Bill Huffman
Director - Government Relations

The Friday Report

September 30, 2011

The House of Representatives was in recess this week with most of their members back in their home districts while the Senate remained in session for part of the week. In an unusual move yesterday, three members of the House returned to the House chambers to approve, on a voice vote, a four-day extension of government funding keeping Federal agencies open through next Tuesday. This was necessary because the “continuing resolution” providing funding for all government agencies would have expired tonight, September 30th, which is the end of the 2011 fiscal year. The full House will convene on Monday to take up a Senate bill that provides for funding the Federal government for the next seven weeks. In the interim, Congress will have time to work out the line-by-line details of a 2012 fiscal year budget, which will contain already agreed upon budget cuts for the rest of the new fiscal year.

If this sounds confusing, it is! You recall that the House passed its version of a “continuing resolution” to fund the government through mid-November and then went into recess for a week. The Senate then failed to approve the House passed version; passing instead its own “continuing resolution” and sending it back to the House of Representatives for concurrence. With the House in recess, Speaker Boehner decided not to call his chamber back into session, instead asking three members to convene long enough to pass a four-day funding extension with the intention of taking up the Senate bill when the House reconvenes on Monday.

What a way to fund the government! There is still tension in the air over government funding and it is possible that conservatives might still launch a fight over short-term funding when the House reconvenes Monday. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens!

House Ag Chairman Lucas Visits California

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas met with California rice industry leaders this morning at a breakfast in his honor at the Board Room at Farmers’ Rice Cooperative. Mr. Lucas was a guest of the California Rice Fund and the Farmers’ Rice Cooperative Fund.

Chairman Lucas briefed industry leaders on the Federal budget deficit situation telling the industry that development of the 2012 Farm Bill is basically “on hold” until his committee is given a budgetary number to work with by the Congressional Select Committee that is working on a deficit reduction plan to be submitted to Congress sometime in mid-November. Mr. Lucas indicated that he felt the Agriculture Committee’s will be asked to find savings (make cuts in programs) of about $33 billion over the next ten years, which could mean major cuts to virtually all programs contained within the Farm Bill.

California rice industry leaders discussed a California proposal for making changes in the so-called ACRE program that would give California growers another “safety net” option should substantial cuts be made to the current direct payment program contained in the 2008 Farm Bill. Chairman Lucas listened to the California proposal indicating that he appreciated the industry’s input and asked that a copy of the California proposal be given to his Agriculture Committee staff as soon as possible to become part of the record to be considered when his Committee puts forth its budget savings suggestions to the Congressional Select Committee within the next two weeks.

The California Rice Producers’ Group developed the proposed improvements to the ACRE program. Presentation of the California proposal will also be made to Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow and her staff and to other key member’s of the two Agriculture Committees.

The California proposal, by the way, has been “scored” to determine if it would reduce Federal farm program outlays and it does which is a positive development. The proposed changes to the ACRE program has also been reviewed by the USA Rice Federation’s Farm Bill Task Force and will become part of their overall rice industry Farm Bill position going forward.

California Harvest Update

The California rice harvest is picking up. Drier Manager Joe Alves reports that FRC received 79 loads of medium grain at the Stegeman facility yesterday and 42 loads at the West Sacramento driers. FRC will finish drying short grain at its West Sacramento facilities today because our short grain storage will be full by tonight. Any remaining short grain will be dried at DePue Warehouse Company while the FRC West Sacramento drying facilities will only handle medium grain for the rest of the harvest.

By the way, Joe Alves reports that average daily moisture for the 79 loads received at the Stegeman facility yesterday averaged 22 percent moisture. He cautions growers to watch their moistures closely as the straw may appear to be very green; however, the grain moisture may be lower than growers may think it is.

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