Fighting Hunger Incentive Act of 2014

Floor Speech

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Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, the tax provisions that are being considered today include the much-needed Conservation Easement Incentive Act, a bill I introduced with my friend from Pennsylvania (Mr. Gerlach). As a matter of fact, I have worked on this issue ever since I have been here. The last time that we introduced the bill, it was Mr. Camp and I who carried the bill.

It is important, and since its first passage in '06, farmers, ranchers, hunters, and conservation groups alike have waited a long time for the security provided in this measure. It needs to be extended, and it needs to be made permanent. Conservation easements help protect valuable natural resources and scenic open spaces by allowing private landowners to permanently retire the development rights on their land. This bill keeps farmers and ranchers on the farms and on the ranches.

This provision is more than just about landowners, however. More than 70 percent of our wildlife gets food and shelter from our privately owned working farms, ranches, and forest lands, but we are losing these habitats to development at an alarming rate of about 5,000 acres per day. As an outdoors person--a hunter, a fisher--I am well aware of the importance of having places to hunt and fish and of the importance of that to our communities. I also know that many outdoor recreational activities depend on maintaining viable fish and wildlife habitats.

It is also important for clean habitats. Our urban areas benefit from this--watersheds, for instance, right outside of New York. If it weren't for this type of measure, we wouldn't have clean watersheds. New York City and the surrounding areas wouldn't have water. This incentive helps maintain healthy wildlife populations, hunter access, and healthy communities. It is not just land trust and government agencies that depend upon this. All types of charitable groups--Ducks Unlimited, Mule Deer Foundation, Pheasants Forever--depend on this type of legislation.

As much as I support this measure--as I said, it is my bill--as much as it is important to the country, the fact remains that it is not paid for. This is an incredibly popular bill. There has never been a time that we have introduced it when it hasn't had over 200 coauthors. As we know, during these divisive political times, it is hard to get 200 of us on this floor to agree on what time it is. This bill has over 225 coauthors this year, but, again, it is not paid for. The fact of the matter is that this, in combination with the other fiscally irresponsible measures that the committee has marked up, realizes an $825 billion shortage. It is not paid for.

I support the measure, but I don't support it in the fashion that it has been drafted. We need to pay for it, and we need to pass it. We need to do it right.

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