Statement of Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) Hearing on the Nomination of Michael O. Johanns

STATEMENT OF SENATOR TOM HARKIN (D-IA) HEARING ON THE NOMINATION OF MICHAEL O. JOHANNS

COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION AND FORESTRY

"Thank you Mr. Chairman, and congratulations on assuming the gavel this morning. I look forward to working with you in the bipartisan tradition of our Committee, as I did with Senator Lugar and Senator Cochran. I also welcome Governor Mike Johanns and congratulate him for his nomination as Secretary of Agriculture.

"Good leadership at the Department of Agriculture matters a great deal in my state of Iowa. Agriculture is critical to our economy, and we treasure our way of life in small towns and rural communities. Yet no matter where we live, we depend on food and agriculture. Thus the day-to-day responsibilities of the Secretary of Agriculture touch the lives of all Americans and millions of others around the world.

"Governor Johanns got a good start in life, growing up on a dairy farm near Osage, Iowa. As the governor of our neighboring state of Nebraska, he has added to his knowledge of food, agriculture and rural issues. Governor Johanns, I look forward to working with you on the many challenges we face.

"One of them is carrying out the farm bill. We passed a good bill in 2002, President Bush praised it and signed it into law, and for the most part it has been working. We stayed within the budget in writing that legislation, but since then the president's budget and appropriations bills have taken a lot of funding away. In fiscal 2005 alone, over $1.2 billion was cut from programs such as conservation, rural economic development, research and renewable energy. On top of that, the administration insisted that disaster assistance could only be obtained by drawing funds out of the farm bill. This bleeding of funds from the farm bill is damaging and short-sighted.

"Key farm bill initiatives are also suffering from delayed or misguided implementation. It seems as if the regulations for the Conservation Security Program were intentionally written to drive farmers and ranchers away through stingy payments and overly burdensome requirements. The new initiative to bring investment capital to rural communities has been largely nullified by unworkable rules. Funds dedicated to rural broadband access lie idle because of excessively tight-fisted lending policies. These implementation problems can and should be solved.

"It is encouraging that Governor Johanns understands the importance of developing markets for value-added products - from pork and beef to farm-based renewable energy and bio-based products. Adding value to commodities holds real promise for boosting farm income, jobs and economic growth in rural America. We wrote a provision in the farm bill requiring all federal departments and agencies to give a preference to procuring bio-based products whenever feasible - thus creating a huge potential market. Unfortunately, USDA's rules to establish this requirement are now more than two years late. This initiative is too critical to delay any further.

"We also face unprecedented challenges in protecting the safety and security of our nation's food supply - including from intentional acts scarcely contemplated in the past. Besides meat and poultry inspection, USDA has a crucial role in fighting plant and animal diseases, such as soybean rust or foot and mouth disease, and protecting human health, such as from BSE or Avian influenza. To do the job, USDA needs state-of-the-art facilities, which is why we must provide the necessary funds to complete renovation of the animal disease center in Ames, Iowa.

"We have a history of bipartisan cooperation in our Committee and with the administration in support of domestic and international food and nutrition assistance. It is helpful that the agriculture community understands this "farm-food" connection and wants our nation's abundance to help those who need it. I am proud to have worked with Senators Lugar and Cochran to strengthen the federal food assistance and child nutrition programs. Governor Johanns, I hope that you will continue USDA's strong support for national eligibility standards and benefit levels in these programs.

"In trade, we have for years taken for granted our nation's agricultural trade surplus. But for 2005, USDA projects that for the first time since 1959 our agricultural trade surplus will disappear. Clearly, global trade negotiations will require a lot of careful work, as will efforts to reopen markets for U.S. beef. More work is needed on USDA's just-released rule for expanding imports of cattle and beef from Canada in the wake of BSE.

"Finally, there is an urgent need to step up enforcement of the Packers and Stockyards Act against anti-competitive practices.

"Again, I welcome Governor Johanns to the Committee and look forward to today's hearing and to working with him in the coming months and years."

http://harkin.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=230461