Farm bill limps forward

WASHINGTON -- The final negotiations on the new Farm Bill are advancing more slowly than expected, frustrating Conference Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) and other lawmakers. What appear to be the final stumbling blocks are two important policy areas: dairy and payment limitations/program eligibility provisions.

"Both of these policy issues have typically been some of the most difficult issues to resolve in previous Farm Bills and that is proving to be the case again in this Farm Bill," said Reece Langley, USA Rice's vice president of government affairs.

The four principal negotiators, Chairman Lucas, Chairman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS), and Representative Collin Peterson (D-MN), continued to meet this week to reach agreement on the final outstanding issues. And staff level discussions have also occurred and will continue into next week.

Expectations had been for a formal conference committee meeting this week to vote on a few remaining issues that will be decided by votes of the full conference, such as Country of Origin Labeling for meat, and some regulatory "fixes." Due to lack of progress this week, and what is getting set to be a showdown between House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Rep. Peterson on the dairy program, any formal conference committee meeting has been pushed off until at least next week, and the timeline for floor consideration in the House and Senate may slip until the last week of January.

"[Boehner's] statement to me was that if [dairy] supply management is in [the final bill], it's not coming to the floor. Flat out," Lucas told Politco newspaper.

USA Rice continues its work on Capitol Hill to ensure the rice industry's farm policy priorities are reflected in the final Farm Bill product.