WASHINGTON, D.C.—From farm policy to trade to conservation, the field of support for the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 has continued to grow. All Americans rely on the farmers and ranchers that feed our country, so this year’s farm bill works to protect the economy of rural America in all aspects.
Read below to see the abundance of support and click on the links to view the full letter from each organization.
Farm Policy
“The Farm Bill passed by the House Agriculture Committee represents good farm policy and will provide certainty to our struggling farm sector. I encourage members of the House of Representatives to support these provisions. Members who vote for amendments that jeopardize passage of the bill are voting against farmers and rural America.” – Chuck Conner, President & CEO, National Council Farmer Cooperatives
“Net farm income has fallen by 52 percent in recent years, the steepest decline since the Great Depression. Today, rural America is suffering under an agriculture recession that is entering its fifth year and farmers are struggling to deal with this challenge. A core purpose of a farm bill at any time is to help the country’s farmers and rancher’s weather factors beyond their control, including natural disasters, disease, and high and rising foreign subsidies, tariffs, and non-tariff trade barriers. This is especially true during hard economic times. The farm bill reported by the House Agriculture Committee abides by the Committee’s commitments under the FY 2018 budget resolution and is on target to contribute more than $112 billion to deficit reduction over the next 10 years. These savings are roughly five times greater than initially pledged.” – Coalition of 300+ Agricultural Stakeholders
“We applaud the committee’s continued support of crop insurance, and we look forward to working with Chairman Conaway, Ranking Member Peterson and the rest of the Committee to get a farm bill with a strong crop insurance title across the finish line. In the midst of a depressed farm economy, we are pleased to see that Chairman Conaway and the House Agriculture Committee are committed to providing long-term certainty for our producers.” – American Association of Crop Insurers (AACI), the National Crop Insurance Services (NCIS), the Crop Insurance Reinsurance Bureau (CIRB), the Crop Insurance Professionals Association (CIPA), the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, and the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
Regulatory Reform
“The reforms included in the 2018 Farm Bill would increase the global competitiveness of American agriculture, encourage much needed innovation, and reduce costs to American farmers and ranchers and other users of pesticides at a time when they can least afford it. We thank the House Agriculture Committee for their leadership in authoring these important provisions, and we are committed to working with you to advance these imperative reforms.” – Coalition of 30+ Agriculture Stakeholders
Trade
“Additionally, NPPC thanks the committee for funding the Market Access Program and the Foreign Market Development Program, which are consolidated in the ‘Agriculture and Nutrition Act’ as the International Market Development Program. The programs, which help support export markets for U.S. goods, are vital to America’s pork producers, who last year shipped nearly $6.5 billion of product to foreign destinations.” – James Heimerl, President, National Pork Producers Council
“Trade is extremely important to the U.S. cattle and beef industry because it allows us to maximize the value of each animal. USDA’s Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program are proven, effective tools for building and expanding global markets for our industry.” – Allison Cooke, Executive Director, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
Rural Development
“The Farm Bill is an essential tool to strengthen rural America and drive our nation’s economy. Provisions in the House Farm Bill will enable electric cooperatives to continue improving the quality of life in America’s communities. We strongly support efforts to expand rural broadband access and fortify rural development programs, both of which are essential for rural America to fully participate in the 21st century economy. We encourage Congress to continue working to reauthorize the Farm Bill before it expires this year.” – Hon. Jim Matheson, National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (NRECA)
Conservation
“If the farm gates close to Ducks Unlimited, we cannot accomplish our conservation vision of filling the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever. This bill takes a strong step in ensuring that future.” – Dale Hall, CEO Ducks Unlimited
“The American Water Works Association (AWWA) is the largest association of water professionals in the world, with a membership that includes more than 4,000 utilities that supply roughly 80 percent of the American public with its drinking water… AWWA supports the House Farm Bill as it strengthens USDA conservation programs to focus on protecting sources of this nation’s drinking water.” – G. Tracy Mehan, Executive Director for Government Affairs, American Water Works Association
Forestry
“More than 60 percent of the forests in the United States are state or privately owned; and on these lands, more than 90 percent of the country’s wood supply is produced, providing over $200 billion in products and supporting nearly one million jobs annually. The forestry programs and policies included in the 2018 Farm Bill will support and enhance the health and productivity of these state and private forests, helping to sustain economic prosperity and protect environmental quality across the country.” – George Geissler, President, National Association of State Foresters
Credit
On behalf of the nearly 6,000 commercial banks in the United States, the great majority of which are in rural areas, we write to thank the committee for the tremendous work invested in writing a new Farm Bill. Given the sharp reduction in net farm income of over 50 percent since 2013, a new Farm Bill is vital to the economic viability of our nation’s farmers and ranchers and our rural communities. – American Bankers Association and Independent Community Bankers of America
Research
“On behalf of the 76 land-grant colleges and universities comprising the Board on Agriculture Assembly of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), I am writing to express our support for the research, extension, and teaching provisions included in H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018. We support the expeditious consideration of the bill by the House Agriculture Committee and the full House of Representatives.” – Association of Public & Land Grant Universities