Conaway Worries Needs of Farmers, Ranchers Ignored in $2.5 Trillion House Coronavirus Bill

 

President Donald Trump used funding from the Commodity Credit Corporation to provide aid to farmers during the trade standoff with China. In the House Democrat’s 1,404-page phase three coronavirus bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not propose to replenish funding for the CCC. Senate Republicans had proposed funding it to provide payments to livestock producers.

Congressman Mike Conaway (R-Tex.) wants to fund the CCC. "It is vital that we replenish and adequately fund the CCC so America’s farmers, ranchers, and rural America receive the crucial help they need,” he said in a press release.

He said the House Democrat’s coronavirus stimulus bill blocks funding for the CCC and jeopardizes the ability of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to deliver on promises made in the 2018 Farm Bill.

According to The Fencepost, House coronavirus bill expands the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by increasing the minimum benefit and stopping the Trump administration from implementing rules that would restrict access to SNAP. It will allow SNAP recipients to purchase prepared, hot food.

The House bill does have some provisions to aid farmers and ranchers, such as farm loan servicing and loan availability, assistance to the dairy industry. It also includes funding for telehealth and distance learning.

“That is why it is so bewildering that the House Democrats proposed a COVID-19 response bill late last night that would prevent USDA from providing critical relief to America’s farmers and ranchers. By failing to replenish and adequately fund the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), House Democrats would not only deny help in response to the economic impacts of COVID-19, but they would jeopardize the ability of USDA to deliver what was promised under the Farm Bill and recently passed disaster relief.

The current Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee Collin Peterson, D-Minn., did not co-sponsor the $2.5 trillion House coronavirus bill.

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Once again every politician scrambles to tack on to an emergency bill or deny additions, simply because of politics. Party vs party. You would think that the primary and only funding on a emergency measure should be to cover the emergency, (COVID19) not something totally separate. Why we take politicians for anything more than someone looking out for their own interest is amazing. They think only of themselves while pulling the blindfold over the people they are supposed to represent.

twr_98, Tue, 03/24/2020 - 17:16

Everything is flying off the shelves. Cotton, etc will be ramped up due to needed medical supplies. In this bad time. I would think that this would really boost the farmers right now. Am I mistaken?

Mike, as the recent former majority clearly stated, the majority sets the tone for legislation. GOP legislation left millions of Americans without insurance, not 1 shyt was given by the right. Live with it Mike.

Just give trump hotels a bailout and call it a win.

Why the CCC still exists is completely beyond me. Wanna end shortages of cotton? Let the dadgum farmers charge whatever they want to for their crops- more people need cotton balls, they should pay the farmers more. Milk subsidies and regulations are the epitome of government waste and contradiction. They set the price floor on milk, which means more milk is produced in the country than people will buy, so to not let the milk go to waste, what does CCC do? They buy the milk at the artificially high price nobody would pay with our tax dollars and then give it away to kids for lunch. Again, they set an artificially high price for milk, then buy the extra milk at that higher price, and then just give it away for free. It's 'udder' lunacy

But.. but I thought those big beautiful tariffs were going to pay for themselves and be such a win for the economy?? Seems they weren't though (shocking), and the money he robbed from the CCC to buy continued support for the farmers hurt by his dumb@ss tariffs is supposed to come from this aid package? You are off your rocker, Mike. GOP is really good at talking a fiscally responsible game, but for some reason no one ever ends up better off except the already wealthy in a Republican administration.

The farmers seemed to be doing alright prior to the easy to win trade war. That trade war devastated many family farms the only farms that realize a benefit from the giveaway farm bills are the big corp farms that donate to GOP political campaigns. It is a farce Republicans label themselves as conservative when they are the ones responsible for most of the huge federal debt. There has not been a true conservative republican since Nixon.

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