Conference Report on H.R. 2419, Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008
CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2419, FOOD, CONSERVATION, AND ENERGY ACT OF 2008 -- (House of Representatives - May 14, 2008)
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Mr. BLUMENAUER. I appreciate the gentleman's courtesy as I appreciate his leadership.
I heard my friend from Missouri talk about the lack of connection to rural America. And I think that is, in fact, the case. And we are missing an opportunity with this farm bill to try to strengthen it because this farm bill continues to shortchange most farmers. It will fail to fund the majority of the environmental programs that go lacking. And most farmers will continue to get nothing, nothing from this bill. The richest 10 percent will get two-thirds to three-quarters of the total direct farm payments.
There are a number of things in this bill that I like, that I have been working for since the last farm bill to help provide some support for people who grow food, not just the five big commodities. I am glad that there is an increase in nutrition. But the reason the President should, and I think will, veto this bill has nothing to do with the good stuff. It is time to reform the farm bill, to reduce to $200,000 limit on AGI to qualify for subsidy. That is what the President is arguing for. That is the right thing to do. It is something that we ought to be able to have a bipartisan majority to support.
It will save the taxpayers money. It will enable us to fully fund the environmental programs that are so critical, particularly for small and medium-sized farmers and ranchers. We don't have to shortchange nutrition. The nutrition provisions ought to be strengthened with money we save from unneeded payments to the rich.
We have lots of money that is flowing to the richest farmers in America who don't need it. That's wrong. In fact, they have assumed that this bill is so egregious, I invite any of my colleagues to look at section 1619. The authors of the bill carve out an exemption to the Freedom of Information Act so that the recent Circuit Court ruling that would open this up to a spotlight is off limits.
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