Bill Huffman
Director - Government Relations

The Friday Report

June 25, 2010

Congress continues to be preoccupied with financial reform legislation, extension of unemployment for those whose benefits have or will soon expire, and the extension of the tax cuts enacted during the Bush Administration which are scheduled to expire at the end of this year. There has been very little activity in either the Senate or House Agriculture Committee with regard to agricultural legislation.

Crop Insurance

The U.S. rice industry is working to develop a crop-insurance program that works for rice producers. The USA Rice Federation’s Crop Insurance Task Force is leading the effort to construct an effective crop-insurance program tailored for the rice industry. This was noted this past week during a hearing held by the House Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management. USDA’s Undersecretary for Farm and Foreign Agriculture Services Jim Miller told the Subcommittee that USDA is analyzing various proposals under its risk-management program that could lead to a better program for rice producers.

As we’ve reported before, the Obama Administration is proposing a major cut in funding for crop insurance. At the recent Subcommittee hearing, Kansas Representative Jerry Moran expressed concern that proposed cuts in crop insurance will reduce the budget baseline that Congress will use for the 2012 Farm Bill. 

USDA’s Risk Management Agency, which runs the crop insurance program, has announced it plans to cut payments to crop insurance companies by $6 billion over ten years, sending $4 billion to the Treasury for deficit reduction and using $2 billion to make some improvements in the Conservation Reserve Program. None of these changes are cast in stone and may change as USDA negotiations continue with the various crop insurance companies.

Court Rules on Genetically Modified Seed

The U.S. Supreme Court lifted an injunction issued by a California federal judge that imposed a nationwide ban on genetically modified alfalfa seed produced by the Monsanto Company. In a 7-1 decision, the high court ruled that U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco went too far when he issued an order preventing alfalfa farmers nationwide from planting Monsanto’s Roundup Ready alfalfa seed. Effectively, the Supreme Court ruling sets the stage now for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to complete a study examining whether the genetically modified alfalfa seed will harm the environment before approving it for planting.

USDA approved the modified alfalfa seed for use in 2005 and more than 5,500 growers planted the seed, but Judge Breyer found that that the agency (USDA)  “had violated federal law” by not fully assessing the seed’s impact on the environment after a lawsuit was filed by the environmental group Earthjustice. The Supreme Court said the San Francisco federal judge had “overstepped his authority”. 

Monsanto Company is embroiled in a similar fight in different federal court regarding its genetically modified sugar beets. 

Rice Leadership Program

We would like to remind young California rice growers that applications are now being accepted for the 2011 Rice Leadership Development Program. This excellent program is open to rice producers or industry related professionals between the ages of 25 and 45.  The application deadline is October 2.

For additional information on the Rice Leadership Program or an application form, you can log onto the USA Rice Federation’s website at usarice.com.