Farm-state Democrats prod House Republicans to compromise on farm bill
Right-wing extremists among House Republicans are seeking a one-sided farm bill when it is time for serious negotiations and compromise, said Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee on Tuesday. “Our bipartisanship is in need of a big lift,” said Georgia Rep. David Scott, the senior Democrat on the committee.
As input prices fall, farmers’ concerns shift to commodity prices
For the past year, the top concern, by far, of U.S. farmers polled by Purdue University has been higher input costs. Now, it’s a tie between lower commodity prices and higher input costs at 28 percent each, said the monthly Ag Economy Barometer on Tuesday.
FARM BILL?!?
The farm bill hall of shame
The farm bill is among the most important pieces of legislation that Congress is more or less obliged to pass. Yet to all but a handful of people whose job it is to parse its every incremental gain or loss, it is largely inscrutable. Every five years we’re treated to bitter fights over things like the use and abuse of agricultural subsidies; attempts to defund SNAP; the notion that environmental stewardship should guide farm policy as much as increasing production; and how (and sadly whether) to build equity into an agriculture system with a racist history. But the backstories to these fights, some ill-fated and others shameful, can provide important context and help to clarify exactly what’s at stake. Over the last 90 years there have been several key farm bill moments, the consequences of which shape the debates ongoing today.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Europe backtracks on pesticides: The head of the European Commission, in an apparent concession to protesting farmers, announced plans to abandon a proposal to halve pesticide use in the EU, part of the EU’s so-called Green Deal. (BBC)
Disaster payments of $306 million: The Farm Service Agency said it would begin payment this week of a final $306 million in disaster relief through the Emergency Relief Program for losses incurred in 2020 and 2021. (USDA)
Kobach seeks land ban: Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach urged legislators to ban foreign citizens and companies from buying more than three acres of land in the state as a safeguard against covert surveillance or drug cartel activity. (Kansas Reflector)
Free school lunch is popular: Seven in 10 Minnesota voters approve of the Legislature’s decision to provide free meals to all school students, according to a poll released on the heels of reports that the initiative is costing more than expected. (Minnesota Reformer)
