The Cattlemen’s Capitol Concerns (CCC) is a weekly report from Washington, D.C., giving an up-to-date summary of top policy initiatives concerning the cattle industry; direct from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).

Japan Resumes U.S. Beef Trade:  The Government of Japan announced today, July 27, that it will resume imports of U.S. beef from cattle 20 months of age and younger.  NCBA says today's announcement represents a move toward trade policy that is based on sound scientific principles, and it is an appropriate first step.  “But this step comes with product limitations on U.S. beef that are far too restrictive for American cattlemen to accept without an assurance by Japan to expand trade in the near future,” says NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs Jay Truitt.  “We will continue to insist on science-based principles as we work with our trading partners to regain full and normal beef trade.  The world's leading scientists, medical professionals and government officials agree that the prevalence of BSE in the United States is extraordinarily low.  There is simply no scientific reason to ban any of our U.S. beef products. 

Oregon Cattleman Testifies at Conservation Hearing:  The House Ag Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural Development, and Research hosted a hearing today, July 27, to discuss conservation issues related to the 2007 Farm Bill.  Oregon cattle producer and NCBA member John O’Keeffe testified.  As policymakers begin development of the 2007 Farm Bill, O’Keeffe says producers need more conservation programs that keep land in production. 

“The goal of conservation programs should be to maintain a balance between keeping good, well-suited working lands in production and providing for conservation of species and natural resources,”  said O’Keeffe.  The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP), and the Conservation Security Program (CSP) were examples cited by O’Keeffe as programs most popular among ranchers.   

“We believe economic activity and conservation can go hand in hand.  As such, we support the addition of provisions in the next Farm Bill that will allow more working-lands programs that will have tangible benefits on environmental quality and help to improve our ranching lands,” said O’Keeffe. 

Peru Trade:  In preliminary discussions on the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement, the Senate Finance Committee agreed today to recommend an amendment that will hold Peru to commitments agreed upon in January 2006 negotiations.  The amendment, brought forth by Senator Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), will require the White House to ensure that Peru reopens its market to U.S. beef before a U.S.- Peru free trade agreement can be implemented. 

The trade package completed earlier this year is one of the best negotiated agreements for U.S. beef producers to date, as it eliminates duties immediately on high quality beef and reduces tariffs on all other products faster than ever before.  But Peru continues to block U.S. beef products from cattle over 30 months of age.  “We must insist that Peru fully live up to its commitment in this trade deal to accept our imports,” said Conrad.  “I will continue to fight to open this important market for our producers.” 

WTO Talks:  Trade ministers from the United States, European Union, Brazil, India, Japan and Australia are abandoning World Trade Organization (WTO) Doha round of talks because of the inability to resolve ag trade issues.  NCBA has long followed the WTO talks and has stressed the importance of these multilateral negotiations as the best means toward increasing market access through tariff reduction. 

NCBA’s Chief Economist Gregg Doud said July 24, “Meaningful market access and lower tariffs around the world are the best ways to increase opportunities for U.S. beef producers in international markets.  Continued posturing on the part of the European Union has denied our cattlemen that access and the opportunity to grow demand for U.S. products overseas.”

NCBA will work aggressively to renew Trade Promotion Authority, reduce trade barriers and gain better international access for U.S. beef via new free trade agreements one country at a time.

Superfund Bills Gain Momentum in Congress:  Congress is moving bills in both the House and Senate to clarify that Congress never intended to regulate animal manure under Superfund laws. 

The Superfund laws were created to:  provide for the cleanup of toxic waste dumps and hazardous chemical spills, to force reporting of releases of hazardous chemicals and to enable emergency response.  But opponents of animal agriculture want to apply Superfund laws to livestock operations because of manure emissions.  Superfund laws, CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act) and EPCRA (Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act), already contain provisions exempting fertilizer and other substances used in agricultural operations from their regulations. 

S. 3681 was introduced July 18 by Senators Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.).  This bill now has 24 Senate co-sponsors.  In the House, H.R. 4341 currently has 175 co-sponsors with Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) signing on since last week.  Visit http://capwiz.com/beefusa to see a full list of co-sponsors.  If your Senator or Representative is not yet listed, send a message to them asking them to sign on!

Drought Assistance:  NCBA has developed a web-based resource for producers to access the latest drought information online.  This web page features a link to the U.S. drought monitor and the U.S. seasonal drought outlook, as well as information on how to contact your local FSA office and general FSA disaster assistance.  Visit http://hill.beef.org/drought.

Senate Farm Bill Field Hearings: The Senate Ag Committee will continue to hold field hearings on farm bill development in August: 

• Tuesday, August 15, 9 a.m. in Redmond, Ore.
• Wednesday, August 16, 9 a.m. in Grand Island, Neb.
• Thursday, August 17, 9 a.m. in Great Falls, Mont.

For more information, visit:  http://agriculture.senate.gov. 

House Ag Committee Farm Bill Hearings:  The House Agriculture Committee convened their final field hearing this week to review federal farm policy in Scottsburg, Indiana.  The Committee held a total of 11 field hearings in various regions of the country to gather feedback from America’s farmers and ranchers in preparation for reauthorizing the Farm Bill next year.

Next week, House Ag subcommittees have scheduled field hearings to review farm policy:

• Monday, July 31, 9 a.m., in Wall, S.D. (Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management)
• Monday, July 31, 8:30 a.m. in Sioux Center, Iowa (Subcommittee on Livestock and Horticulture)

For more information, visit:  http://agriculture.house.gov. 

Congressional Schedule:  The House is scheduled to recess for the rest of the summer at the end of this week, and the Senate will remain in Washington until the following week.  Congress will reconvene after Labor Day.

U.S. BSE Surveillance:  USDA’s Enhanced BSE Surveillance Program continues to test targeted animals identified as most likely to have the disease.  Since June 1, 2004, the program has tested 764,270 cattle and has found only two confirmed cases, evidence that our safeguards are working and the prevalence of BSE in the United States is extremely low.  Testing 268,500 animals can detect BSE at a rate of 1 in 10 million adult cattle at a 99 percent confidence level. 

Media Contact:
Tanya Augustson or Karen Batra at 202-347-0228; taugustson@beef.org or kbatra@beef.org