NCBA Staff Contact: 
Colin Woodall, Executive Director of Legislative Affairs
202-347-0228
cwoodall@beef.org

Summary:
Congress has been working for months on the 2007 Farm Bill. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (H.R. 2419), on July 17 by a vote of 231 to 191.  The U.S. Senate passed its version of the bill on December 14, 2007 by a vote of 79 to 14.  The two bills must now go to conference.  While staff has begun discussions, conferees have yet to be named.  A final agreement on the Farm Bill should be reached by March 15, 2008, when the extension of the 2002 bill expires. 

Ban on Packer Ownership:  For cattlemen, NCBA’s top focus will be to remove language in the Senate bill which bans the ownership of cattle by packers.  NCBA policy supports a competitive, free-enterprise market.  The Senate has chosen to include legislative language that puts the government – not the cattleman – in charge of how cattle are marketed.  This provision must be removed so that the heavy hand of government does not interfere with a cattle producer’s ability to provide the beef products that consumers want.

Country-of-Origin Labeling:  Language in both the Senate and House bills helps alleviate the paperwork burden on producers requiring only documents used “in the normal conduct of business” to verify origin.  Language in the Senate bill also adds macadamia nuts, goat meat, and chicken to the list of covered commodities.  In its comments to USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service on the mandatory COOL law set to be implemented in September 2008, NCBA articulated that, as a mandatory law, COOL exempts too many products.  While the current law is far from perfect, the compromise language in the Farm Bill is an improvement for cattle producers.  Mandatory country-of-origin labeling is scheduled to take effect on September 20, 2008.

Interstate shipping:  Language in both bills allows for the movement of meat products across state lines from state-inspected facilities.  NCBA policy supports the provision as a way for state-regulated businesses to compete in interstate commerce.  This will provide a great opportunity for cattle producers and small local businesses to market branded beef products to a wider audience.  This action by Congress will help foster entrepreneurship and add new competition in the processing sector.

Conservation Programs:  Funding for conservation programs was included in the Senate Farm Bill, but most of that funding is allocated to the Conservation Stewardship Program (formerly the Conservation Security Program) and the Wetlands Reserve Program. 

In the House bill, the budget for the popular Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) increased to $2 billion per year over the life of the bill. The House bill also broadens eligibility for EQIP funds to include custom feeders and livestock markets.  NCBA will be urging conferees to consider a final conservation title that more closely resembles the House-passed version in this regard. 

NCBA will also urge conferees to fix the Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) cap and payment limitations for conservation programs that exist in the House Farm Bill.  This language would make many ranchers ineligible for Farm Bill conservation programs.  The goals of voluntary conservation programs are compromised when artificial caps and limits are applied.  Cattlemen will urge the conference committee to exempt cost-share programs such as EQIP from the AGI caps and payment limitations.

Tax Incentives for Conservation Easements:  Included within the tax title of the Senate-passed Farm Bill is language that would permanently extend a beneficial tax incentive for donations of conservation easements.  This provision permanently establishes tax credits for landowners who voluntarily put easements on their property.  Along with our Farm Bill conservation programs, this legislation will help ranchers and other landowners implement and maintain long-term conservation projects on their land.  It will help private landowners keep agricultural lands in productive use, while protecting fish and wildlife habitats, and conserving our natural resources.

Disaster Assistance:  A permanent disaster assistance program was created and funded in the Senate Farm Bill.  This program would combine the current Livestock Indemnity Program and Livestock Compensation Program and create a similar program that will operate on a permanent basis, as opposed to the current ad hoc system.  Ranchers struggle with difficult management, movement and sale decisions in the midst of a disaster, and that situation is worsened by the uncertainty of whether or not Congress will be able to provide any meaningful assistance.  NCBA supports programs that are permanent in nature as opposed to previous approaches of providing producers with assistance on an ad-hoc basis well after a catastrophic event.

NCBA Guiding Principles for the 2007 Farm Bill: 

NCBA members agreed to specific Guiding Principles for the 2007 Farm Bill.  This statement has guided NCBA’s actions on behalf of the cattle industry in influencing the formulation of the 2007 Farm Bill.

Under these Guiding Principles, NCBA’s priorities are to:

1. Support a reduction of the federal deficit while assuring funding for Farm Bill priorities, without agriculture bearing a disproportionate share of the reductions,
2. Minimize direct federal involvement in agricultural production methods,
3. Preserve the individual’s right to manage land, water, and other resources,
4. Provide an opportunity to compete in foreign markets, and
5. Support equitable farm policy.

RELATED DOCUMENTS:

• Testimony of NCBA President Mike John on Farm Bill Development to the House Ag Committee, September 20, 2006
• 2002 Farm Bill Summary 
• Farm Bill 2007 Framework Document 
• Farm Bill 2007 Discussion Questions 
• Testimony of Oregon Cattleman and NCBA Member John O'Keeffe before the House Committee on Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural Development, and Research on Farm Bill Conservation programs, July 27, 2006 
• Testimony of Missouri Cattleman and NCBA President Mike John before the Senate Committee on Agriculture on the 2007 Farm Bill, Cape Girardeau, Mo., July 17, 2006 
• Testimony of North Carolina Cattleman and NCBA President-Elect John Queen before the House Committee on Agriculture on the 2007 Farm Bill, Fayetteville, N.C., February 6, 2006