Simpson Secures Ag Research Funds

Press Release

Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, has secured funding for a number of agriculture-related research initiatives in the State of Idaho, including several projects at the University of Idaho. The funding is included within the Fiscal Year 2010 Agriculture Appropriations bill, which will be considered by the House Appropriations Committee tomorrow.

Among its many provisions, the bill includes $8.3 million in funding for efforts to eradicate a Potato Cyst Nematode (PCN) outbreak in Idaho's signature commodity and $349,000 for research at the University of Idaho into preventing the diseases re-occurrence. PCN is a plant pest that can seriously affect potato yields.

"Since it was found back in 2006, Potato Cyst Nematode has posed an unwelcome threat to one of Idaho's most visible commodities and to the economic livelihood of farmers and communities," said Simpson. "For that reason, I continue to support the crucial funding included in this bill because it will help eradicate the disease and find ways to ensure it never reappears."

The bill also includes funding for a variety of research programs important to commodities in the Pacific Northwest and funding for critical wildlife and animal management programs in Idaho and elsewhere.

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