2006 CCC Archive
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).
Cattlemen Step-Up Efforts to Push Superfund Bills: Cattlemen continue to urge support for a pair of bills in Congress which will clarify that manure should not be regulated under Superfund laws.
In a letter sent to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-Texas) this week, NCBA states, “Over the past couple of years, some state and local authorities have sought to extend Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980 and Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986 liability to our nation’s livestock operations for emissions or discharges from livestock manure. Such an interpretation of Superfund law is not supported by science or legislative history.”
In the Senate, S. 3681 has 30 co-sponsors. In the House, H.R. 4341 currently has 185 co-sponsors with Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD), Michael Oxley (R-Ohio), John Spratt (D-S.C.) and Michael Bilirakis (R-Fla.) signed on since last week! Visit http://capwiz.com/beefusa to see a full list of co-sponsors. If your Senator or Representative has not yet signed on as a supporter, send a message to them asking them to sign on and communicate to them about the importance of this issue!
Cattlemen Brace for Ill-Conceived Dust Rule: Under the guise of “Strengthening National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Particle Pollution,” the Environmental Protection Agency issued today, September 21, their final rule on fugitive dust. NCBA has been working to communicate to policymakers that the EPA’s proposed rule lacks scientific validity and is based on flawed assumptions regarding coarse particulate matter (coarse PM) concentration levels. NCBA submitted extensive comments on the issue, including technical evidence demonstrating that fugitive dust from agriculture operations presents no public health concerns. In fact, EPA concedes that there are powerful reasons for not adopting a coarse PM standard.
NCBA supports dust control measures, which range from soil conservation to fugitive dust control plans, many contained in air pollution control permits or approved by air pollution control agencies. Ranchers carry out those measures every day of every year while supplying America with the food it needs. Because cattle and other agriculture operations control coarse PM through a variety of technology and management requirements, and rural areas are dusty by nature, little more can be done to comply other than scale back or shut down operations all together.
NCBA is reviewing the final rule and is considering a number of options to help producers deal with the impacts from this rule. The final rule is posted at http://www.epa.gov/air/particles/actions.html.
Senate Approves Reauthorization of Mandatory Price Reporting: The Senate voted by unanimous consent September 20 to reauthorize the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999. This bill, H.R. 3408, passed the House in September 2005 and is now headed to the President's desk. The bill will reauthorize Mandatory Price Reporting (MPR) through September 30, 2010.
“This reporting process is important to U.S. cattle ranchers, and since the mandatory law expired last fall, we have been working diligently to urge its renewal,” explains NCBA President and Missouri cattle producer Mike John. “Making price reporting practices mandatory by law ensures cattle producers are getting the marketing information they need about their beef products.”
Mandatory Price Reporting requires meat packers to report to the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) daily price and volume information on negotiated and non-negotiated purchases of cattle and boxed beef sales. In addition, companies are also required to report beef exports and imports. The Mandatory Price Reporting law expired September 30, 2005, after the Senate was initially unable to agree to the House bill. Mandatory price reporting originally went into effect in April 2001. The reports are available online at the AMS website, found at www.ams.usda.gov/LSMNpubs/index.htm
NCBA President Testifies on Farm Bill Before House Ag Committee: The House Ag Committee hosted a hearing September 20 on Farm Bill development. NCBA President and Missouri cattleman Mike John testified. “It is not in the nation’s farmers’ or ranchers’ best interests for the government to implement policy that sets prices, underwrites inefficient production, or manipulates domestic supply, demand, cost, or price,” said John.
A producer-driven organization, NCBA relies on the directives of its membership of over 25,000 cattle producers and 64 affiliate organizations to establish how to proceed in setting Farm Bill policy. NCBA members have identified “guiding principles” for the 2007 Farm Bill. Under these principles, NCBA’s priorities are to:
- Support a reduction of the federal deficit while assuring funding for Farm Bill priorities, without agriculture bearing a disproportionate share of the reductions,
- Minimize direct federal involvement in agricultural production methods,
- Preserve the individual’s right to manage land, water, and other resources,
- Provide an opportunity to compete in foreign markets, and
- Support equitable farm policy.
As Congress looks at reauthorizing the Farm Bill, many programs important to cattlemen – such as those in the areas of conservation, trade, marketing, research, energy production, property rights, tax policy and animal identification - are all being evaluated. A copy of John’s testimony is posted on our Farm Bill web page at www.beefusa.org.
Congress Considers Bill to Open Interstate Markets to State Inspected Meats: The “New Markets for State-Inspected Meat and Poultry Act of 2006” (H.R. 6130) could allow meats (including beef, pork, poultry and lamb) approved by state inspection agencies to be sold in every state. Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) introduced the legislation September 21 along with 13 original cosponsors. NCBA supports this legislation as a great opportunity for cattle producers and small local businesses to create and market branded beef products and specialty products.
“The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has agreed that state inspection programs are ‘at least equal to’ federal inspections, but a 40 year-old law is keeping state-inspected meat from being marketed across state lines,” Rep. Blunt said. “If we want to open markets for agriculture products, we ought to start at home.”
The 28 state-run inspection programs receive half of their funding from the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and must demonstrate that its system is equivalent to federal inspection.
USDA Extends Emergency Grazing On CRP Acres In 30 States: USDA announced September 15 it will extend the window for emergency livestock grazing on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres for farmers and ranchers who are impacted by drought in 30 states. The traditional deadline for emergency grazing on CRP acres is September 30. "Extremely dry weather conditions have created real hardships for farmers and ranchers in many parts of the country this year," said Ag Secretary Mike Johanns. "This emergency relief measure will provide feed and forage to producers who have lost hay stocks and grazing lands because of drought."
The 30 eligible states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Emergency haying of CRP acreage in these states ends September 30, 2006. Additionally, USDA announced that CRP rental payments will be reduced by only 10 percent instead of the standard 25 percent on CRP lands that are grazed in 2006. For more information about USDA disaster assistance, visit your local USDA Service Center or online at: http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.
Forest Service to Amend Plans to Manage Prairie Dogs: Ranchers in parts of Nebraska and South Dakota may get some help with prairie dog management according to an announcement this week by the U.S. Forest Service. By October 1, 2007, the Forest Service plans to complete an analysis and an environmental impact statement (EIS) aimed at enhancing management of prairie dog populations to better protect land and resources. The amended forest and grasslands plans will allow greater latitude to manage prairie dogs on the Buffalo Gap, Oglala, and Fort Pierre National Grasslands.
“This announcement represents a positive step in an ongoing resource conflict between wildlife interests, livestock grazing, and Forest Service managers,” says Jeff Eisenberg, director of federal lands for NCBA. “We have been working within partnership programs for some time to address this issue, and we are happy to see the Forest Service take this important step toward resolution and set a timeline for further action.”
A notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement should appear in the Federal Register later this month. The amendment process is expected to take approximately one year, and will include public comment opportunities.
U.S. – Mexico Beef Trade: Back from meetings in Mexico last week, NCBA President Mike John and Chief Economist Gregg Doud want to reiterate to fellow U.S. cattle producers how very important this export market is for our beef products. In addition, they saw first-hand how difficult and time-consuming the border restrictions can be for Mexican cattle coming into the United States. NCBA believes this is a very valuable trading relationship and we will continue to work together with members of the U.S.-Mexico Cross Border Working Group to improve trade and animal heath issues.
Currently, Mexico is our top export market for U.S. beef and beef products. “At the rate we are going this year, our U.S. beef exports to Mexico could reach a value of over $1.1 billion,” says Doud. “This would surpass the value of this market in 2003 (at pre-BSE levels) of $874 million, and the record $893 million exported in 2005!” This tremendous growth represents the current strength of the Mexican economy.
Lining Up for U.S. Beef in Japan: The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) reports this week that interest in and demand for U.S. beef continues to increase in Japan. Japanese customers were reportedly lining up for hours at major Japanese fast-food chain Yoshinoya D&C Co. to enjoy the popular "beef bowl" once again.
Yoshinoya runs 1,000 restaurants nationwide. Approximately 1 million “beef bowls” featuring U.S. beef for the first time in 2 ½ years were served Monday to Japanese consumers – some of whom had camped out overnight. One young Japanese consumer said his 12-hour wait to get his gyudon beef bowl was worth it. “The amount is just right, and the beef is juicy,” he said. “Yoshinoya’s gyudon is the best.” Fore more information on USMEF’s efforts to reintroduce U.S. beef in Japan, visit http://www.usmef.org.
Cooperative Conservation Listening Sessions Ongoing: Listening sessions on cooperative conservation and environmental partnerships hosted by the Secretaries of Interior, Commerce and Agriculture, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality continue this month. Discussions will focus on how the government can better work with local communities and landowners to protect the environment and promote conservation. In a joint statement, the agencies said they want to better respect the interests of people with ownership in land, water, and other natural resources.
For more information on each location, go to: http://cooperativeconservation.gov/sessions.
Future sessions are scheduled as follows:
- Orlando, Florida, 3 p.m., Sept. 25, 2006
- Waco, Texas, 10 a.m., Sept. 27, 2006
- Colton, California, 10 a.m., Sept. 28, 2006
- Northampton, Massachusetts, 1 p.m., Sept. 29, 2006
Media Contact:
Tanya Augustson Camarra or Karen Batra at 202-347-0228, tacamarra@beef.org or kbatra@beef.org.