NACIA Washington Update
July 02, 2009

First of all, we would like to wish everyone a safe and enjoyable 4^th of July. We hope you have a delightful holiday weekend.

With the July 4^th Recess this week, it has been relatively quiet for Congress. However, last week ended with a flurry of activity, including a last minute passage of Chairman Waxman’s climate change legislation. Prior to the House Floor consideration, the Peterson Amendment we discussed last week was incorporated into the legislation. The complete package was narrowly passed by a roll call vote of 219-212, with 44 Democrats breaking with the party leadership and voting against the bill.  Thirteen of those Democrats were members of the Agriculture Committee.  The vote was extremely close, with reports of strong efforts to turn out the vote. One article reported that Speaker Pelosi called to the Floor one Democratic Member who was recovering from back surgery and another who is currently in rehab. If you would like to see how your Member of Congress voted, please click here.  Chairman Peterson and Ranking Member Lucas both issued statements regarding the legislation, with very different views.  To read the Peterson statement that strongly supports the bill, click here. To read the Lucas statement that calls the bill a “disgrace,” click here.

The two major pieces of legislation still on the forefront for Congress when they return next week are health care and food safety.  We expect significant activity in both Chambers on health care legislation. The various House Committees are considering draft proposals, and the Senate HELP Committee is nearing completion of its mark up of Senator Kennedy’s Affordable Health Choice Act. Regarding food safety, it is not yet determined whether the House Agriculture Committee may assert jurisdiction over the legislation, as Chairman Peterson did on the climate change bill. Once this issue is worked out, it is possible that the Waxman/Dingell bill could be brought to the House Floor for a vote during the month of July. 

While Congress has been out of town, USDA has been very active. Secretary Vilsack has been out and about promoting various USDA programs and initiatives and at the same time USDA has been filling several state level positions.

• In North Dakota, Secretary Vilsack urged farmers to learn more about the ACRE program and seriously consider it before the August sign up deadline. Details.
• In Minnesota, Secretary Vilsack announced that USDA Rural Development has approved a $25 million guaranteed loan to for SoyMor Biodiesel, LLC. Details.
• Secretary Vilsack also selected recipients for $6.45 million in rural economic development grants.  To see the list of recipients, please click here.
• Regarding Staff, the Administration has begun naming State Executive Directors for the Farm Service Agency and State Directors for Rural Development. To find your state directors, please click here and find your state on the list. 
• Lastly, USDA also wants you to have a safe July 4^th, and has issued barbequing and picnic food safety tips.  Details.

In addition, on Tuesday the National Agricultural Statistics Service at USDA released the new planted acreage estimate. A few highlights below, and the full report can be found on USDA’s website here.

• Total U.S. crop area is down 1.2 percent from last year. Farmers planted 320.9 million acres to principal crops in 2009. This is 3.9 million acres less than last year. The most significant acreage declines were in North Dakota, down 2.1 million, and Texas, down 570,000 acres.
• Soybean acres are up 2.3 percent, with a record-high 77.5 million acres to soybeans. This is an increase of 1.8 million acres from last year. Five states have seen increases of more than 200,000 acres: Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota and South Dakota.
• Corn acres are up 1.2 percent.

Please submit your dues online through the secure NACIA website or print out the membership renewal form and mail in your check. As Congress returns from recess and gears up for a busy July, it is important that we maintain NACIA’s strong voice on Capitol Hill and with the Administration. 

As always, please contact us if you have any questions. 

Brent W. Gattis
NACIA Washington Representative