Walz Praises House Passage of Farm Bill

WALZ PRAISES HOUSE PASSAGE OF FARM BILL

Washington, Jul 27 - Today, Congressman Tim Walz praised the House passage of the 2007 Farm Bill. Walz, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, issued the following statement:

"The House passage of the Farm Bill is a huge step forward for southern Minnesota and rural America.

"As a member of the House Agriculture Committee, I've spent a lot of time working on this bill over the last few months with Chairman Collin Peterson from Minnesota, who did a fantastic job putting together a bill that we can be proud of. This bill is supported by a broad number of commodity and rural development organizations, conservation groups and the nutrition community.

"This process has not been easy. But I have worked very hard the last few days to convince my colleagues that this Farm Bill is vitally important to everyone who likes to eat safe, affordable, healthy food.

"With this successful vote in the House, we've overcome a huge hurdle. When the Senate acts on its Farm Bill, we can get to work on a final version of the bill.

"I am very disappointed that President Bush threatened to veto this bill because it funds important nutrition programs by closing a tax loophole that allows foreign corporations to avoid paying their fair share. I find it hard to believe that the president would veto the Farm Bill in order to protect tax-dodgers in foreign countries, but that's what he's threatened to do. I'm going to work with my colleagues and hopefully we can convince him to back down on that threat."

Key measures included in the 2007 Farm Bill passed by the House:

* The bill maintains the farm safety net that helps producers bridge years of low commodity prices or natural disasters.
* The bill reforms our farm programs by imposing real payment limits on farm payments. Loopholes that allowed producers to evade payments limits are closed and, for the first time, farm payments will be traced back to individual producers. The Farm Bill denies all farm program payments to farmers with an Adjusted Gross Income over $1 million, with no exceptions. It also denies farm payments to those with Adjusted Gross Income over $500,000, unless two-thirds of that income is agricultural-related.
* It guarantees a historic level of funding—$1.5 billion—for fruit and vegetable growers, who have not received traditional Farm Bill benefits in the past. This funding will support nutrition, research, pest management and trade promotion programs.
* The Farm Bill improves funding and access to conservation programs that take environmentally sensitive land out of farming and encourage environmentally friendly practices on working farmland. The measure adds $4.3 billion more to preserve farm and ranchland, improve water quality and quantity, and enhance soil conservation, air quality, and wildlife habitat on working lands.
* The Farm Bill encourages the expansion of renewable fuel production that promotes energy independence and protects our environment. It provides $2 billion in loan guarantees for the development of refineries that process renewable fuels and $1.5 billion for production incentives for ethanol and biodiesel made from agricultural, forest, and waste plant materials.
* The Farm Bill has a strong rural development title that funds economic development programs and access to broadband telecommunication services. It also addresses the health care, emergency, and first responder needs of rural areas.
* The Farm Bill expands nutrition programs that help 35 million low-income families, providing an additional $4 billion over the next five years. For the Food Stamp program, which keeps 26 million of the nation's poorest from going hungry, the bill increases the minimum benefit for the first time in 30 years and indexes the benefit amount to inflation.

Congressman Walz said the Farm Bill also includes a number of provisions he authored, which were included at his request:

* The legislation includes nearly a dozen different provisions benefiting beginning farmers and ranchers, such as new set-asides within conservation programs like EQIP for beginning producers and a requirement that USDA provide $15 million annually for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program
* The Farm Bill includes language requested by Rep. Walz that allows pork producers to access USDA funds to purchase biofilters and methane digesters which reduce the impact of animal waste on the environment.
* The Farm Bill contains a Walz-authored provision that amends the Conservation Security Program to make it more equitable to sustainable farmers, such as organic producers.
* At Rep. Walz's request, the legislation requires USDA to provide $10 million for the Grassroots Source Water Protection Program, which provides full-time field staff to help rural communities protect their drinking water.
* The bill includes language authored by Rep. Walz which requires USDA to study the impact of rail service on rural America as it relates to agricultural inputs and commodities, renewable fuels, and coal. USDA is also required to report back to Congress with recommendations for new federal policies to address any problems that the study identifies.
* The Farm Bill also includes language Rep. Walz offered that makes the Shell Rock River Watershed's innovative flood control project in Albert Lea eligible for federal funding.

Source