For Immediate Release
June 20, 2012
Contact: Ferd Hoefner, 202-547-5754
NSAC Pleased with Senate Farm Bill Amendment Votes
Washington, DC – Today, the Senate voted on a series of amendments to its version of the 2012 Farm Bill.
NSAC Policy Director Ferd Hoefner commented,
“The bill reported by the Committee has been significantly improved these past two days. The Brown (Ohio) amendment provides critical funding for rural jobs and new farming opportunities. The Chambliss amendment brings common sense conservation protections to the farm safety net to protect the natural resources on which our food security depends. The Durbin-Coburn amendment begins the process of targeting taxpayer support for crop insurance, saving money by reducing subsidies for mega farms. The Merkley amendment starts to level the playing field for organic farmers with respect to crop insurance. The Grassley-Johnson amendment restores payment caps to the marketing loan program, completing the historic commodity payment limit reform in the underlying Senate bill. NSAC supported each of these amendments, and applauds the Senate for improving the bill with these important measures. We encourage passage of the bill tomorrow and urge the House to begin its farm bill process as soon as possible, with a goal of reaching a final bill this September. Our support for the final bill will hinge in part on the same reform issues receiving favorable support in the Senate yesterday and today.”
But the Sanders amendment, recognizing that States have the ability to impose GE labeling requirements failed. But it was the first time that a GE regulatory topic come up for a vote in either house.