Obey Says White House Must Get Involved if MILC Program is to Survive
Obey says white house must get Involved
if milc program is to survive
Warns Dairy Producers That MILC Is Set To Expire
At Midnight On September 30, 2005
WASHINGTON, D.C. - With just two weeks left, and time running out, Seventh District Congressman Dave Obey (D-WI) told a group of farmers gathered for a National Farmers Union fly-in that the White House needs to weigh-in with Republican congressional leaders to secure an extension of the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program.
"Our problem has always been that the MILC program was scheduled to expire two years before the rest of the farm bill," Obey told the farmers who had gathered from across the nation. "With that expiration looming, it's time for the President to follow through on his promise and demand that his allies in Congress send him a bill to bring dairy into line with other major farm commodities."
The MILC program, which provides a better price safety net for dairy farmers, was included in the 2002 Farm Bill, but while most commodity support programs were authorized through September 2007, the MILC program is set to expire at midnight on September 30, 2005.
Last year, Obey and Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) led an effort to extend the program during the conference consideration of an appropriations measure. The MILC extension was narrowly approved by Senate conferees, and Obey and his Republican allies had lined up the needed votes among House conferees, but before those conferees could vote the Republican Committee chairman adjourned the meeting to prevent passage.
"Our best chance to extend the MILC program was on that appropriations bill last year," said Obey. "We had the votes, but the Republican leadership opposed the measure and killed the extension. We asked the White House to intervene and they declined, so we lost the chance."
Ironically, on the same day that Republican leaders in Congress killed the MILC extension last year, President Bush was campaigning in Wausau, Wisconsin saying he supported the program and would work with Congress to extend it.
"We are two weeks from the death of the MILC program because there is no legislative vehicle readily apparent that we can use to extend the program," said Obey. "The Republican majority has total control over what legislation is scheduled and they have shown no intention of doing this. That means if the President doesn't pick up the phone and ask the Congressional leadership to extend the program the odds are that it will die."
"Those who care about MILC need to join me in calling on the President to intervene with the Congressional leadership right away because time is running out," Obey concluded.
Obey was attending the Farmers Union event to receive the NFU's Golden Triangle Award in recognition of his efforts on behalf of dairy farmers, in support of country of origin labeling for meat and other farm products and for his opposition to unfair trade deals.
http://obey.house.gov/HoR/WI07/Newsroom/Press+Releases/Obey+Says+WhiteHouse+Must+Get+Involved+To+Save+MILC.htm