Bill Huffman
Director - Government Relations

The Friday Report

March 19, 2010

The House of Representatives will be in session this weekend with a vote scheduled Sunday on health care reform legislation. This will be a close vote as the Democrats need 216 House members to vote in favor of the pending legislation. Central Valley Congressmen Dennis Cardoza and Jim Costa appear to be among the last members to decide which way they will vote on this major legislative package. Both Cardoza and Costa are remaining coy; probably will not commit on their vote until they get a better read from Speaker Pelosi on the total vote count.  This is a time when deals are cut and assurances are given on issues that may have nothing to do with health care!

Farm State Senators Oppose Farm Program Budget Cuts

Nine U.S. Senators led by Senator Saxby Chambliss, R-Georgia, ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee sent a letter Tuesday to President Obama opposing proposed budget cuts for farm programs.  

The letter said, “As Congress directs its attention to the fiscal year 2011 budget, we write to voice our opposition to proposed cuts in the farm safety net. Cutting farm programs in the midst of an economic downturn sends the wrong signal to rural America. While we agree that fiscal restraint is necessary and spending in the Federal budget should be reduced, doing so in this manner places a disproportionate burden on the backs of farmers, ranchers, and rural communities and fails to recognize the recent sacrifices these constituencies made to expand nutrition programs during the development of the 2008 Farm Bill.”

The nine Republicans reminded the President that the farm program represents only 0.17 percent of the Federal budget and a mere 16 percent of mandatory outlays at USDA. In contrast, food and nutrition assistance is estimated to be 82 percent of USDA’s outlays this current fiscal year, increasing to 86 percent through the middle of this decade.

As we reported before, the Chairs of the House Agriculture Committee and the Senate Agriculture Committee both expressed their opposition to the proposed farm program budget cuts in letters to their respective Budget Committees.

As we’ve said before, the President’s budget proposal for FY 2011 will likely fall on deaf ears in Congress, especially in this election year.

The California Water Situation

It is encouraging to note that the Bureau of Reclamation has notified irrigation districts south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta who contract for Federal water that they will get 25 percent of their contracted water allotment this year. That is up from just 5 percent last year. With the abundance of rain and snow this season, it is possible that the Bureau will increase those deliveries after the next snow survey later this month.

The California Department of Water Resources, likewise, has increased their allocation to 15 percent for their San Joaquin Valley water contractors. These Federal and State water deliveries could change during the year, depending on weather, snowpack and forecast runoff.

Irrigation districts in the Sacramento Valley who hold long time water rights will receive 100 percent of their water supply this coming irrigation season. That is good news for California rice growers!

Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Coming to California

U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln, D-Arkansas, will be in Sacramento on Thursday, April 8th for a fundraising reception beginning at 6:00 p.m. at the Rio City Café, 1110 Front Street, in Old Sacramento. The event is being hosted by the Agricultural Council of California, the California Cattlemen’s Association, the California Rice Industry Association and Farmers’ Rice Cooperative Fund.

Senator Lincoln, a good friend of the U.S. rice industry, is in a tough reelection race in Arkansas. FRC members who may be interested in attending the fundraiser can contact Bill Huffman (Huffman@farmersrice.com or by calling (916) 768-4416) for more details about this important event honoring Senator Lincoln.

Reminder

We want to remind all FRC members that March 31st is the deadline for enrolling trucks as “Agriculture Trucks” under new clean air regulatory rules being implemented in California. Growers recently received a letter from the California Rice Commission outlining the new regulations. Growers having questions about this program should contact Mr. Paul Buttner at the Commission (916-387-2264) who will be happy to answer any questions.