Environmental Defense
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 19, 2007
1:14 PM
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CONTACT: Environmental Defense
Scott Faber, sfaber@environmentaldefense.org ,
(202) 230-1899-c
Sean Crowley, scrowley@environmentaldefense.org , (202) 572-3331-w 202-550-6524-c
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Statement of Environmental Defense Farm and Food Policy Campaign Director Scott Faber on House Agriculture Committee Commodity Title Proposal
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WASHINGTON - JUNE 19 - Below is a statement by Environmental Defense Farm and Food Policy Campaign Director Scott Faber on the House Agriculture Committee Commodity Title Proposal (see http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/Legislation/110/Title_I_Commodities.pdf ).
“Now is the time to restructure our farm safety net help more farmers and communities and to meet our nation’s pressing environment, energy, and health challenges. Rising commodity prices and record farm income make the subsidies crafted in response to the Dust Bowl obsolete. Unfortunately, the House Agriculture Committee proposal would perpetuate a system that helps a few large farmers in a few states, provides little or no support to more than 90 percent of America’s farmers and ranchers, and violates our trade agreements.
By failing to restructure and reduce depression-era farm subsidies, the House proposal would continue to reject – rather than reward – farmers when they share the cost of clean water and wildlife habitat. Farmers are eager to solve our environmental challenges, but two out of three farmers are rejected when they seek conservation assistance because of our misplaced spending priorities. Unless we share the cost of a healthy environment with our farmers, we can’t hope to meet some of America’s most urgent environmental challenges.
Now is the time to craft a safety net that is as modern and entrepreneurial as our farmers. Congress should reject depression-era subsidies and instead make a transition to farmer-held risk management accounts, as proposed by Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) and Reps. Kind (D-WI) and Flake (R-AZ), to help our farmers weather the ups and downs of agriculture, make investments and plan for the future. Making a transition to risk management accounts would also permit major new investments in our environmental, energy and health needs.”
To read Scott Faber’s Farm Bill blog, “The Ruminant,” see http://environmentaldefenseblogs.org/healthyfarms .
For more information about Farm Bill reform, visit www.environmentaldefense.org/go/farms .
Environmental Defense, a leading national nonprofit organization, represents more than 500,000 members. Since 1967, Environmental Defense has linked science, economics, law and innovative private-sector partnerships to create breakthrough solutions to the most serious environmental problems.
www.environmentaldefense.org
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