical, community-based experience and knowledge of the agricultural economy should serve the Commission well.

Mr. Gary Dyer from Phoenix, Arizona, is President and Chief Executive Officer of Farm Credit Services Southwest, which operates under the Farm Credit Administration (FCA). In 2001, the Southwest area had over $550 million in loan volume. From 1986-89, Mr. Dyer was Vice President for Credit for the Farm Credit Bank of St. Louis. Over the last 28 years, Mr. Dyer has had extensive experience in a number of different capacities within the FCA. In addition, he served as State Executive Director of ASCS in California from 1981-83. Mr. Dyer will bring an important perspective to the Commission as one who is intimately familiar with the relationships between farm program benefits and an individual producer's ability to secure adequate financing. That he is coming from an area of such diverse agricultural production - including fruit and vegetable production – is a plus.

Mr. Richard Newman from Anson, Texas, has the knowledge of farm programs and the complexity of specific payment limitation rules from his experience as a current farmer and from a career of service in the USDA. In 1963, Mr. Newman began his career with the Farm Service Agency and was Deputy Administrator of Farm Programs from 1995-1998. Since 2000, Mr. Newman has served as Chief Administrative Officer for the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation. Mr. Newman will be an incredible asset to the Commission as he has implemented and assisted producers from all parts of the country with numerous farm programs. Working with producers on a personal level, he is aware of the costs and factors farmers must take into account, and how government payments affect a producer's bottom line.

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