The Clean Water Network held its biennial Clean Water Week gathering in Washington, D.C. last week, which brought together representatives of organizations from around the U.S. The Conference featured updates on and discussions on a wide array of policies that impact the nation’s water quality. Agricultural issues had a prominent place on the agenda. On […]
Archives for March 2011
Senate Dems Counter H.R. 1 with Their Own Half-Year Continuing Resolution
On Friday, March 4, the Senate Appropriations Committee released draft Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 appropriations legislation to fund all federal government functions for the last half of the current fiscal year. The bill is the Senate’s counter offer to H.R. 1, the House CR that passed on February 19 and included roughly $60 billion in […]
House Holds Two Hearings on Agriculture Appropriations
On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies held two hearings with top officials at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). On Tuesday, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, along with Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan, Chief Economist Joe Glauber, and USDA Budget […]
GIPSA Briefings in House and Senate
On February 28, 2011, briefings on the proposed Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) rule were held in both the Senate and House. Chandler Goule of the National Farmers Union moderated a panel of producers in favor of the rule: Mike Weaver, a contract poultry producer in West Virginia for Pilgrim’s Pride; Dan Hodges, […]
GAO Report Highlights Potential Ethanol, Commodity Program Budget Cuts
On Tuesday, March 1, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released its first annual report to Congress in response to a new statutory requirement to identify federal programs, agencies, offices, and initiatives, either within departments or government wide, which have duplicative goals or activities. The objectives of the report are to: (1) identify federal programs […]
154 Grassroots Groups Call Budget Cuts Reckless and Unjust
154 grassroots organizations sent a letter to the United States Senate on Monday in opposition to a government funding bill that would slash more than $60 billion from the federal budget for the last half of fiscal year 2011. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) circulated the letter, and the Rural Coalition/Coalición Rural circulated it […]
House Passes Two-Week Budget Extension with $4 Billion in Cuts
Earlier this afternoon, the House passed 335-91 a two-week extension of the existing short-term “continuing resolution” (CR) that is keeping the government running at fiscal year 2010 levels. The House extension includes $4 billion in immediate budget cuts, intended to be a down payment on the much deeper cuts contained in H.R. 1, the House […]
Over 185 Groups Urge Congress to Oppose H.R. 1 Cuts to Sustainable Agriculture
On Tuesday, March 1, NSAC delivered two letters to Senate offices in opposition to the sustainable agriculture cuts contained in H.R. 1, the House-passed Continuing Resolution (CR). The first letter was signed by 154 grassroots organizations from throughout the country, while the second letter was signed by 35 national conservation organizations. The common thread, running […]