Farm Bill Tug-of-War Finally Over

Op-Ed

After nearly a year and a half of committee talks, conference negotiations, a
Presidential veto, repeated extensions, postponed votes and, yes, more conference
negotiations, the House of Representatives finally passed the farm bill conference
report Wednesday, May 14, and this time around, the version appears to have the
support to trump a Presidential veto.

That support includes my own.

I was proud - and greatly relieved - to vote in support of the latest version of the farm
bill, a multibillion-dollar reauthorization of the federal farm, nutrition assistance, rural
development and agricultural trade programs.

Unlike the previously passed version of the farm bill reauthorization, which was
vetoed by President Bush last year, this version did not include tax hikes snuck into
the bill by Majority leadership after the committee passage.

With those provisions removed, I felt it was time to stop the squabbling and pass the
bill so that that farmers and lenders can finally have the predictability and stability the
farm bill provides. The conference report passed the House with a vote of 318-106.
The Senate passed the bill Thursday, May 15, and the bill is expected to be sent to
President Bush on Tuesday, May 20.

The $289 billion five-year package is not without criticism, however. President Bush
and some members say the bill is too costly and does too little to restrict subsidies to
wealthy farmers.

Perhaps the change to the bill that will affect 5th Congressional District farmers the
most is the cut to direct payments. These subsidies have been cut by $313 million by
reducing the percentage of acres for which a farmer can collect direct payments from
85 percent to 83.3 percent.

Though a bill the size and scope of the farm bill cannot be perfect, after a year-long
farm bill tug-of-war, I feel the bill we have produced does achieve its primary
purpose.

The new farm bill will ensure that our farmers have the income and commodity price
support they need to get their jobs done and continue moving Louisiana's economy
forward.

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