Providing for Congressional Disapproval Under Chapter 8 of Title United States Code, of the Rule Submitted By the Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury, Relating to ``Contributions in Exchange for State or Local Tax Credits''

Floor Speech

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Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, thank you and a huge thanks to my colleague for not just deferring to me to make comments, which I am going to make very brief, but also for the leadership of the subcommittee and the bipartisan work. It is the way the Senate should work. Let's just expand that spirit to the entire Chamber, and we will make a lot of progress.

This bill maintains funding for important rural development programs, including housing and rural broadband, which is essential all across America. It provides assistance with farm ownership and farm operating loans because access to credit to farmers is critical to stay in business, and it helps new farmers come into the farming and ranching community, including minorities, women, and veterans.

It provides critical funding for SNAP. In our country, no one should go hungry. It assists with school meal equipment grants, the Farmer's Market Nutrition Program, and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, all relevant to making sure our children and our families have basic nutrition. It assists on the international front with Food for Peace, the McGovern-Dole program that feeds millions of children around the world.

I was down in Central America and found that the average child in Guatemala at 9 years old is 6 inches shorter than the average Guatemalan child raised in the United States--stunning. It is a huge factor and affects the entire course of the mind. America is doing incredible work around the world in poverty-stricken countries. This food program also increases school attendance, particularly among girls.

Critical funding for the Food and Drug Administration is part of this bill for a whole host of reasons.

There is only one thing in this bill that I have disagreement with, and that is funding for the relocation of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the Economic Research Service. I think those organizations do a far better job when they are here networking with the other key critical policy groups and when folks coming from Oregon and places remotely around the country visit NIFA and ERS at the same time as visiting other programs. Tribute to Bob Ross

Mr. President, for 11 years, Bob Ross has been a detailee from the Department of Agriculture to our subcommittee. That is because he is fabulous, and we just couldn't let him go here in the U.S. Senate. Most people in rural America haven't heard of Bob Ross, but millions and millions have benefited from his work, particularly his superb work on rural housing. He has been invaluable to us. Few people get a chance to leave such a mark to make the world a better place as much as he has.

He is on to the next chapter of his life, retirement, and perhaps many adventures in retirement. Bob is sitting behind me. We thank him for his years of service and wish him all the best of luck in the chapters to come.

I thank the chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture. It is a pleasure to work with him.

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